Resources from nSiteful
A Subscriber's Feedback on our E-mail Alerts

A long-time business acquaintance and subscriber to our monthly e-mail alerts wrote this after receiving this morning's edition:

It is always nice to hear from you. However, it is not clear to me how the information in your note can be of benefit to me. There are at least 14 different links. In the first bunch, I see that you are doing well, but all those press releases direct attention to your business, rather than to mine.

Is there one single idea that you want to update me about regarding developments on the web? That might be of interest. The rest is too much to sort through.

I appreciate and will definitely reflect on those criticisms and suggestions.

Meanwhile, and for what it's worth, here is some of the thinking behind the way we do our e-mail alerts. Right, wrong, or somewhere in between, this might inform some of you as you consider your e-mail marketing strategies and tactics.

The Format

I chose this "digest" format for the monthly e-mail alerts (the system automatically extracts the prior month's news and blog entries into clickable headlines) precisely BECAUSE I don't expect people who receive the e-mail to save it. I don't even expect them to read or scan the whole thing, and I certainly don't expect them to click on every headline.

Personally, I'm not a fan of lengthy e-mails. I prefer the short and sweet, so I try to Golden Rulify here.

To paraphrase Abe Lincoln...

The hope is that SOME headlines will capture the attention and stay in the minds of SOME readers SOME of the time — long after the e-mail alert has been dragged to the trash bin. Those people might visit nSiteful.com some time to read more. They might remember nSiteful when they (or people they know) need services nSiteful offers.

Why don't WE ever hug like that?

Or they might just read something that helps them in a way that doesn't involve nSiteful at all. Maybe, for example, some subscriber has been thinking about an Extranet for her Web site but hasn't done anything yet, or her Web developer has been dragging his feet. Simply seeing the reference in today's e-mail alert about the Eaton Academy Extranet might be enough to get the wheels in motion. (Think Jerry Maguire... the scene at the end in which Rod Tidwell and Jerry are hugging, and Frank Cushman turns to Bob Sugar — played wonderfully sleazy by Jay Mohr — and asks, "Why don't we ever hug like that?")

Shameful Plugs? Okay, but...

Do the NEWS items tend toward shameless plugs? Yes. But they also help promote my clients. And the bottom line is that if one doesn't toot one's own horn, there might never be any tooting. The fact that the subscriber inferred from the e-mail alert that nSiteful is doing well is, of course, a good thing.

The Single Idea

Is there one single idea that you want to update me about regarding developments on the web?

Actually, that's what our blog entries attempt to be.

Ironically, I had been thinking of this particular subscriber when I posted the "Web strategy of Alison Krauss" blog entry in early September. He was a very early champion of social networking and Web-site interactivity — long before Facebook became a household word.

My point, and I do have one...

E-mail marketing is tricky. You might be uncomfortable tooting your own horn. You might annoy some people with unwanted e-mails. You might get your feelings hurt when people unsubscribe. I tend to believe, though, that by continually evaluating your e-mail marketing strategies and tactics — which includes inviting and maintaining an open mind to criticism — you'll find your way.

I appreciate the feedback of this particular subscriber, and I invite yours.