10 Tips for a Wildly Successful Email Marketing Campaign

It seems like every time I turn on the radio, there's an ad for an email marketing automation tool. Constant Contact, Mailchimp, Emma, iContact and even Salesforce make it pretty easy for small and mid-size businesses to automate beautiful emails. Or for larger organizations, there are offerings like Marketo, Adobe Marketing Cloud and Eloqua.

But while the ads make it sound like these campaigns write themselves, they don't.

Email marketing is a delicate business. On one hand, you don't want to be an evil spammer. On the other, email is an efficient way to stay in touch with potential and existing customers.

I've been involved in many email campaigns through the years. Here's what I've learned:

1. Choose an email automation tool that fits the size of your marketing team.

Many of the more robust products really need a staff person at the reins. If you can't afford someone in that position, then turn your attention toward simpler software that requires little overhead.

2. Use a third party tool instead of Outlook.

You really need an unsubscribe button to give recipients the opportunity to opt out, and Outlook doesn't have that.

In some countries you might otherwise be breaking the law, such as the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation.

3. Protect personally identifiable information.

Use strong passwords with the service you use and never sell that information unless your privacy policy explicitly states you can (and even then it's still probably a bad idea).

4. Don't take yourself too seriously.

Boring, dry emails get old fast and people will almost invariably unsubscribe (except your competitors).

Be yourself, be conversational and feel free to poke fun at yourself every now and then. This makes your organization a little more human. And it makes your job more fun.

5. Automate syncing contacts with your CRM.

Loading or syncing your contacts from your Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool can be labor intensive and can cause technical misfires that end up adding people who have unsubscribed back in, or sending people duplicate emails.

Instead, whenever possible, choose a tool that has a plug-in or integration with existing tools you use at your organization.

6. Use email automation to cross-sell goods and services.

If you've already converted a lead to a customer then you will have the ability to potentially sell them other items in your portfolio.

Don't be too salesy, but do have multiple campaigns - those for prospects at each stage of the sales funnel and those for organizations who are already customers at various maturity levels - so the content is fresh and pertinent to them.

7. Use email automation to communicate more than just a sales pitch.

Don't use email just to hawk products. Send surveys or thought leadership content such as an interesting industry report to stay engaged with customers, as long as you don't do it too often.

8. Be timely.

If it's tax season, for example, tell customers and leads how your product can help them file their return. If it's April, talk about spring cleaning. If they've been a customer for three months, check in to see how they're doing.

9. Have a call to action.

Let's say you sent that email timed to tax season. Have a button with a call to action.

A great way achieve this is to coordinate a blog post and have a "Read more" button, and then a call to action within that post.

The longer you can keep a prospect's or customer's attention, the more likely they are to buy your product and stay with you.

10. Pay attention to when people unsubscribe.

This is simple - stop doing whatever it is you're doing that made them unsubscribe.

Remember, if people are clicking, you're succeeding. If they're not clicking and they're unsubscribing, you're not! Email can be a very powerful tool for interacting with customers - as long as you do it right.


Source: https://www.inc.com/
Image Credit: Getty Images


ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!

3 Relationships That Will Build the Tribe Every Entrepreneur Deserves

Entrepreneurial success isn't easy to achieve, and it's even harder when you're going it alone. Every entrepreneur needs to build a network of sustaining individuals who fill key relationship roles -- -- and LinkedIn is stepping in to help.

The business-centric social network is preparing to roll out Career Advice, a new service to connect its members with potential mentors. Users set preferences about the advice they'd like to give or receive, and LinkedIn suggests possible partnerships within their networks, schools or regions. Once connected, mentor and mentee can talk using LinkedIn's messaging service.

How valuable are these connections? In a MicroMentor survey of more than 700 participants, entrepreneurs with mentors increased their business revenue by 83 percent; mentorless small businesses gained only 16 percent in the same period.

Life is a team sport, and we cannot succeed alone. Building healthy, supportive relationships is more than a cornerstone of life and dream fulfillment; nourishing ourselves with the words, advice, and caring of others is embedded in humanity's very fabric.

A biological drive to connect

If I asked you to list humanity's basic needs, you likely would include food, water and shelter. But that list would be incomplete without mention of social connections.

Matthew Lieberman, author of Social: Why Our Brains Are Wired to Connect, has explored the psychological association between trusting social relationships and personal and professional success. Fewer than 5 percent of the 60,000 leaders he examined for his book described themselves as adept at both forming strong relationships and turning in important business results. The takeaway? Many individuals cannot easily bring ideas to market, and so leave innovations to "wither."

I echo Lieberman's sentiments: Building networks and leveraging the talent of a team of gifted persons results in major benefits. When you recognize and celebrate the strengths of others, you uplift people and reduce stress-producing interactions. Instead of seeds of doubt, you plant seeds of energy -- and watch your true potential and greatness evolve.

Who do you need to be in your corner?

Although you might be great at connecting with your team at work, you need to branch out beyond your company or field to find new friends. Think about everyone in your life who plays a pivotal part in helping you get from today to tomorrow. Ideally, you should have each of the following personalities in your corner:

1. The cheerleader. Doesn't everyone deserve to look to the sidelines and see someone rooting just for them? When the chips are down, this person says "Everything's going to be OK" and makes the tough stuff easier. He or she is excited for your achievements and urges you to work hard -- and this verbal encouragement will help you achieve your goals, just as it can help athletes perform better. No better tireless advocate exists than the cheerleader.

One way to attract cheerleader types into your sphere is to show appreciation for others. Comment on your colleagues' positive behaviors and contributions, especially if you've neglected to say anything thus far. Send a handwritten note to a colleague or friend to thank him or her. The more you emit cheerleader vibes, the more likely you'll magnetize these much-needed friends to your own corner.

2. The mentor. When you're dealing with a startup's ups and downs, you need someone you can call who has navigated similar hurdles. Find a person who exhibits the traits you covet, and ask him or her to be your mentor. If you can engage at least once a month to share ideas and get advice, you'll start to see your confidence and business acumen soar. Just ask Bill Gates: He credits his mentor, Warren Buffett, with teaching him to change the way he thinks and with igniting his interest in philanthropy.

