Targeted E-mail can pay dividends or it can be a real bust. The secret is in doing it right. So here's some important do's and don'ts:

• Don't send unsolicited e-mail.
• Don't attempt a one-step sales approach in your e-mail.
• Don't ask your prospects to call you for more information.
• Don't ask your prospects to E-mail you or an auto-responder for additional information.
• Don't ask your prospects to furnish you with their phone, fax or mailing address for further information.

Instead, do this:

• If you haven't already built your own internal E-mail list, use only opt-in or targeted lists. Don't contribute to an already bad situation by sending e-mail to people who probably aren't good prospects. In addition to offending potential prospects, you're contributing to the massive drain on Internet bandwidth.
• Ask your prospects to visit your website for further information. This brings far better results since all they have to do is click on the URL you have listed in your e-mail.
• Keep your E-mail very short - no more than 5 or 6 sentences.
• The absolute single biggest thing you can do to get superior results is to give your prospects a rewarding or enjoyable reason to click on the link to your website.

Making Targeted E-mail Work Using Streaming Video

As we've just discussed, it's crucial that you make it as easy as possible for your prospects to obtain additional information. Further, you must offer them a compelling reason for doing this which is either rewarding or enjoyable.

The best method we've come across is to include a line in your e-mail similar to "click here to come and see our online video presentation". This will definitely arouse their interest and will even grab some additional prospects that might not have otherwise responded. Everyone loves a chance to be entertained.

Why does this approach work so well? By nature, we're all pretty lazy. We'd much rather be entertained than have to read all of the time. Just consider your own personal habits when it comes to reading the bulk E-mail you've received. Asking someone to come see a streaming video presentation on your site is much more effective than asking than to come read.

Here's an example of how you can use the power of streaming video to improve your own sales results. You can watch this video in your choice of either Real Video, Windows Media or QuickTime  format.

Optimism Versus Realism - A Word Of Caution

As we've said earlier, don't be fooled by thinking that the law of large numbers is going to make your targeted e-mail campaign work. It won't. Everyone is looking for the easy way. Unfortunately, no individual sales letter and no amount of e-mail addresses are going to make your campaign work all by themselves. If you're going to do targeted e-mail, you better be prepared to do it professionally and responsibly. The online market is just too sophisticated for anything less.

To incorporate streaming video into your e-mail campaign, simply send us your DVD, Mini-DV, Beta SP, Umatic, Hi-8, VHS or S-VHS video clips using our mail-in video submission form. Please call us at 630-690-7611, or e-mail us at media@cybertechmedia.com if you have any questions.

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