Sitting at the dinner table the other day. And my 15-year old daughter asks out the blue:
“So… what is it you do again Dad?”
I think last time she asked me, I completely bamboozled her with a word soup of “copywriting,” “marketing,” “coaching” (and others) that sailed on past.
So this time I was determined to keep it simple.
I said I send an email every day, so I can help people learn about email marketing.
She sits there and thinks for a moment.
Then pipes up:
“It sounds like you’re a scammer.”
“How? What? Why would you think that?”
“Well, isn’t that what scammers do? They send lots of emails to people?”
“No… I’m NOT a scammer!” I protested.
“Uh, Please DON’T tell anyone THAT!”
But that was it. Opportunity missed. Dang it!
Maybe next time I’ll get to make it clear what I actually do.
I did have a twinge of gratitude afterwards…
At least she knows scammers often try using phishing emails to get you to click dodgy links and steal your passwords.
So she’s got her radar up to spot scam emails, should one ever gets past the spam filter. (Not that she uses email much. Gen Z and all.)
But, now I’m one of them in her mind.
sigh
I wondered why I wasn’t doing a good job of explaining what I actually do…
Then then penny dropped!
I missed a crucial piece. By neglecting to say…
I send an email every day to people who ASKED ME TO.
No wonder my daughter thinks I’m a scammer!
🤦♂️
But scammers aren’t ALL bad.
Hear me out…
At least they have a dogged determination for getting the click.
So let’s give them SOME credit for persistence.
Which is oftentimes a missing trait among people wanting to run an online business.
The sparkles of the quick-money bizop are ever alluring.
Along with the $$ that flash before the eyes, when that 40 to 1 return on investment figure for email marketing is quoted.
But when the going gets tough the tough get out of the kitchen.
(Lovin’ me some mixed metaphors 🤣)
A long-term sustainable business is undergirded by customers who also stick around for the long-term.
And creating a business like that means building relationships.
NOT like the get in quick and grab whatever cash you can lay your hands on crowd.
(Sounds rather scammy to me!)
So, cultivating stickability is a good thing.
As is thinking of your subscribers and customers as MORE than just numbers in a spreadsheet.
In fact seeing them as the people you are here to serve.
There’s no sleazy, slimy, scammy ways needed to succeed.
Just good business practices.
Where customers are valued. And your email marketing isn’t about ringing up the cash register…
But is the core part of relationship-building with you customers.
And, sure, it’s a jolly nice side-effect when your customers put their trust in you by buying your products.
So you get a “thank you” through an ever-increasing bank balance.