Finding and securing a mentor takes both audacity and patience. First, write down the specific expectations you have for a mentoring relationship. Then, seek out mentors from all your in-person and online business and social networks. Ask for an exploratory meeting to discuss forming a formal mentorship relationship. If you can get a commitment, make sure each meeting covers what you both need.

3. The foxhole buddy. The foxhole buddy is someone you can count on to be with you day in and day out. You need a partner who will have your back every day and whose skills complement your own. Consider the partnership between Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, co-founders of Apple: Wozniak was the mastermind behind the tech giant's first offerings, while Jobs focused on building the future of the company. Wozniak has said that a combination of technological expertise and business acumen like theirs is key to overall success.

You and your foxhole buddy should be the "yin" to each other's "yang," able to combine forces and make an unstoppable team. Make sure you're both headed toward the same goal and focused on the same future so you can get there together.

Bring the smartest, most optimistic people with real-world experience into your inner circle. The more intentional you are in your relationships, the more your investment in social connections will pay business and spiritual dividends.


Source: https://www.entrepreneur.com/
Image Credit: Shutterstock


ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!

I Ask Myself These 3 Questions Before Asking Someone for Help--and It's Taught Me How to Craft Meaningful Relationships

You can't do everything by yourself. It's not feasible, and it certainly isn't any better for you in the long run. Over the years i've built a strong circle of friends who are business sharks in their own right.

These friends help me to improve in areas I am weak, and I offer my two cents when they ask for it. We recommend interesting people to work with, give help when needed, and generally just want to help each other to succeed.

Building these types of relationships that are mutually beneficial is key to the growth of your professional abilities. However not everyone is a good fit. For me it's the people who are easy going and enjoyable to chat with, and it's comfortable to shoot a text over like, "Hey I think you might find so and so as a great fit for your new project, what do you think?"

I was reminded of this last night when a friend reached out to discuss his goals for 2018. He wanted to achieve more notoriety for his efforts in the business world, and thought that I could assist him in achieving that goal. What I appreciated about his approach, was that it wasn't all "me me me" but that he understood that asking for help comes with the responsibility of offering help in return.

He asked how he could help me, and as I had seen this coming a mile away, I was quick to say that I knew he had done over 50 speaking gigs in 2017, and that I was interesting in becoming a better public speaker. I'm of the opinion that we can always learn something new from others.

He and I decided to help each other throughout 2018 to accomplish certain goals that the other excelled at. These are the types of business relationships I admire, the ones that give and take, yet leave you feeling fulfilled at the end of it all. Not only do I get to help someone truly worthy of more publicity, but I get a few lessons along the way.

Take a moment to think of a weakness in your professional persona that could use a boost. You cannot be great at everything, but with the help of others you can very well try to be.


Ask yourself these three questions to put your plan into action:

1. What professional skill do you want to excel at?

2. Who do you know that is very good at this one thing?

3. What help can you offer them in return?

Make it a point to reach out to that person to catch up with them. Don't make it too obvious you're only calling because you want something, that's the worst. I feel that way constantly, and I am no longer too timid to call someone out on it.

Tell them you'd appreciate their help with something, and ask them how you can help them. They may surprise you and ask for help in an area you didn't expect. Take that as a compliment. Remember, mutually beneficial relationships make the world go round.

Don't be parasitic, those are the worst types of friends. If you act in this manner you will find yourself sending texts and emails that people don't reply to. Propose a mutually beneficial relationship to a colleague or friend, and start bettering yourself today.

Source: https://www.inc.com/
Image Credit: Getty Images


ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!

Here's the Secret to a Successful Marketing or Networking Event

Whether it's a customer meeting, an industry conference or an employee celebration, your business puts on its fair share of events. These events are important but also require considerable time to plan, market and execute, which limits how much effort you can devote to other tasks. It would be great to have an entire team devoted to event planning, but if you don't have the budget for one, you can leverage event technology instead, including tools and event platforms that automate the event management process. Here are some ways that you can more effectively manage your events, no matter how big or small.

1. Event platforms.

Eventbrite is the world's leading event technology platform. Besides providing a framework for hosting all types of events, such as music festivals, conferences, contests, fundraisers, gaming competitions and more, the event technology company provides an increasingly automated and integrated system for creating, promoting and hosting these events.

For example, its whitepaper "5 Essential Eventbrite Extensions That Will Make You More Productive" defines many of the aspects of an event that can now be integrated and automated, including 130 extensions that shorten the time you need to spend on an event. Many of these extensions you may already recognize and use, which makes employing an event platform even easier.

For example, you can use MailChimp from the Eventbrite event platform to send personalized, automated emails to sell event tickets. SurveyMonkey automates the event feedback process to determine what your guests thought of the event and what you might improve. Also, Eventbrite has a Publish to Facebook tool and the ability to integrate with Hootsuite to get the word out about your event. Finally, Zapier extends the automation capabilities within the platform to perform numerous event-related tasks, thus removing the need for, say, any manual data entry.

2. Event planning automation technologies.

Event planning automation is advancing in many ways. Radio-frequency identification(RFID) technology, which has been around for a while, is now becoming a more common tool for automating aspects of an event. For example, the wireless system can be used in attendee wristbands for large-scale events, saving considerable resources and eliminating manual checks. In addition, the stored information can help you enhance the customer experience at the event. Attendees will not need to worry about carrying credit cards or a ticket but can just enjoy the show.

Furthermore, the data from those RFID wristbands can be analyzed through machine learning to deliver new insights that can lead to improved events for you and your audience. Various types of intelligent analytics can now be used to look at every aspect of the event to identify what the audience liked, what delivered the greatest return, and what needs more thought.

3. Event engagement technologies.

Attendee engagement is a vital part of the event management process. It could make the difference in the number of attendees who return to future events you hold, as well as the recommendations -- or complaints -- they share with their network. These technologies offer an incredible range of ways to engage with your eventgoers, such as gamification, social walls, live streaming, second-screen technology, people discovery, content sharing and attendee logistics.

Another area gaining attention is the use of virtual reality and augmented reality as event engagement tools. Many venues are offering virtual reality through Oculus Rift viewers as a way to provide a better vantage point of their space. However, you can also use this technology to engage with your attendees. It provides the option for virtual attendance, extending your pool of attendees beyond those physically present. Virtual reality viewers can potentially enhance any type of gamification at your event as well.

