Last year, I received an email out of the blue. It looked a lot like spam and I was about to flag it.
However, I doubt.
The name was familiar to me and it was the kind of thing I would sign up for. So I looked in my inbox to see if I had anything else from these people.
It turned out that they were sending frequent emails (if you can call one a week ‘frequent’) in 2016. Then they stopped.
Then I got an email in 2017 announcing a webinar.
One more in 2018 spruiking his book.
Then in 2019 they started sending emails every week or so.
I wonder how many people opted out or marked them as spam, like I was about to do.
This kind of sloppy and clumsy email makes me sad.
On one hand, I get it: sometimes you need a break.
(Not that I’ve had one nearly that long since I started…)
But if you take a break, don’t start over from scratch. Remind people who you are and why they’re on your list. This is not the time to play cute – your topic should be “I know you haven’t heard from us in a long time…”
If not something even clearer.
Then introduce yourself again.
Email is intimate. You can’t disappear from people’s lives for two years and then start over as if nothing ever happened.
Here’s something even better than reminding your list of who you are:
Never stop sending emails.
Not for a moment.
And if you want a good relationship with people, forget about that once-a-week nonsense. Your circumstances may vary, but I can’t imagine emailing less than three times a week.
Daily emails are even better.
Daily Emails: Isn’t That Spam?
Spam, like so many other things, is subjective.
Sure, there are extreme cases. Few people would argue that Nigerian princes requesting your bank details count as legitimate communication.
But for the less extreme cases, it is less clear.
Consider this:
You probably have someone in your life who you would happily see every day. Maybe it’s a spouse, a child, or a best friend. Hell, it could be a fart.
The daily interaction with them is not “too much”, right?
Of course not. In fact, the more, the better.
Now think of someone who irritates you. Maybe it’s just a clash of personalities. Maybe he’s just a fundamentally mean and hateful person. Meeting with them once a fortnight is probably too frequent.
Now imagine someone better than all that.
If you know someone like that, lucky you.
And this is someone you enjoy listening to. Partly because they are fun or interesting, but also because they add value to your life.
It could be a golden broth tip, a cool new recipe, or just something else to smile about.
How much is too much of someone like that?
If they only contact you once a month, how would you feel? If you knew that they can talk to you every day but they don’t bother, would you bother about it?
You would have every right to do so.
As a professional, it is your duty to help people. Whether you’re a life-saving doctor or an embarrassment-avoiding beauty consultant, do the right thing by your people and check in with them often.
If people like you and add value to their lives, three emails a day isn’t too much. I know because I’m on lists like that, and have occasionally sent 20 emails in a few days. It’s too much if you’re clumsy about it.
So that’s it, right? Be charming (whether it’s funny, inspiring, abrasive, bizarre, or whatever comes most naturally to you…) and add value.
No, that is not.
Because there is a common misunderstanding about what “add value” means…
When people love ads
When some (read: too many) people talk about offering value, they mean that you should give away content for free, without asking for anything in return.
They say people hate being sold to, so you should give away so many free things that they… I don’t know, feel compelled to buy or something.
I don’t understand the reasoning.
The truth is that people love to be sold.
When it comes to the right offer delivered in the right way, it’s exciting. Think about the last time you realized the perfect offer. Maybe it was a gadget that will save you time at home, maybe it was training in something you’ve always dreamed of learning.
Whatever it was, you loved being sold.
This, then, is your business plan. Create dream offers for your market and then sell them that offer every day.
By the way, this is valuable for your readers. Telling them about solutions to their problems counts, as long as it’s genuine and makes it clear.
Being funny is valuable in itself, because who doesn’t like to laugh?
Telling a charming story that allows them to escape their problems for a while, well, that’s valuable too.
Adding value is not always giving things away. If you entertain long enough, your presence becomes an advantage. How else do you think comedians get paid?
If you make them smile with every email, your readers will never complain about hearing from you every day.
Emails in a Nutshell
Summarizing all of the above, here is the best email schedule:
Every day, be entertaining, charming and funny. Add some kind of value to their lives, be it with your charming presence or some useful knowledge. Then ask for the sale.
Leave any step out and you seriously undermine your ability to send emails.
Follow the process and you will sell or build the relationship. win win