Hi everyone,
This past week has been a hoot - but also a little sad.
A lot of people have gotten all excited about a pdf document that is making the rounds (see below.)
What is both funny and sad are the methods being used to promote it.
Most people simply go to their back office, grab the suggested email from their toolbox, and start sending it and posting it all over the net.
The problem with this method of advertising is that people soon notice that the emails they are getting from all their friends are all the same, and not actually personal emails recommendations from a friend.
(I've probably had somewhere around fifty of these, already...)
Secondly, this is an extremely ineffective way to get through with your email. It doesn't take long for the spam filters to recognize that this same text is coming through from many sources , so it gets flagged as spam and is either simply deleted or dumped into spam folders. Either way, it doesn't get seen.
When you are promoting something, it's always best to use your own words. If you have difficulty writing good copy, try rewriting some of the ads from your backoffice in your own words. One of the great things about the English language is that we have a lot of choices for words and phrases with the same meaning.
Furthermore, if you are mailing to people who know you, they are used to the way you express yourself, and are expecting to see your own style in a personal email. Also, if they get an email from you that is an exact copy of emails they have already received from other friends, your credibility will take a nosedive, as they realize that you are simply trying to get them to buy something or sign up for something from you.
In the case of this free pdf document that's being so heavily promoted, if people would READ it, instead of simply promoting it to get the $1.00 bounty for everyone they get to download it, they would have no problem writing a REAL recommendation to their friends and getting a lot more of those dollars in their accounts with far less effort!
Incidently, the document is The Death of Internet Marketing, by Mike Filsaime. It actually IS well worth it to download the free document; in fact, if you plan on doing any business online in 2007 and beyond, you SHOULD download it, and right away, as it will give you a serious heads up on what to expect in the near future, and what NOT to keep doing.
Oh, and make sure you READ it!
God bless,
Dave |