This is a guest post by Steven Papas is the owner of the VeryBestSoftware.net.
If you want to guest post on this blog, check out the guidelines here.
You probably don’t realize it, but we’re at war! It’s an online struggle for readers. In this fight for survival, it’s only their clicks that save you. So, the goal is to grab these clicks before the other guy does. You’ve got to get their mouse-clicking fingers itching, and this is exactly what internet marketers know all about. But bloggers are missing the point and the battle’s not playing out well.
Internet marketing is nothing more than monetization. The key to monetizing – whether you’ve got a landing page, a mini-site or a blog – is fostering loyalty with your readers. Not only that, you’ve got to have different techniques for doing it. Why don’t bloggers get this? Because most of us aren’t really money-minded.
Why do we start blogs? To connect with friends, family or people with a similar interest, or as a hobby for spreading our ideas. This is what blogs were originally intended for, but now they’ve morphed into something else entirely.
Once a blogger realizes that the other guys are making money off their blogs, they realize they can do it too. They launch into it full-on, intent on turning from a recreational blogger into a professional blogger. But it’s not as easy as just continuing what you’re doing already and the money will roll right in. It can only be done by channeling a guru of marketing.
Teach Me, O Great One
Now, before you race off to the nearest guru’s landing page and hit the PAY NOW button on whatever product they’re selling you (undoubtedly telling you how THEY did it), think about it for a second. What you should be doing is employing simple strategies that they used to make their money. One of these key strategies is the newsletter.
The Reasons Why Newsletters Are Essential
Newsletters get you what you need – loyalty, and tons of it. Instead of waiting for each individual reader to find you, you simply go to them. Newsletters drive traffic to your blog and also give you opportunities to monetize.
The purpose of your newsletter is to keep your readers in-the-know and also keep contact with them. But it’s got one more huge purpose – to keep them from clicking away. Most of the people who hit your blog don’t ever return. They may like it a lot, but everybody gets busy and your blog (along with many others) gets lost in the shuffle. A newsletter keeps them in the loop.
How To Get Subscribers
To have a newsletter, you need subscribers. How do you get people to subscribe? The main way is to have killer content on your blog that they love. People who enjoy your writing are your fans, and they’ll sign up to get more. But one thing that helps is when you remind them here and there to sign up. They may not do that if you don’t mention it. Remind them also that the newsletter includes stuff the blog doesn’t, so they’ll be getting exclusive content.
Work Those Newsletters, Baby!
How many emails does an average person get in their inbox each day? A mind-boggling amount. So, in order to get them to open your newsletter messages, you need a great subject that entices them to open it. You’ve got a great advantage over the other junk because they’re already familiar with your great work. Your messages don’t have to change anybody’s life; they just have to have a good lead in to hook the reader, and provide something cool or interesting.
You’ll also want to use your newsletter to get them to return to your blog. Remind them that you’ve updated your blog and maybe give them a taste of what cool new stuff they can expect there. Send them a message on a routine schedule (once or twice a week is good) and give them a teaser about what’s posted on your blog.
Last but not least, use your newsletter to offer them sizzling deals that they can’t get anywhere else. This is how you monetize. Offer them products that are in your niche or would be of interest to them. Sign up with Clickbank, Amazon, Commission Junction or another affiliate group, and you’ll get a cut of what they buy.
The point is that if you want to make money on a blog, you should think like a marketer. If marketers are the generals and colonels, bloggers are the ‘infrantry’ on the ground. And you know what happens to them when the shooting starts! Start growing your mailing list now!
Steven Papas is the owner of the VeryBestSoftware.net where he gives blogging tips for online businesses, software reviews and technology news.
Thanks Steven for the great information. I have to admit that I can fall down when it comes to my newsletter. I now have it on my list. I’ll start with once a week to get in the habit of doing this.
Thanks again and I really appreicate the reminder. I do already have the affiliates, but I am not using them like I need too.
Have a wonderful day or evening.
Debbie
Debbie,
You do want to get into the habit of at least monthly.
I send out a newsletter to my subscribers at the beginning of every month. The new month is the reminder!
Within the newsletter I have content that I never issue or publish on my blog. So it is unique for my subscribers.
I do like Steven’s ideas around special offers.
Something I shall try.
Andrew
Andrew
thanks Debbie! I am glad that I helped a little bit. As Andrew says, a monthly newsletter is great. Doesn’t really have to be on a weekly basis, at least for the beginning.