4. Biometrics and sentiment analysis.

Biometrics technology such as facial recognition is helping to strengthen and facilitate event security. To gauge your attendees' response to your event, sentiment technology collects such attendee data as mood and engagement level, in addition to demographic data such as age, gender and ethnicity. Examples include Sightcorp's CrowdStats Audience Analytics system, Visage Technologies' face tracking and analysis technologies and Mood.me's Face Tracking SDK and Emotion Recognition SDK. The XOX emotional technology platform even provides a sensory wristband that can measure attendee excitement.

A complete event package.

This intriguing list of event technologies illustrates the significant changes that have occurred in event management in recent years. There are many ways to reduce the time you spend managing events while also increasing the overall experiences you create and the insights you can glean from them. Even better is that these event technologies are fairly affordable and have proven to deliver a considerable return on investment.




Source: https://www.entrepreneur.com
Image credit: Rawpixel Getty Image


ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!

3 Ways a Seductive Call to Action Can Make Any Sales Email Irresistible

A sales email's subject line gives recipients an initial glimpse of you and your business and, hopefully entices them to open an email. But it's the call to action (CTA) that usually determines whether someone will actually hit "reply" and write you back.

Far too often, people obsess about the former and neglect the latter, ending their email with utterly forgettable lines like, "I look forward to hearing from you" or "Let's chat soon. TTYL."

If you're ending emails with calls to action like that, you're giving your prospective customers a really bad last impression of yourself. You're also failing to provide clear instructions as to the next steps you want to take. In other words, these would-be customers have zero incentive to respond to you.

To avoid leaving these people confused, bored, or just uninterested, take the time to write crystal-clear CTAs that offer something enticing and push them to respond.

Here are three ways to do that: 

1. Offer something of value.

Why should a prospective customer respond to you? It's not because you have a really cool demo to show them. In fact, most people have no interest in hearing about every product feature or watching an "informative" video clip. If you want to get your prospects on the phone, you need to prove they'll get something valuable to them in return for their time.

Think about how a phone call with you will improve their lives. Will it save time or money in the long run? Can it solve an especially painful business problem? Could it offer warning signs about a mission-critical issue, like security? So long as they're offering value that's relevant, any of these tactics can help build up credibility and entice your contact to respond.

2. Keep it short and simple.

It only takes seconds to lose someone's attention in a sales email. That's as true of the end of the message as it is of the opening line.

Your CTA is just a simple request. Bearing that in mind, keep yours focused and brief: "When do you have 10 minutes to discuss ideas for increasing your website traffic?"

Stick to one idea per CTA; nothing will confuse a reader and lose their attention faster than cramming multiple asks into one sentence. And limit these CTAs to one or two sentences, max. When it doubt, shorter is better.

Avoid cramming links, PDFs, or videos into the end of your email. Not only does this make the entire message look cluttered, it's also confusing. A reader won't know how to prioritize all those different asks, and when that happens, there's a high chance this confusion will make them give up on your email altogether.

3. Make sure your ask isn't overwhelming.

One of the reasons CTAs need to be simple is that it's easy to ask a prospect for too much and end up pushing them away. Potential customers receive hundreds, sometimes thousands, of emails each week. Most all of those messages ask them to schedule a call, book a meeting, watch a demo. So if you show up in their inbox asking for an unspecified amount of their time, you're only adding another burden to the pile, rather than offering value.

To avoid that, stick to very basic requests. Asking for 10 minutes of your potential customers' time is a non-threatening way to try and engage them. It's easier for people to say "yes" to something when they know they won't be stuck on the phone indefinitely.

And if they agree to this 10-minute call, honor the timeframe and don't spend an hour rambling about every feature your product offers.

Your CTA is really just another way of helping your potential customers take the next step, and another way to build up trust with them. Ultimately, the best salespeople end their emails by showing how much they can help the other person. Make sure your own CTAs reflect that, and you'll start to see response rates that match the open ones.



Source: https://www.inc.com
Image Source: Getty Images

ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!

10 Tips for Improving Customer Experience and Growing Your Business

Optimize Your Website’s User Experience and Boost SEO

Search engines don’t just look at keywords when determining how to rank websites. They also want to call attention to sites that provide great user experiences. So by optimizing the user experience of your website, you can also boost your SEO. 

Supercharge Your Google Shopping Ads

Google Shopping can be a powerful way for ecommerce businesses to get their products in front of more online shoppers. You can make that tool even more powerful by investing in advertising options. 

Consider the Benefits of Podcasting

Podcasts have been around for years. But many businesses still overlook them when creating their content marketing strategies. 

Follow These Top Holiday Season Digital Trends

The holiday season offers some major opportunities for businesses to market their products and services online. But you need to keep an eye on the landscape to get the most out of your efforts. 

Learn These Lessons About Social Media and Millennials

Marketing to millennials has become a hot topic for businesses in recent years. But some businesses still have difficulty using social media to connect with this group. 

Overcome These Digital Transformation Challenges

Technology is forcing businesses in all industries to transform. But there are challenges that go along with that. 

Be Intentional with Your Character Count on Twitter

Twitter recently increased its character limit from 140 to 280. But does that mean you should double the length of all your tweets? 

Increase Word of Mouth Referrals with Online Reviews

Online review sites have made a major impact on how consumers choose which companies to do business with. These reviews can lead to tons of word of mouth referrals for businesses. 

Balance Your Small Business Budget with These Key Steps

No matter what trends and strategies you employ for your small business, eventually it all comes down to money. So having a budget is key. 

Run an Effective Business with These HR Management Tips

Managing your team on a daily basis is another essential business chore. So you need to create HR processes that work for your team and your bottom line.

Source: https://smallbiztrends.com

Image Source: Shutterstock

ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!

These Three Types of Relationships are Your Secret Weapon to Success in Business

Relationship building is essential in any business, but this concept extends beyond customer and vendor relations. While those relationships are vital, it's the direct connections that, in many cases, can make or break your success in the business world.

These relationships are your secret weapon. The people you surround yourself with can help you do the impossible, change your perspective for the better, or inspire you to keep fighting against the odds. Without them, you'd have a long, uphill battle ahead.


