This is what happened to my pile of Halloween candy! (It has everything to do with marketing.)
It got eaten – by Clive and I! This is the pile of candy I was planning to give out on Halloween that I’m talking about. I’m not even going to show you the bag of candy we’ve nailed – it’s too embarrassing.
I made the mistake of thinking that because we weren’t really around on Halloween (or switched lights off – did I just say that out loud? 😉 ) that we’d still have trick or treaters coming around to get candy. (We hadn’t really bothered too much in the past, as our house only tended to get one or two because of our location and long driveway.) Anyhoo, I digress.
I just got excited about giving out candy on Halloween this year to see the kiddy-winks doing their thing. BUT low and behold…
I was sorely mistaken, and yes – even disillusioned.
After all why would they come now, if I haven’t been here for them in the past?
They aren’t psychic. No one’s normally here. Ours is the house where they normally think ‘I won’t bother’. And folks generally don’t bring their kids to our little neck of the woods anyway. So there is no trust that candy is waiting for them, right!?
LIGHT BULB MOMENT!
Well, this is also how your email list behaves if you haven’t written to them in a while.
If you haven’t been regularly nurturing them with quality content – articles, how tos, newsletters, tips or inspiration – chances are that they won’t open your emails (or the open rate will have gone down), or they won’t buy from you when you make an offer!
There isn’t a trust there for them to take that leap. They are not feeling the LOVE from you.
This is SUPER IMPORTANT for you to take in – because marketing what you do, is ALL about relationships and trust, and is becoming more so every day.
Going back to Halloween – next year I plan to put a big sign on my mailbox and a freaky flag of some kind, to indicate that we’re open for ‘business’! They need to know that I have what they want – CANDY!
When it comes to having an email list that will be responsive to your emails and offers, they also need to know that you’re open for business. By hearing from you regularly!!! And not when you just want to make offers. (That is a turn off when you do it that way)
Lots of folks get caught out with this. Because most of the time, they just don’t want to be an imposition to their subscribers. And then they expect them to buy, or sign up when they decide it’s time. It really doesn’t work like that.
They need to hear from you ONCE a week, at least!
Yes, I know that might be a stretch.
Picture these folks waiting to hear from you, who really need what you are sharing. They signed up for a reason. They WANT to know what you know. They want your advice and insights. And if they don’t, they will unsubscribe – and that’s a good thing. We don’t want them hanging out on your list and skewing your numbers, if they are not benefiting from being there. We want true followers and fans on your email list – folks that will make the leap when you ask them to.
Ok that’s my confession over – I ate the candy. Thankfully I’m starting a 21 Day Sugar Detox in a few days, and it coming at the perfect time! (Well done to the nutritionist who timed an offer like that so well!)
In the meanwhile what do you plan to do more regularly to nurture your relationship with your community (email list)? Just pick ONE thing if it feels like a stretch for you. Share what you chose to do in the comments below. Not only will it help you make the commitment, but you’ll be inspiring others too! And of course I’d love to hear your intentions.
