Usually when I tell people that I email my list every day, they look at me like I’m nuts for a few seconds… “Really?” Almost invariably the next question that pops out of their mouth is: “How does that affect your open/click/unsubscribe rates?” The natural assumption is that you’ll burn your list out if you […]
Continue readingThis is a story about my longtime buddy Derick. Like me, Derick is a software developer and entrepreneur. He runs a website called WatchMeCode, where he sells screencasts about software development. There’s something you should know about Derick: He is without a doubt the most RELUCTANT marketer I’ve ever met. When I first got to […]
Continue readingContinuing yesterday’s theme of “pummeling my best students”… Here’s another tip I gave Jason on his “learn to build 3D games” course launch emails. (Jason’s officially at least a brown belt at this now, so he can take it.) The fourth or fifth email in his launch series tells the “origin story” of his product. […]
Continue readingCheck this: One of my students from the 4-week email copywriting workshop I taught last fall, a software developer named Jason, is launching his first product now (a course on 3D game development). He’s been giving me blow-by-blow updates, which I’ve enjoyed immensely. He’s kicking butt with his launch emails too— Until, that is, he […]
Continue readingNobody likes a Debbie Downer, amirite? So why, asks subscriber Ant, did I often use a negative angle in my copy? Quoth he: When you created the ‘5 Learning Mistakes’ email course, did you think about making it positive rather than negative and if so, what was the reason you went with negative? i.e. 5 […]
Continue readingCircling back on something I hinted at yesterday: There are a couple of techniques you can use to keep people from “skimming” your sales pages and emails—encouraging them to read every word instead. Last week I spent an hour or so watching screen recordings of prospective customers reading one of my sales pages. Multiple times […]
Continue readingEarlier this month I flew out to balmy San Diego for the Traffic & Conversion summit, put on by Digital Marketer. I returned with a mild sunburn, and a hefty list of ideas and to-dos. One suggestion I had to try out right away came from marketing whiz Perry Belcher: Make screen recordings of your […]
Continue readingAnother question from last week’s multi-email “half-marathon”: Josh – is this email part of a campaign or do you write broadcasts? Also, do you batch write your daily emails? Or write daily? I get this one a LOT, often from subscribers who’d written in with questions and were excited that I’d answered them “on the […]
Continue readingLast week’s 4-part “mini-series” on outsourcing your marketing generated some fun reactions—including several good questions that I’ll tackle over the next few days. Here’s one from a reader named Dana: Oohh…The suspense. Loving this email series. Because I totally resonate and agree with what you are saying. Some other “experts” are always saying to outsource […]
Continue readingOne of my favorite sayings from late-great marketing guru Gary Halbert is: “You can’t multiply zeros.” In other words, if something ain’t working, just “doing more of the same” probably won’t get you too far. This is where a lot of entrepreneurs go wrong when they hire someone to help with their marketing. They make […]
Continue readingSoftware developer Aziz has built an online training business from “zip-zero-nada” to “part-time job income.” And since he sees marketing as his main obstacle to growth (smart), he asked me what I’d look for in hiring a marketing manager. Back the truck up, I said. Before you run out and hire someone, riddle me this: […]
Continue readingAn entrepreneur I know named Aziz recently asked me about bringing in a “hired gun” marketing manager to help him grow his online training biz. Immediately the red flags went up for me. Here’s why: It’s one thing to start a side business that brings in a couple of thousand per month. It’s an entirely […]
Continue readingGot a message last week from a subscriber named Aziz. Aziz runs a website selling “learn to program” courses. The site is starting to hit its stride—he’s making a small but steady stream of sales and starting to see some reliable income. Now he’s starting to feel antsy about taking things up a notch. He […]
Continue readingConsulting client Geneve is using an email course to generate leads for her high-end photography business marketing program. So far several subscribers have raised their hand for more info. Score! Geneve replies to them promptly, and then the train jumps the tracks: … they are not returning any of my follow up emails. I think […]
Continue readingA consulting client of mine named Geneve recently sent me an SOS. She set up an email course to sell her high-end marketing services to professional photographers. It’s not going well, and she’s getting nervous about it: Hi Josh, So my drip campaign (remember the one for photographers that you helped me set up…) is […]
Continue readingCouple weeks back I sent an email about a subscriber who demanded that I opt him out of any and all sales pitches—and just send him the specific content he wants. Nuh uh, I said. This ain’t Burger King—”have it your way” doesn’t apply. There’s an unsubscribe link for a reason. Sales pitches are just […]
Continue readingWant a FAST, effective way to ruin your day? If you have shopping cart software, dig around in there until you find the comments people enter when they request a refund. Commence reading. Alternatively: Go to your customer support inbox and search for “refund.” Heh, you’re welcome. Refund requests are the WORST. They feel like […]
Continue readingOne of the all-time great marketing FAIL stories goes something like this: The corporate head honchos at a pet food company (I believe it was Alpo, although I could be wrong about that) decided to introduce a new flavor for their product lineup. So they ran focus groups to hone their marketing message to perfection. […]
Continue readingAbout 20 years ago Proctor & Gamble had this new product they were test-marketing. One of their researchers had discovered a chemical that would bind to scent particles, rendering them odorless. Who better to market this product to than people whose homes reeked… Like the slightly crazy lady with 17 cats lazing about and puking […]
Continue readingWhen I was a kid I used to love to play with mirrors. I’d grab a handheld mirror and hold it up to the big mirror in the bathroom and— The reflections were endlessly “nested” one inside the other, seemingly to infinity. Mirrors within mirrors within mirrors! And so it is with the benefits of […]
Continue readingMy oldest son is 6, and he’s a bit… analytical. Maddeningly so, at times. He wants to know the *meaning* of EVERYTHING. I always know I’m in trouble when I see his little brow furrow into a thoughtful scowl. “Daddy, what does ‘fun’ mean?” This innocent-sounding question is, of course, a trap. Into which I […]
Continue readingBack when I was just getting started with copywriting, I used to kinda dread Skyping with my copywriting mentor. If he was a college professor, he’d be the kind who always managed to call on you that ONE time when you had no clue what the right answer was. One time he was giving me […]
Continue readingSubscriber Ant is a consultant who helps companies use elearning in their businesses. He writes: I recently purchased your product on writing an email course and am getting a lot of value out of it – so thank you for that. One question I have – I have read elsewhere that you should try and […]
Continue readingThere’s this funny cliche in blogging and SEO circles: Whenever someone is making up an example for, say, how to do search engine optimization, they use the dog training niche. Copywriting programs tend to do this too, although instead of dog training it’s usually weight loss, “get rich quick” or “dating” (i.e. seduction). And 99% […]
Continue readingI was hangin’ in this private online group the other day when an entrepreneur named Joe piped up and asked: I need to work on a nurture sequence for new folks on my list. Does anyone have templates of examples (or book recommendation on this topic) of what a nurture sequence should look like? Should […]
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