So, what are these relationships? I believe it boils down into these three categories:

Personal

The overall benefits of having strong, positive personal relationships in your life are invaluable. According to a study conducted by Gallup, "Individuals who say they have family and friends they can count on to help them in times of trouble are consistently more likely to be satisfied with their personal health." From this same study, Lisa Berkman, Ph.D., of Harvard University also noted that "People who are socially isolated tend to have more physiological stress, poorer immune function, and a host of biological risk factors."

How are you supposed to a run a company or get that startup off the ground if you're feeling stressed and sick? This is why it is so important to build strong personal relationships as they can directly impact your working life (and vice versa, but that's another topic for a different day). It could be the connections you form with your spouse, significant other, friends, children, classmates, or other close family members. Who they are doesn't matter--what matters is the quality of the relationship.


For me, I was fortunate enough to grow up in a very entrepreneurial and supportive family. My grandfather (on my mother's side) started his own business, which my father eventually ended up taking over. My uncle also started his own tech company back in the 80s, which was acquired by McGraw Hill. At family get-togethers, my grandfather would take me aside and explain how to invest in stocks or say things like, "Why would you ever work for someone else when you can create your company?"

This is not the case for everyone--and that's fine--but take a look at the personal relationships in your life. Are the people you're closest with challenging you? Inspiring you? Offering sincere encouragement? Because when we're happy in our personal relationships, we can focus our energy and passion into our businesses. But when these relationships are not going well, then it's all too easy to let that frustration and anxiety affect our work.  

Professional

The professional relationships you make throughout your career can directly impact your likelihood of success.

My co-founder, for example, continuously helps me to divide and conquer the Herculean feats we are sometimes tasked with. During the infancy stages of Centric Digital, we had about a week to source, recruit, and train talent for a $4 million contract. We split the to-do list and sourced an incredible team in a very short period of time that allowed us to fulfill the contract and scale our company. This anecdote speaks volumes about the importance of a trusting partnership based on confidence in each other's skills and expertise. Centric Digital would not have grown so quickly if I did not have these types of professional relationships.


This concept should be applied across your entire organization--do you have the same types of professional relationships with everyone on your team? Can you trust your key players to do what needs to be done to the best of their skills and ability? If not, it might be time to start building new relationships and changing out people on your team.

Advisory

Advisors, mentors, coaches--having someone (or a team of someones) to guide your progress is essential, especially for those in leadership roles.

When you're on the top of an organization, you must surround yourself with people who are more experienced and knowledgeable to offer advice on your ideas, plans, and strategies. It helps if these people are outside of your organization and are excellent, high-quality superstars--otherwise you'll never grow, you'll never learn, and you'll always make mistakes. It also helps to build relationships with advisors who are outside of your industry as they can offer a unique perspective to your current challenges.

Wrapping up

There's a famous quote by motivational speaker and entrepreneur Jim Rohn that states, "You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with." If this is the case, and I strongly believe it is, then take a moment to look at the personal, professional, and advisory relationships in your life. Are these relationships encouraging you to grow and be your best self? Do they make you feel empowered? Are you connecting with the type of people you have a deep mutual respect for? If the answer isn't a resounding, "Yes!" then it's a no. Which brings us to the real secret behind this secret weapon: networking.

If you want to surround yourself with amazing, talented, and progressive people you have to force yourself to get out there and network like crazy--and you need to do it with an open mind. Because you never know where or when you might make a crucial connection that will push you to advance your progress on the path to success.


Image Credit:Getty Images
Source:www.inc.com



ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!

Why Strong Relationships Are Key To Building a Luxury Brand

What makes a luxury brand, well luxury? If luxury brands were only steeped in their own high price points, consumers would turn to more moderately priced products. Millennials, especially, crave luxury experiences that extend far beyond the amount on a price tag.

Luxury is in the details, and paying close attention to these details can transform any brand, from a home sound system to a bedding company, from middle-of-the-road to high end. Luxury brands, whether they are fashion houses or five-star hotels, make the extra effort to go the to ensure that every encounter is one that makes consumers feel special. 

Luxury brands attract consumers because they excel at details. What separates iconic organizations from the wannabe's are the small, subtle characteristics that prompt consumers to gladly pay above and beyond a typical asking price.

But it's not enough to create a high-end product sourced from exceptional materials, you also have to market in a way that attracts luxury buyers. Promoting high price points or sleek products is not enough; when it comes to luxury, subtly and influence are the ways to win consumer loyalty.

If you're interested in building a luxury brand, you need to pay attention to how you're building relationships with three key audiences: influencers, employees, and consumers.


I sat down with Mark Birnbaum, one half of the duo behind famed hospitality group EMM to learn more about how he successfully creates luxury hospitality experiences. Among the restaurants in EMM's portfolio are Catch, Lexington Brass, and Catch Roof.

Throughout our conversation, Birnbaum harped on serving three primary audiences: influencers, employees, and, of course, customers.

Pay attention to high-profile influencers.

If a celebrity visits a nightclub or hotel, they automatically send the message to consumers that this brand is unique, and worth their hard earned dollars. Luxury brands need to leverage the influencers and household names to consistently convey their place at the top of the cultural zeitgeist.

Throughout EMM's tenure, Birnbaum and his partner Eugene Remm have never lost sight of the power of catering to high profile clientele. When EMM first made the decision to move Catch to Los Angeles, they knew they could only succeed with the support of the city's influencers. Their rolodex literally put Catch on the Los Angeles map.

According to Birnbaum, "Catering to celebrities has the power to draw immediate customer interest. Because people aspire to live like their favorite celebrities, they trust their tastes in experiences. Catch felt like a secret that only influencers had access to, which meant that the public immediately wanted in."


Celebrities are synonymous with luxury, and if you're interested in growing a strong luxury brand, you cannot abandon this customer base. Building partnerships with influential figures and  asking them to share their experiences on social media enables you to get on the culturally-relevant map almost immediately.

Don't overlook your own employees.

You cannot build a sound luxury company without serving your own employees. You are selling a lifestyle and it's imperative to practice what you preach. From transparent  communications to stellar working conditions and perks, treating your employees as VIPs creates a culture of positivity and passion.

Furthermore, when your employees are enthusiastic about their jobs, they become natural brand evangelists. Birnbaum says, "We pay special attention to every single hire we make at our locations. We want people who will not only assimilate to the culture of our restaurants, but individuals who can elevate it."

