Robert Bly is a legendary B2B copywriter. He uses social media in his marketing efforts, but just to build his email list. It is his belief that email marketing trumps social media as far as sales and profit generation are concerned.

Social media is great for building relationships.

It is not so great for driving revenue. People want to be engaged and entertained on Facebook and Twitter. They are not there to be sold to. So if your social media efforts are going to be successful building your business, you have to give away a lot of great content, solve problems and answer questions.

With email, you have a one-to-one conversation.

Yes, autoresponders make it easy to send an email to thousands of people at once. But each one of those list members feels that you are talking to them individually. This is a very intimate setting, and why email marketing works so well to generate sales.

Besides, there are 3 times as many email accounts as there are Twitter and Facebook users … combined!

Believe it or not, not everyone is on all of the big social networks. But do you know anyone who does not have an email address? Continue reading →

The Direct Marketing Association understands just how powerful email marketing is. Their extensive research shows that a smart email marketing plan delivers $43 for every $1 spent. To take advantage of this powerful marketing tool, list building beginners should practice the following 6 top tips.

1 – Make Your Opt-In Freebie Valuable, and Worth Paying For

In return for an email list, you are going to be giving away something. Make sure that your opt-in bribe is something that people would happily pay for, then give it away for free. This will raise your conversions, improve your level of integrity in the eyes of your subscribers, and make your list members anxious to open every email you send.

2 – Use a Reliable, “Big Name” Email Autoresponder Service

AWeber, GetResponse and MailChimp are well-known and respected email autoresponder services. Stick with one of those 3 (or another experienced and popular provider) to make the process as comfortable for you and your subscribers as possible. Continue reading →