Steven,
I have definitely not been using my newsletter effectively. I’ve been so turned off by the countless affiliate offers I receive from almost every blog I subscribe to.
Although I don’t like it, I understand that it’s one of the best ways to make money. With that said, I now need to figure out a strategy to create a responsive list.
Thanks
Steve
Mines not perfect but I try to offer ‘extra’ advice and tips to my subscribers that I don’t publish here on the blog.
Approx every 1 in 5 emails I sent out will be an offer for a service or tool that I personally use and recommend.
Plus each email only goes out weekly…so it is about 5 weeks after subscribing to my free guide before I send out a sales type email.
Andrew
I can only say that you really practice what you preach.
Just by having this checkbox above the commenting textbox to sign for the newsletter says tons of this post and blog, I will definitely look it up.
I also agree that killer content is a must for every serious blogger and even though it sounds easy to do, it’s actually very hard.
Subscribed by the way! 😉
~Sergio Felix
Thanks Sergio;)Andrew and Joel have taught me so much through their Income Blogging Guide and I really owe them. The importance of quality content either in your posts or in your newsletter is what attracts readers and therefore subscribers.
Thanks, Steven! *Blush*
Andrew
Thank you for your quick reply Steven! I will surely hang around here with you guys for a while as I can immediately recognize when someone can teach me something. 😉
Sergio
Thanks for the nice comments. If you do find creating killer content hard…you could always outsource some of it. I offer a blog writing service, right here:
https://www.webuildyourblog.com/blogging-services/blog-writing/
Andrew
Thanks to you Andrew for getting back and offering a cool service. I’ll have this offer in mind once I get out of the DIY phase, have a great day! 😉
Newsletter are a great way ti increase your subscribers. I was hardheaded and didn’t use them when I first started using Aweber. Seeing that my list of subscribers are so important to my business I started using newsletters and saw a dramatic increase in subscribers.
I wish I would have come across your article when I first started. Great piece, I know it’s going to help.
That’s right John. The money is in the list.
The newsletter is very important, I don’t really understand the bloggers that don’t use it. A lot of free option are out there. I use MailChimp and is free and easy to use.
It’s not very common cause it really requires to run the extra mile and offer something substantially unique if you don’t want your newsletters end up in the trash folder. You have to add an actual and tangible value to its recipients.
Hi Steven, you got this right on the head! This is something I’m working on right now because I’ve found it to be a powerful way of building relationships that can be really profitalbe in time to come. And thanks for the advice to build a list now.
Hi Steven,
I learned a lot from your post here about newsletters and their importance. I still have a long way to go, but I am glad I’ve read this post! Bookmarked it for future reference (so I can read it again by the time I finally start my own newsletter).
Thanks for sharing this informative article with us.
thanks you Johanna. I am glad that I helped you.
Good luck with you endeavors
What is your opinion on newsletters sent in PDF format?
Dennis
There is no right or wrong (well maybe wrong!) way to send a newsletter. It is a matter of testing.
Personally I use Aweber and like the format of their newsletters on offer.
You open the email and there it is.
If you are asking me to click on another link to open the newsletter – not sure if I would.
Andrew
Hi Dennis, I read about the newsletter in pdf sometime ago and is one of the options I’m considering for delivering my newsletter once everything is laid out. I think there are many good points to using it.
Chadrack
What are the good points?
Andrew
Hi Andrew, Hi Steven,
Yes Bloggers are just like the infantry of any army but the war actually depends on it. So, Bloggers are the back bone of online marketing.
Regards
Okay, I hear ya on the newsletters. I really do. I get decent blog traffic. I have a subscriber list. But for some reason I can’t hit the send button on the newsletter.
I think it may be my own hate/hate relationship with my inbox. I just don’t want to bug anyone.
Yes, I can hear you now…they wouldn’t have subscribed if they didn’t expect to get something. okay. end one-sided therapy session.
I’ll get a newsletter out post-haste.
Nice post, thanks!
Kathy
Kathy
As long as you provide a quality newsletter (and you will)…your subscribers will thank you!
Let us know how you get on.
Andrew
Hi Kathy, thanks for your comment:) In my country we have a saying: “once you start, you are already half way there!”. I agree with Andrew; a quality newsletter will make your readers happy. Keep it short though 😉
thanks for the push guys! I have it on my To Do list for this week. Working for Wonka Newsletter NUMBER ONE, coming soon to an in box near you.