However, it's not just about hiring individuals with infectious personalities or stand-out style. Nurturing career development and implementing a transparent work culture empowers people to find confidence in their roles.

"When our employees feel confident and passionate, our establishments thrive. However, we know that instilling these attitudes starts with the EMM management team, and we know that the more effort we put into building relationships with our employees, the better our business will be," says Birnbaum.

Build unique experiences with every individual customer.

Consumers have an array of brands experiences to choose from. Even if they are influenced by their favorite celebrities and further convinced by testimonials, they still have to be convinced that your product or service is worth their repeat business.

Birnbaum is insistent in driving personalize experiences that make every customer feel unique. "We go out of our way to take care of our customers, ranging from regulars to first-time celebrities," Says Birnbaum.

Building a foundation steeped in 1:1 encounters enables EMM to continue finding new growth opportunities, because when customer service is the bedrock of your brand it's hard to falter.

As EMM looks to the future they continue to find ways to make each customer special. But they're also interested in finding solutions to make the experience convenient. Birnbaum is well aware that digital technology has dramatically altered customer behavior, and EMM is embracing digital change, including allowing customers to text in their reservations.


Creating a luxury brand with longevity demands effort; you cannot cut corners and expect to build a powerful organization. However, if you consistently commit to prioritizing these three groups in equal measure, you stand the chance of competing with the likes of Louis Vuitton and the Four Seasons.


ImageCredit:Getty Images
Source:www.inc.com


ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!

10 Tips To Achieve Great Relationships With Clients

The client." Those of us in the professional world know this seemingly benign phrase and have learned that is to be respected and, at times, feared. Don’t get us wrong; we love the client. Without the client, we wouldn’t have jobs. The client literally puts food on our table and, for them, we are grateful.

But there exists a constant power struggle between the client and the professional. Given the possibility that a client could turn to your competitor if there’s a service-related issue, it’s important that you know how to deftly navigate this struggle, lest you lose your bread and butter.

Here, I’m going to give you 10 tips for dealing with difficult clients so you don’t lose your head -- or your paycheck.


Clearly Define What’s Expected
The first thing you’ll want to do when dealing with a new client (or an existing client with a new project) is to clearly define what’s expected with regard to the scope of the project. For instance, if you’re a designer, are you going to be overhauling a website, or simply updating a few of the graphics?

This is not to say you shouldn’t take on more work if it comes your way (more on that later), but have a clear idea of who you’ll need and for how much time.

Establish Clear Time Tables

Here’s what stinks: agreeing that you’ve got a month to do a project and then three weeks in, the customer needs it tomorrow. It’s only a few days earlier, they say. What’s the big deal?

It’s a big deal because you’ve budgeted your time and people power to have this project done on a certain date and you expected to have until that date, right? Right off the bat, establish a timetable, and not just some vague time in the future but a specific date and, I’ve even gone as far as a specific time on that specific date: end of day, beginning of the day, three o’clock, whatever you decide, but make it stick.

Put It In Writing

After you’ve done all this, put it in writing and have all the main players sign off on it. I can count on my fingers and toes the number of new companies I’ve seen enter “handshake deals” with clients and then end up with more work than they can handle. This can be great if you’ve got the manpower but, more often than not, you’ll get dragged down, miss deadlines and everyone ends up unhappy.

If you’re a business, I assume you’ve got some semblance of a legal department, but if you’re independent, there are some great resources to help you get an idea of what this kind of contract should look like.

Have A Single Point Of Contact

Draw straws, have a beer pong contest, a sack race or just let the new guy do it, but determine a single point of contact for a given project. There’s nothing worse than when a client doesn’t know who to call and ends up calling literally everybody.

Don’t Be Afraid To Say "No"

If you’ve worked with this client before, don’t be surprised if they call you in the middle of a project and say something along the lines of this: “Hey, we need you to do some extra work on the project. We know we didn’t agree to it but we’re willing to pay a little more.”


This can be a good problem to have, but workplace stress and burnout are becoming huge problems in America and one of the leading causes of mental health issues that lead to employee turnover. If you’ve already got a full plate, don’t keep slopping on more food. Chances are, the client will understand. Plus, you’ve got the contract to back you up, right?

Don’t Be Afraid To Say "Yes"

On the other hand, if you think you can take on more work, by all means go for it. Just keep the above statement in mind.

Don’t Minimize Their Issues

When issues come up (and they will come up) the worst thing you can do is minimize their issues by brushing them off either implicitly or explicitly.

Instead, let the client know that you hear them and are going to take steps to remedy what’s wrong. Of course, sometimes their issues in no way relate to you or your work and they're likely just blowing off steam in your general direction (this happens more than you think). Either way, hear them out and treat them with respect.

Make It Right

If there was a mistake on your end, take steps to immediately make it right:

• Take responsibility.

• Apologize.

• Offer them something. If the mistake was major, a discount on this project -- or better yet, future services -- might be in order. If the mistake was minor, the apology should do.

• Take steps not to let it happen again.

Never Lose Your Cool

Above all, never lose your cool in front of a client. Have it out with your staff at happy hour, but don’t do it in the meeting room. There are plenty of steps you can take if things start to get heated in the workplace to ameliorate the pressure and make sure things don’t blow up.

Don’t Fear Walking Away

Finally, if things just aren’t going the way either of you had imagined, maybe it’s time to break up. Many times, an amicable separation is better than delivering subpar work to an unhappy client, so don’t be afraid to walk away. Or, if they’re being particularly cruel or mean-spirited (yes, these people exist), don’t be afraid to fire them. There will be other clients, I promise.


I hope you never have to deal with a problem client, but in the event that you do, hopefully, you’ll find these tips helpful. Good luck out there!

Image Credit:shutterstock
Source:www.forbes.com

ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

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4 Areas You Need to Assess to Improve Customer Relationships

Anytime we’re dealing with people, life is going to be messy. This truth is clear to anyone who has worked in customer service. People can be downright nasty sometimes.

But most of us have also experienced terrible customer service reps who have made us never want to return to a particular business again. Fiascos such as the one United Airlines dealt with a few months ago are still fresh on the public mind.

Any company that hopes to succeed must learn how to truly value its customers. Doing so includes turning potentially explosive situations into victories.

