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New webmasters, following advice that's often repeated (for good reason), frequently
want to set up an email list ("the money's in the list") and an autoresponder
("potential customers must see your message an average of 7 times before
they act"). But the marketing forums are still full of questions from new
marketers about autoresponders, so perhaps it's time to revisit that topic.
First, we need to make a distinction. Many hosting providers include unlimited
autoresponders as part of their hosting plans. These however, are usually one-time
autoresponders, meaning a user sends an email to that address, and they get
one email back. These have their place - to send download instructions, answer
standard support questions, provide additional company information, and so on.
Generally, the forum discussions center around "follow-up" autoresponders,
which not only send a single email in response to a user email, but also send
additional email to that user at designated time intervals that the marketer
can set. No matter when the user sends the original email, they will receive
each email from the autoresponder in sequence. Therefore, on the same day, some
users may receive email number 3, while others receive email no 6.
Most autoresponder software will also function as email list software, meaning
that you can send an email to your entire list at any time. If you only want
a mailing list without followup capabilities, other software is available that
serves only that purpose. However, it often makes more sense to choose full
autoresponder software anyway. If you want, you can use the autoresponder only
to send occasional email to your list, but you'll have autoresponder capability
should you need it in the future.
You'll need to choose between autoresponder software that you buy and install
on your own site or a third-party hosted autoresponder service that has a monthly
fee. Both have their advantages, so you'll need to review the features of each
to see which best meets your needs. For example, if you install software on
your own site, then the initial email the user sends will go to your domain,
rather than the domain of a third party service. This can be good for marketing
and branding purposes. But, you'll also then have to spend time or money to
deal with installation, technical support, upgrades, and so on.
If you choose a third-party hosted autoresponder service, there are free and
paid services available. The free services may or may not be stable and reliable,
and sometimes they add a one-line advertisement to your outgoing email. You
have no control over which ads are shown, so think very carefully before using
a free service. In the long run, it's probably better to pay a small monthly
charge for the peace of mind one of the major paid autoresponder services can
bring.
We should also mention that some software is available that will let you run
an autoresponder from your home computer. If you have an always-on internet
connection like cable or DSL, this may be an option if you have relatively few
subscribers. However, such software may violate your Internet provider's terms
of service, so be sure to check first.
Whichever autoresponder option you choose, be sure to understand if there are
limitations on how many followup emails you can send, how many members can be
on your list without incurring extra monthly fees, deliverability and customer
service record of the service or software provider, whether double opt-in subscriptions
are available and required, your level of comfort with the user interface, and
if there's a limit on the total number of separate autoresponders you can have
under your account. Weigh all features, pick the ones that are most important
to you in your business, then make your choice.
The one I use and recommend is the autoresponders run by Email Aces at http://theezine.emailaces.com
About the Author:
John Calder is the owner/editor of The Ezine Dot Net. Subscribe Today and get
real information YOU can use to help build your online business today! http://www.TheEzine.Net
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