The new year is a time when many companies like to launch new marketing strategies. To assist in this process we have a special offer that is available during December.
If your company signs up to use our newsletter system for 12 months you will get 3 months free use in 2007. This offer is available to the end of December.
You can use this month of December to get your newsletter set up and ready to go for a launch in the new year.
If this sounds like an offer that would benefit your company please get in touch

The truth is, being top of mind is also what accounts for much of an E-Newsletter's effectiveness. Adults with a problem – don't reach very far when they need a solution. Whether in need of an attorney, a financial planner, a coach, a recruiter, a consultant or some other type of service professional, we ask around and try and think about who we know.

It's a short list, typically assembled in a short amount of time, and the only way to get on it is to be top of mind – in the right person's mind – when the need arises. You've still got to close the deal of course, but if the phone never rings, you never get the chance to swing the bat.

As a practical matter, and when it comes to creating top-of-mindedness through your E-Newsletter, I'd suggest paying attention to two things:

Frequency. I can't remember you if I don't remember you (try to stay with me), and that means publishing on a regular basis. I prefer monthly because it's frequent enough to give you a presence in the minds of your readers, but not so much so that the effort will overwhelm you. Twelve times a year is all it takes.

Identifiability. Although apparently not a real word, this sums up an important aspect of being remembered. Because if I'm going to call you or pass your name along to a friend in need, you've got to pop into my head the moment someone mentions a desire for "blank" (with blank being whatever it is you do).

If your blank is clear and narrow… see a doctor. No, I'm kidding. If your blank is clear and narrow (e.g. "Restaurant marketing guru," or "Financial planner for female small business owners," or "Bald, but oddly likeable E-Newsletter expert") you've got a good chance of coming to mind.

If, on the other hand, you're associated with a more generic label (e.g. "life coach" or "management consultant"), you'll be competing with many more people, one of whom (rather than you) may pop into my head when I start thinking about who might fit the bill.

The implication for your E-Newsletter and its focus is that you've got to stake out a narrow piece of territory and decide what you want to be famous for. And while I acknowledge that this reduces the size of your potential client list, in my experience, it greatly increases the likelihood that among those remaining, you'll come to mind. Do that often enough, and some of those calls will turn into actual clients, which, after all, is the whole point.

Bottom Line: If your clients and potential clients make decisions regarding whom to hire based on a rational, objective, comprehensive analysis of available solutions, being top of mind probably doesn't matter that much. If, however, your target audience consists mainly of human beings, it does.

Publish your E-Newsletter regularly and do what you can to become associated with a clear and narrow area of expertise.

Build and Maintain Consumer Trust
When used responsibly, email is a powerful tool for communicating with customers, strengthening relationships and driving ongoing revenue. Marketers should build trust over time by limiting the volume of email they send, not overpromising in subject lines, respecting consumers' email preferences and always quickly honoring unsubscribes — usually within 24 hours.

Test for Optimal Frequency
There is no magic number of emails that a marketer should send. The optimal number varies depending on the reason for communicating—e.g., news might be sent daily, discounts might be sent weekly or monthly, and product updates might only be sent quarterly or annually.
Test and analyze open rates, click-through rates, pass-along rates and conversion rates to help determine the most appropriate frequency for emailing your customer base.

Differentiate from Spam
It is no surprise that unsolicited promotional email is consumers' number-one concern about their email. It is critical for legitimate marketers to differentiate themselves from spam to avoid being automatically deleted or placed in users' bulk mail folder. Many marketers make it very clear at the beginning of an email how the consumer opted in to receive it. Others have tried tactics such as using their name in the subject line to emphasize to consumers which company it is from.

Test Your Subject Line
Not only should email marketers tailor their subject line based on the gender, age, location and preferences of consumers, where these are known, it is also important to measure the responses to varying subject lines across the entire audience. Email affords a much greater level of analysis than any other form of direct mail by enabling marketers to determine which recipients actually opened and read their mail, who passed it along to friends, and, of course, who acted upon it.

Use Email for Customer Service
As the preferred method of communication with companies, customers expect to receive customer service emails, such as purchase confirmation and shipping details. Marketers should consider automatic response emails as a highly cost-effective way to continue a dialog with a customer and emphasize the company's brand and messages.

Upsell Targeted Offers in Customer Service Emails
Although consumers expect to receive customer service communications from marketers, these messages should not be considered an obligation. Rather, they are an opportunity for companies to upsell even more targeted offerings to existing companies. Marketers should include offers in their customer service email, such as offer products that relate directly to purchases, or inform customers what other products have been bought by people that bought the same product as they did.