Leave Your Name and Email and Get a Pounding Headache

Posted by RP

January 17, 2008

I was reading Darren Rowse’s problogger.net this morning and came across this article. Boy! did it strike home with me. I enter my name and email in a lot of online squeeze pages’ and I often learn a great deal of value. Unfortunately, I often learn what Darren talks about here: (read it, especially if you send, or are thinking of sending to an email list)

… I can just imagine how it happened - the company with the affiliate program probably has a page with some suggested emails that people could send out prospects - those signing up for the affiliate program simply copy and paste the email into my contact form expecting to get rich.

The problem is that the emails lack any compelling reason for me to respond to them.

They completely lack anything personal.

They give no real or useful information.

They don’t tell me a story.

They are spin. …

I am frankly so sick of receiving the typical drivel I have been receiving lately that I am ready to bag this whole blogging and Internet marketing learning exercise.

It is not that there is not a lot of valuable information out there … there certainly is.

It is not a case of ‘too many crooks’ … a very large percentage of the folks I have dealt with have proven to be honest as the day is long.

It is not that you can’t make money … you certainly can, I make some myself as do a great many others.

The problem is, though, the way so many go about making that money. Darren’s points are very well taken and I second them, wholeheartedly.

If you want to make money, especially marketing your own product or earning affiliate commissions from other’s products, then you darn well better build a list. One of the biggest mistakes I have made so far is avoiding building a list.

Furthermore, it is not that hard at all to build a list … if you decide to do so.

But the real ‘rub’ is, what you do with … and to the folks on that list. they aren’t email addresses, they are people, and they deserve to be treated with respect. Not bombarded with bullshit … the only proper term for much of the promotional emails I receive … or milked dry like a cow’s teat.

By the way, since 98% of you aren’t interested in agriculture you may not know that milking and caring for cows is is a very exact science, coupled with luck and a little art. Real cows will go off their milk when they are abused … just as email lists will.

Sadly this seems to be a hard lesson to learn. I found an excellent series of video by a fellow named Frank Kern that I am going to recommend you watch, unreservedly. They do require a signup, so far frank has been non-abusive. You’ll learn the right way to make lists and earn money … without abusing anyone. recommended.

By the way, the list above is not an affiliate link. I wish it was, but I don’t have time to play with any more affiliate programs … I need to focus on working a number of other opportunities I am already neglecting. So go, view and enjoy.

(tip of the blog hat to Yaro for recommending these videos. If you aren’t reading Yaro on a regular basis, you are not trying to learn and earn. Thanks Yaro.)

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Mailing Lists, Make Money

Did you enjoy this post? Why not leave a comment below and continue the conversation, or subscribe to my feed and get articles like this delivered automatically to your feed reader.