But it also means that companies already doing a pretty good job of building customer relationships can get better. While succeeding in some areas, they might be blind to ways they are falling short.

Tips on How to Improve Customer Relationships

Here are few tips for small businesses that want to improve how they are serving their clients.

Don’t Let Touchpoints Distract You from the Big Picture

Are you aware of your average client’s journey with your brand beyond the touchpoints? Your customers interact with your product when you are not around.

They could be frustrated during certain parts of their journey without you being aware of it. This frustration might be causing customer churn without you knowing why or even that it’s happening.

Harvard Business Review notes that “A company that manages complete journeys would not only do its best with the individual transaction but also seek to understand the broader reasons for the call, address the root causes, and create feedback loops to continuously improve interactions upstream and downstream from the call.”

It is essential that companies apply “tailored metrics” for each part of the overall customer journey. Be sure to gather information about both employees and customers to determine where customers are most dissatisfied.

One example of this type of problem is a company making a successful sale of a TV installation, but then the customer experiencing difficulty with the installation.

Even though the client can call to resolve the issue, the company could have explained the installation process better in advance. The salesperson could have eliminated the reason for the call, as well as the time and energy the customer spent resolving the problem.

An extremely important point to note here is that the source of customer service issues is internal. Because the problems arise from employees (even if unintentionally), employees must play a key role in coming up with the solutions. If they do not, the solutions will not last.

Reduce Unnecessary Pain Points

Another example of what it could look like to take steps to make your clients’ lives easier is implementing a tool such as a client portal.

An all-too-common frustration in the business world is following up on payments owed. Beyond that, there is the challenge of keeping documents organized and keeping sensitive information, such as W-2s and NDAs, secure.

It’s probable both you and your customers spend quite a bit of time on the phone or email trying to keep track of this type of data. Dealing with information in this way leaves room for miscommunication. Issues with payment and invoices are often a major point of dissatisfaction.

Using a client portal puts all of your pertinent documents in one place. This makes it easy for your clients to access them on their own time. They won’t have to wait to get hold of you if they have questions. If either of you needs to look up whether or not an invoice has been paid, it will be extremely easy to do so, and you can avoid confusion and embarrassment.

Client portals are also useful because you can see what actions your clients take on the portal. Software such as this can go a long toward eliminating customer frustrations that simply do not need to exist.

Be Personal

Being personal is somewhat easier for small businesses, but is nevertheless an important priority for any company, whatever its size. After all, what would be the point of an article on bettering customer relationships that neglected to mention the qualities that are key to relationships?

Any healthy relationship has certain characteristics, such as clear communication. The people in the relationship are not so focused on making money or getting ahead that they neglect each other. Instead, they support each other in their goals and do what they can to improve each other’s lives.

While the parallels between personal relationships and customer-business relationships do break down at some point, there are basic principles that apply to each situation:

• Show your clients that you value them
• Listen to their praise or complaints and respond accordingly
• Offer rewards or discounts

Make sure you are not only meeting your customers’ needs but are also going above and beyond their expectations.

You can also offer free education on some topic pertaining to your business. You might do so through your blog, through white papers, or through webinars.

Take the Long View

You should implement all of the above strategies with a view to keeping your customers around for life. It is much more profitable to retain existing customers than to acquire new ones. Retention will more quickly grow your customer base. With this in mind, you need to have someone on staff who is accountable for keeping track of customer retention.

If you don’t measure how and when people are leaving you, how will you know if your tactics for keeping them are working? If you’re not getting feedback from your customers, how will you know if they are unhappy with something you’re doing?

Be aware that it might initially be worth spending more on marketing to first-time buyers than they are going to spend on their first purchases. This might feel like a loss at the time, but if there is a high likelihood that they will stay with you for life, this strategy is worthwhile.

Focus on Lifetime Value
The overall lifetime value of your customers is more important than each individual sale. Calculate how much money they spend over time minus how much you spend on marketing to and acquiring them. When deciding how to market to your audience, choose one or two scalable marketing channels. Focus your energy exclusively on those channels before expanding to others.

Instead of just cross-selling a related item, try selling people more of the same item by using incentives. Creating an entirely new sale, even if the product is related, is more difficult that selling more of the same item.

You should also consider putting a phone number on your website. Some potential buyers are interested in your product but are unwilling to buy from or contact you online. Providing this opportunity for people to call you allows you to acquire customers you might have lost otherwise and whom you might find to be a significant part of your audience.

Don’t Assume You Have No Room to Grow

While building relationships in any arena of life is hard, the benefits of doing so in business are undeniably worthwhile, and not just for the purposes of making money. There is inherent value in helping someone else.

Even if you are already taking steps to build strong customer relationships, consider ways you could bring even more value to your clients and get them to stick around long-term.

Source: https://smallbiztrends.com
 Image credit: Shutterstock


ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!

How Reverting to 'Old School' Ways Helped Me Build Strategic Relationships

When I was in college, I was eager and hungry to make connections. At 21 years old, as a dorm resident at Westmont College, I founded my business advisory firm, Avant Global. The company has since grown into a global business with well-known, successful clients, including the founding family of the world's largest brick-and-mortar retailer, and one of the largest holding companies in the world.

I credit this to many things, including the people I've surrounded myself with along the way. But I've realized that many of the same tactics and techniques I used on campus in my early dealings are still relevant today. Though technology has paved the way for quicker and more efficient communication, going back to old school ways can help you progress in the competitive business world.

Pick up the phone

My company helps high-profile clients build strategic relationships that drive company growth, investments, funding and more. There are many make-or-break details involved in the day-to-day business within our ecosystem. Email chains and group texts between business associates might be convenient, but calling to speak with colleagues is more effective than a "reply all" exchange.

This is especially true when you've got a global business that's building bridges between Silicon Valley and executives, investors and even successors across the globe. With clients and partners in countries ranging from the Philippines to the United Kingdom, I've learned that the voice lends a human connection that a computer screen cannot compete with.

Write it down

I'm on the road, and often out of the country, much of the year. A digital calendar and iPhone notes just don't cut it sometimes. For many, including myself, taking handwritten notes can help to retain information. It’s also valuable to print itineraries and organize them in folders. You never know when a phone battery will die, or a signal will be lost.

