Using an autoresponder

This important task can be easily done by using an autoresponder.

Since most people don't usually buy the first time they visit your site, you need to build a certain level of trust in your site and this is not generally done on the first or even the second visit.

To overcome this you can offer a newsletter by using an autoresponder to stay in touch with your visitors and remind them why they should re-visit your site and/or buy products you recommend or sell.

If done effectively, it may increase your sales tremendously.

For those of you that may not know, an autoresponder is an automatic e-mail message or series of messages that are sent at certain intervals specified by the sender.

Autoresponders are good tools for building relationships with your existing visitors by following up on purchases and promoting additional products you may have to offer. They also help you establish trust with your visitors that have given their e-mail addresses to you but have not yet purchased anything from you.

However, before you start collecting email addresses, here are certain things you should keep in mind:

1. Learn your visitors and their needs.

The more you know about them, the better you can tailor your messages to their wants and desires.

You want to be able to push their emotional buttons, answer any questions, and be able to provide solutions to potential problems they may have.

Don't start sending out junk, you'll lose your subscribers in a heartbeat.

The AWeber autoresponder lets you customize a form which will allow you to not only collect email addresses, but can gather other information about your subscribers (age, sex, hobbies, etc.) and it is all stored in a report you can review at any time.

2. Keep your e-mail messages relevant.

Stay focused. Remember, it is very important to keep your visitors interested. Put yourself in their shoes for a minute and think about what you would want to know if you were in their position.

3. Don't be too anxious to close the sale.

If you throw one sales pitch after another in your emails, it will be obvious the only thing you're trying to do is get a sale. Sure that's your ultimate goal, but you can't make it so obvious.

The exception:  If your autoresponder is setup to send emails to people who have already purchased something from you and your goal is to promote the other products at your site, you can be a little more forward about getting the sale in this situation because these people have already purchased from you.

Your conversion rate may be a lot higher with these people than a person who has never bought from you.

4. Add value to your subscription

Offer freebies only to your subscribers. Make sure the free offer is relevant to their needs and is of good value. Don't insult them by offering some product that they won't want or need.

5. Show personality

Show people there is a human behind these emails and sale pitches. Add a humor touch in a world where faces are not seen at times. Lighten up your messages by adding humor now and then.

My Favorite Autoresponder is...

AWeber. I send out monthly newsletters and their autoresponder comes in handy because I set up the newsletters in advance and then AWeber sends them out at the interval I specify.

I tried other autoresponder programs but they did not offer half as much as AWeber.

Many successful affiliates said their autoresponder was their most effective marketing tool and many of them use Aweber. They stress how important it is to build relationships and conduct follow-ups via email.

Aweber's autoresponder allows you to send an unlimited amount of follow-up messages at the intervals you specify. They provide great reports that include "open rate", "click-thru rate", and leads generated daily, weekly and monthly. You are also able to import leads into your account and they allow you to create as many different lists as you want (newsletters, follow-up to purchases, special promotions etc.) and you can even send HTML emails.

Here are the details on Aweber's autoresponder free trial.

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