eNewsletters that Get Read!

eNewsletters have become an Internet Marketing tool that almost all small business owners take advantage of: they're cheap to produce, you can track your results, you can easily direct readers to buy something at the click of a button, and it's easy. So, why is it so hard not to have an eNewsletter that won't be deleted or marked as Spam? Well, below I've given some quick tips on how to by-pass the Junk Mail folder, and go straight to the "Must Read" folder.

-First, make it interesting with color and photos.
-Second, make it easy to read with bullet points, headlines and small paragraphs
-Third, don't just write about you, but give some information that your readers care about. For instance, if you're a photographer, have a link to a short video on how to hold your camera correctly.
-Fourth, pay attention to subject lines. Announce who you are, and what the reader can expect to find in the eNewsletter. An example would be "Blaze Interactive :: Make eNewsletters Stand Out!"
-Lastly, make it short. We don't have a lot of time these days to read emails, as often our email box is full. If at first glance it looks like a novel, often people will just ignore it; yet if it's too short, it will look like spam and the email program will automatically send it to the Junk Mail box. In order to avoid this, have more text than there are pictures, and use the feature in your email database prgram to check the email for your possible score on the Spam chart.

So, remember, keep it short, sweet and pretty and you'll have it made.
If you need help in creating your eNewsletter, or don't want the hassle finding pictures or upkeeping your database, give me a call (949.249.4952) and we can help you out!

To Your Internet Marketing Small Business Success!
Rachel Pradhan
Blaze Interactive
Start your eNewsletter campaign with iContact.com, the email database program with so much more to offer!

What is an RSS Feed?

Think of RSS as Microsoft Outlook where all the emails that you need to receive comes pouring in one program (Microsoft Outlook/Outlook Express). RSS system is just like that. If you want to read news or blogs or other things on the web (even listen to podcasts), instead of going to 100's of news websites or blogs, you just receive it in one program. This program is called a "Feed Reader," or "Aggregator." Once you download this program to your computer, you just tell it which news website or blog you want to subscribe to and then the feed reader will go to work. It will put on it's make up and high heels and go out to get those blogs and news articles for you!

Now, you must be wondering how does the feed reader know where to go? Well, the blog or any website or podcast that you want to subscribe to, will have a little button that will look like the above image, or say "RSS." You click on this button and it will give you a link like this: http://rachelindra.audioacrobat.com/rss/indras_voice.xml (this is the RSS link for our podcasts). Give this link to your feedreader to make her happy-this is all she needs to know where to go and who to talk to. The feedreader I prefer is http://www.google.com/reader.

What is a Blog?

A blog is a user-created website where entries are made in an online journal and displayed in a reverse chronological order. Blogs often provide commentary or news on a particular subject, such as food, politics, or local news; some function as more personal online diaries. For coaches wanting to start a blog, you should focus on your particular expertise: relationships, business, spirituality, or the law of attraction. A typical blog combines text, images, and links to other blogs, web pages, and other media related to its topic. The ability for readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important part of most early blogs. For small businesses using a blog is a great way to generate new and fresh content, which allows visitors to visit often.

When marketing your coaching or motivational speaker website, you need to have a reason for visitors to visit more than once. The idea is to get them to visit often, so that you have more opportunities to market to your potential clients.

A blog can have many different faces: it can be an area that you post articles related to your service or products, it could be where you post news releases, it could be where you post commentaries, and it can even be an online journal of personal thoughts, but it should be related to your expertise if it's attached to your website. A blog is not, however, where you should expect a lot of feed back or visitor communication. Visitor’s can leave comments, but generally a blog is not for that purpose. A forum is a better communication vehicle, which I will discuss in my next blog entry!

Once you start your blog, you can use blog distributors' sites, such as www.technorati.com to promote your blog, and your business!

-Rachel

What is a PodCast?

I like to think of PodCasts as an Internet Radio Show, that anyone, all over the world, can listen to. To first understand what a PodCast is and start creating your own, you have to listen to a few. I would recommend familiarizing yourself with Apple iTunes. Click the title above download iTunes to your computer. It's free, and easy to do. (If you have any problems doing this, just call me at 949.249.4958 and I'll walk you through it).

Once you've downloaded iTunes, and it's installed, open it up and click on "Podcast" on the left-hand side. Then start browsing the different PodCasts you see on the center of the page. If you want to search for a particular kind of show, then go up to the "Search" button at the top-right-hand side of Apple iTunes. Type in what your looking for, such as women business, business coaching, motivation, funny...whatever you wish..and click "Search". A list of Podcasts will show-up below. Click on one that looks interesting and listen to an episode. When you listen to one you like, click the "Subscribe" button, and Apple iTunes will download the RSS feed* to your Apple iTunes, which will be updated every time theres a new "episode" of that particular PodCast. So, instead of going through the Apple iTunes Store, you will click the "Podcasts" button on left-hand side when you want to listen to a new episode. Subscribe to as many Podcasts as you would like, and listen to them for some ideas on how you would like your OWN PodCast to sound.

Tomorrow, we'll discuss how to start thinking of creating your own PodCast.

*think of an RSS feed as you would your email: you have an email account, and when someone wants to write to you they use your email address. When you subscribe to an RSS feed, your saying that every time that person updates their Podcast or Blog, you want it to go directly to you, just like an email. To "Read" other RSS feeds, you need an RSS reader, such as Google Reader. To try-out an RSS feed from somewhere other than iTunes, check-out Podcast.net and follow their directions on how to add an RSS feed to your Reader, IndrasVoice.com or even CNN.com. Soon, you'll be an RSS pro!