Think outside the boardroom

Deeper connections can be made when you're thinking out of the box and meeting outside of the office or conference call. I've found that nurturing relationships with clients by welcoming them to your home or out for coffee can be valuable to all parties, especially when "shop talk" is off the record.

I often host groups that integrate both personal and professional relationships; you can take a hike, offer a feast or go to lunch with business partners or potential clients. Deeper connections are made when you go beyond the white lights of a corporate space.
Get back to your roots

Digging into your roots and acknowledging your heritage can be fruitful on both a personal and professional level. As a Greek-American, I have a community of support domestically and globally that is bound by a cultural thread. Many of my personal contacts are also passionate about philanthropy, investing and other areas I'm immersed in.

It's through these groups that I could connect Amed Khan, a young, successful investment banker who has been building refugee camps for displaced Syrians in Greece, with an influential Greek-Orthodox priest, Father Alex Karloutsos of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America (Father Alex has offices in New York City and conducts liturgies at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Hamptons in Long Island). Father Alex then introduced Khan to a Bishop in Athens who helped Khan to navigate the country's bureaucracy. Khan's Elpida Home has since become more successful, hosting hundreds of refugees who otherwise would have no roof over their heads.

These types of unique connections happen when you find ways to relate on a more personal and engaging level that goes beyond a glass screen. By reverting to “old school” tactics, you too can have a competitive edge in building and nurturing strategic relationships.

Source: http://www.businessnewsdaily.com
Image source: Demetri Argyropoulos

ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!

Why You Should Warm Up Your IP Address Before Sending Emails

If you're using your own software to send out marketing emails, it's a great idea to warm up your IP address first.

Failure to do so and you might find yourself on the dreaded "black list." That means email service providers will view your IP as an origin for spam.

When that happens, you can be sure that far fewer people will see your email messages than you had intended.

In this article, we'll go over why it's important to warm up your IP address and explain what you need to do to establish a reputation in good standing as an email marketer.

The War on Spam

There's a war on spam. If you don't prepare your IP address, you could be a casualty.

Yes, that can happen even if you aren't technically a spammer.

When you start using new email marketing software, you're going to set it up on a server that's connected to the Internet. That server, like any other online server, will have its own IP address.

At first, that IP address probably has no "reputation." That means when email service providers receive an email originating from that IP, they aren't sure whether they should treat the email as spam or not.

That's why they collect statistics. If providers find that an unusually high number of emails are coming in from the IP address over a short period of time, they'll probably flag it as a spammer.

When that happens, you can kiss your email marketing efforts goodbye. Your emails will probably get blocked or go into a spam folder where people will hardly ever see them.

Fortunately, you can get around all of that by warming up your IP address.

"Warm up" an IP Address?

What does it mean to "warm up" an IP address? It's fairly simple, really.

Just start by sending only a few emails. Then, over the next several days, send out more and more emails.

During that process, email service providers will not only take not of how many (or how few) emails are coming from your IP, but also how users are responding to them.

If providers see that users are opening your emails and clicking links on them, you'll likely get whitelisted in fairly short order. Then, you'll be able to send email blasts without worrying about earning a reputation as a spammer.

During the warm-up process, you'll still need to follow email marketing best-practices. Otherwise, you're going to get blacklisted no matter how few emails you send.
Sometimes, You Might Not Need to Warm up Your IP Address

If you're using a popular autoresponder, you probably won't need to warm up your IP address at all.

Why? Because in that case you're not using your IP address. You're using the IP address of the autoresponder. That IP address has, in all likelihood, already been through a warm-up period.

So if you're happy to use AWeber, MailChimp, GetResponse, or one of the other popular options as your autoresponder of choice, you can almost certainly skip the usual warm-up period. It's best to check with the service first, though, just to be sure.

If you're using your own software to blast out emails from a server that you set up, then you'll need to follow the warm-up process.

How to Warm up Your IP Address

When it comes time to warm up your IP address, you can follow one of two methods.

First, you can warm it up manually. That process, briefly described earlier, involves sending just a few emails at first and then gradually building up the number of emails you send every day.

Here's the warm-up schedule that you should follow:

• Day 1 - 50 emails
• Day 2 - 100 emails
• Day 3 - 500 emails
• Day 4 - 1,000 emails
• Day 5 - 5,000 emails
• Day 6 - 10,000 emails
• Day 7 - 20,000 emails
• Day 8 - 40,000 emails
• Day 9 - 70,000 emails
• Day 10 - 100,000 emails

If you need to send more than 100,000 emails (lucky you), you should follow the chart here for a longer schedule. At that same link, you'll also find another chart that tells you how many IP addresses you should be using based on the number of daily emails you're sending out.

Each IP address should have its own warm-up schedule.

The other option for warming up your IP address is to use a service that warms it up for you. SendGrid is a service that offers a couple of options when it comes to warming up an IP.

First, you can use the front-end to set up an automated warm-up schedule. That makes your life easy because you can "set it and forget it."

The other option is to use the API to set up an automated warm-up schedule. You'll probably need to enlist the aid of a developer if you go that route, though.

Wrapping It Up

Don't let your email marketing fall flat because you failed to warm up your IP address. Instead, invest the little bit of time and effort necessary to make sure that you establish a great reputation with the various email service providers.

Source: https://www.inc.com

Image source: Getty Images

ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!

How to Keep Your Email Marketing Campaigns Ethical & Legal

It’s no secret that email marketing is increasingly important for small businesses worldwide.

Not only does it offer you a direct way to land in consumer’s inboxes (a.k.a. their sacred space), but it has also been proven to bring in more return on investment (ROI) than other marketing methods.

In fact, just $1 of investment in email marketing can yield an average $38 in return. Nothing to be laughed at, right?

But it’s not just cold, hard numbers that has business owners bowing down to the email marketing gods. Well-structured and thought-out campaigns can create a positive brand image, boost credibility, and create a community – abstract goals that most modern-day businesses strive for.

With that in mind, it’s no surprise that more than 86% of businesses are planning to increase their email marketing budgets in the next year.

I believe that Constant Contact, is one of the best email marketing tools to help your small business get started. But, there’s a few more things you need to know. With great possibility comes a greater list of responsibility.

The importance of email marketing ethics
Direct access to consumer’s inboxes means there are a strict set of rules that all businesses must follow in order to align with legislation and ethics.

