Readers like familiarity and predictability… so develop a template, and stick with it. Make only minor, incremental changes every now and then, saving your last issue as the template for the next one. From top to bottom, here’s a quick list of things to address in your format...
1) Name your E-zine. You want your subscriber to smile in recollection when she
sees it. Make the name short, memorable, descriptive, and relevant.
2) Subject, including Issue Number and Date
3) Small logo
4) First text block -- start off your e-zine with a catchy benefit-oriented slogan. For
example, under your Cactus Gardening logo, you might type into your first text
block...
“Prickly Issues, Creative Solutions”
5) After that, experiment with a combination of text blocks, line breaks and divider
lines, so that you can deliver the following “starting information”...
i) Valuable PREselling Proposition -- stress the key points of your e-zine.
ii) A promo pass-along -- add something like this...
If you like this e-zine, please do a friend
and me a big favor and “pay it forward.”
If a friend DID forward this to you and if
you like what you read, please subscribe by
visiting...
(Then add a link to your page that promotes your opt-in newsletter.)
6) Issue number and Date (you did it in the subject, now repeat it in the body)
7) Table of Contents -- show your reader what you’re covering in this issue.
Provide tantalizing “read me” headlines in your TOC.
8) From this point, experiment with…
• headline blocks to start each section
• dividers
• line breaks
9) Then the content!
10) You might want to add one more text block before the closing information
(unsubscribe, etc. -- details a bit later) for your readers. This text block could
include anything, for example...
Comments? Ideas? Feedback?
I’d love to hear from you.
Just reply to this e-zine
and tell me what you think!
11) Closing information. You need to give readers a chance to unsubscribe, etc.
Make sure to save all this as a template for future e-zines (more on this below),
so you don’t have to do it all over again.
9.1.3. Set Up Your Subscription
You’ve already created a form for subscribers on your sales page. You may opt
to include this form on other pages, or at the least include a link from other TIER
2 or TIER 3 pages to your sales page.
Some people create pop-unders to advertise their e-zines.
Do include an e-zine button on your navigation bar so visitors can find the sales
page easily. And be sure to include many references to your e-zine so your
visitor has many opportunities to sign up.
To prevent spamming and/or to prevent people from giving other people’s names
and addresses without consent, use the “double opt-in” approach… your visitor
must confirm her subscription.
Although adopting a double opt-in policy means you will grow your list slightly
more slowly than a marketer using the single opt-in approach, there are several
reasons why it is smart to adopt such a strategy...
1) A double opt-in policy builds a truly qualified, high value list. Do not be
concerned about losing a few subscribers. The confirmation step ensures that
your subscribers are interested in you and your product or service.
2) A double opt-in policy establishes your credibility with the subscriber, and
emphasizes the value of your publication. It’s a great way to demonstrate that
you are not simply paying lip service to a SPAM policy, but have taken concrete
steps to prevent it.
3) As SPAM continues to increase in volume, so does the average surfer’s
intolerance for it. A double opt-in policy lowers the risk of being reported to a
spam policing server by an overzealous surfer.
The value of a qualified subscriber’s list? Priceless -- no credit card can buy that
kind of confidence!