Here, I’m going to lay out what you need to know about creating ethical email marketing campaigns and why it’s so important for your business.

What exactly is the CAN-SPAM Act?
Let’s start by outlining the CAN-SPAM Act. This isn’t a tin of processed meat like you might think; instead, it’s a legislation that protects consumers from receiving too many spam emails.

The Act was passed in 2003 after a surge in the amount of spam emails consumers were receiving about certain medical enhancements and other irrelevant additions to their lives.

Under the Act, a number of requirements were drawn up to align with the national standards for email marketing stated within the law. Here’s the gist of it:

1. Use a subject line that does what it says it will

Have you ever received an email with an exciting subject line, clicked through in eager anticipation and been disappointed by the offering on the other side?

Maybe the content has nothing to do with the headline, or you feel like you’re being miss-sold something because the subject line was heavy clickbait.

Under the CAN-SPAM Act, you have to make sure your subject line doesn’t mislead your readers in any way.

QUICK TIP: Don’t disappoint your subscribers by promising the world in the subject line and not being able to follow through in the body of the email.

2. If your email is an ad, say so

If your email is advertising a company, product, or anything else, you need to make sure this is clear within the email.

Under the law, there is no specific way you must identify that your email is an ad to your readers. The law simply states that your disclosure must be “clear and conspicuous.” This means that as long as your subscribers can clearly see and understand the email is an ad, you should be ok. You also do not need to place this disclosure within your subject line.

3. Your sender information must be strictly true

It can be tempting to put a funny name in the sender segment of your emails, but under the CAN-SPAM Act, you have to ensure the “From”, “To”, and “Reply-To” fields of your emails and the routing information accurately identifies you or your business as the sender.

4. Provide a physical address

A lot of businesses try to side-step this option, especially if your business is ultimately run online. But, in fact, you have to provide a legitimate address that your email recipients can reach you at.

This is a non-negotiable under the CAN-SPAM Act.

If you don’t have a physical address for your business, you can easily and affordably get a PO Box or a physical mailing address using a virtual mailroom or office.

5. Make opting-out easy

It can be sad to see the unsubscribes roll in, but if you don’t offer your recipients the opportunity to opt-out of your emails, you’re essentially breaking the law.

You must provide a link in every email that recipients can click to unsubscribe for your mailing list if they no longer want to receive your emails.

You kind of want to do this anyway – imagine a potential customer getting so wound up because they can’t unsubscribe and then not buying from you or, worse, bad-mouthing you to other potential customers.

QUICK TIP: The top reason consumers unsubscribe from emails is because they receive them too frequently.

What are the repercussions?
If you are reported for not having complied with any of the CAN-SPAM Act requirements, you could be charged with fines of up to $16,000.

Seems like a lot, right?

Which is why it’s important when forming your email marketing strategy to double-check and double-check again to be certain you are not violating any laws.

Maybe not illegal, but is it ethical?
The CAN-SPAM Act is extensive in what it covers, but there are still a couple things it does not address.

Even though these things are not addressed, you should still ask yourself if they are necessarily ethical or effective to include in your marketing strategy (most of the time the answer is no).

Buying email lists

You might have come across list brokers on the market who claim they can sell you lists of people interested in what you have to offer.

Sounds too good to be true, right?

That’s because it is. Most of these claims are false but, let’s assume for a minute that they’re not.

Just imagine how many other marketers the list brokers have made their offer too – marketers you have no idea about.

Think about all the emails those marketers have sent to people that could be on a purchased email list. Think about how many other offers those recipients are receiving every single day from the other businesses that have essentially bought their way into their inboxes.

Do you really want your brand to be associated with just about anyone or anything? The answer is probably no, right?

Therefore, in order to be ethical and comply with the CAN-SPAM Act, it would be better to refrain from buying lists/leads from such brokers.

The best part about building your own email list from scratch is it’s full of people who actively want to hear from you. What’s more, you can segment your email list depending on the actions they take and the offers they take the most interested in.

Buying traffic

Buying traffic is legal, but it’s up to you to use common sense to decide on an ethical way to purchase traffic.

For example, let’s say you found a list owner who is willing to send an email to her list encouraging her recipients to visit one of your webpages where you offer something valuable in exchange for an email subscription.

As long as the list owner has an audience with interests matching your offer and market, you’re in business.

You can start building your own email list safely and ethically.

The same goes with buying ad traffic from advertising companies (Google Adwords, Facebook ads, Bing, etc.) and directing it toward the same type of lead acquisition process (although, in many cases, sending traffic directly to a form like I described is frowned upon, so you’d rather send it to some content buffer.)

The benefits of abiding by the rules
You probably know when a tactic is “bad”.

Things like buying consumer email addresses probably gives you a bad feeling in your stomach, but it might be tempting, especially if you’re trying to get your business off the ground.

But making a mistake in the early days can lead to negative effects later on in your businesses life, ranging from bad brand cohesion to consumers actively avoiding your products because you’ve bombarded them with too many irrelevant emails in the past.

So, you know what makes an email marketing campaign “bad” and unethical. But why is it SO important to be “good”?

The results are easy to see:

• Higher open and response rates – by making unsubscribing easy, you’re left with people who actively want to hear from you and read your emails.
• Increased sales – by building your own list of interested parties, you’re only going to be offering your products and services to people who are looking for them. Which means more sales.
• More trust – in this day and age, trust and authenticity is important for every business if they want to succeed and stand out. Sending campaigns that are relevant and targeted to the right people means you’ll be consistently building that all-important trust.

QUICK TIP: Abiding by email marketing ethics and laws means you’ll see higher open rates, increased sales, and more trust amongst consumers.

But perhaps the biggest benefit is knowing that you’re building your business on your terms, with a list full of potential prospects who are eagerly waiting for your emails to drop into their inbox.

Conclusion
Knowing the difference between ethical and unethical marketing will ensure that your emails successfully reach your recipients and gain you more satisfied subscribers and customers.

By being aware of the current legislation, you will keep your business out of trouble and safe from being charged with expensive fines.

Log in to your Constant Contact account to send out some ethical and effective emails today! 

Not a Constant Contact customer? See what you’re missing! Sign up for a free 60-day trial.

Source: https://blogs.constantcontact.com

Image source: Constant Contact Blogs


ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!