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Do you prefer reading autoresponders in email or link to blog posting?

by shabit87
17 replies
Hey Warriors,

I wanted to know when you receive emails after joining a list do you prefer reading their message within the email itself or viewing it at a blog via a link within the email.

Please share your thoughts. Why do you prefer one over the other?
#autoresponders #blog #email #link #posting #prefer #reading
  • Profile picture of the author Shaun OReilly
    I prefer reading the content in the e-mail itself.

    And a lot of subscribers are that way too.

    Never underestimate people's laziness and desire to
    have everything delivered to them on a platter.

    Sure - it's only one click to go to the blog post but
    a lot of people won't do it. (They'll continue working
    through their e-mails instead).

    Test it and you'll find out the correct answer for your
    niche.

    Dedicated to your success,

    Shaun
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    • Profile picture of the author shabit87
      My thoughts as well. Thanks for sharing. I really appreciate it!
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  • Profile picture of the author Apollo-Articles
    The less clicks the better!
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  • Profile picture of the author Deepak Media
    I follow a hybrid model. I deliver the content through email and then encourage them to leave a comment in the blog post. Sometime I lead them there to watch a video or something like that.

    Just sending an email with a link to a blog post is the best way to increase your unsubscribers count
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    Digital Marketing Author | Speaker | Consultant

    Read my Blog: DigitalDeepak.com

    @ Bangalore, India.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dennis Wagoner
    I would much rather get the info while I'm reading the email.

    At least give me a good idea whether or not I want to invest my time at your site.

    After all, that's what you're asking for, more of my time.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jay White
    Agreed--don't make them jump through another hoop to get to your stuff. Just give it to them. The less work they have to do, the better.

    Of course, that's for prospects. Buyers can be treated differently. Since the relationship is already built and there's a level of trust intact, there's more of a chance of them following you to a blog post.

    I used to do this all the time with one of my A-list clients. Write the blog post, write a short email that says "I just wrote a new blog post" with teasers about what's inside, and watch the traffic come in. We'd get amazing opens and clickthroughs.
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    • Profile picture of the author Shaun OReilly
      Originally Posted by Jay White View Post

      Agreed--don't make them jump through another hoop to get to your stuff. Just give it to them. The less work they have to do, the better.

      Of course, that's for prospects. Buyers can be treated differently. Since the relationship is already built and there's a level of trust intact, there's more of a chance of them following you to a blog post.

      I used to do this all the time with one of my A-list clients. Write the blog post, write a short email that says "I just wrote a new blog post" with teasers about what's inside, and watch the traffic come in. We'd get amazing opens and clickthroughs.
      I agree that for a given e-mail, a buyers list will have a higher
      click-through-rate to view the next page.

      However, have you split-tested a buyers list with full content
      in the e-mail vs. teaser in the e-mail?

      Human nature is human nature and people love stuff delivered
      to them on a platter - and that includes customers as well as
      prospects.

      Dedicated to your success,

      Shaun
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      • Profile picture of the author Jay White
        Originally Posted by Shaun OReilly View Post

        I agree that for a given e-mail, a buyers list will have a higher
        click-through-rate to view the next page.

        However, have you split-tested a buyers list with full content
        in the e-mail vs. teaser in the e-mail?

        Human nature is human nature and people love stuff delivered
        to them on a platter - and that includes customers as well as
        prospects.

        Dedicated to your success,

        Shaun
        Yep--and in that particular case, the short "look at my blog" messages tended to work better. But again, that's just one particular audience and one particular guru. Everyone should test test test to see what their lists are going to respond to.
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        • Profile picture of the author leebarclay
          Personally I prefer to read the email then and there.

          Opening an email expecting information and finding a link can cause a moment of confusion where you can lose the Interest you worked so hard on getting in writting your subject line. It takes hard focused work just to get your email opened and to have them jump through another hoop is just another layer of conversion you add to the numbers game of profiting online.

          Another consideration is does your blog have adsense on it... Yes you may make some pennies or nickels if they click on an adsense ad. On the other hand if adsense is part of your overall marketing plan then a link to your blog in the email is appropriate. If you are selling your own or affiliate products as part of your permission based email advertising then a link to a blog is not working smart in my opinion.

          Good luck!
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      • Profile picture of the author Ldimilo
        Originally Posted by Shaun OReilly View Post

        I agree that for a given e-mail, a buyers list will have a higher
        click-through-rate to view the next page.

        However, have you split-tested a buyers list with full content
        in the e-mail vs. teaser in the e-mail?

        Human nature is human nature and people love stuff delivered
        to them on a platter - and that includes customers as well as
        prospects.

        Dedicated to your success,

        Shaun
        I am going to disagree here. It all depends on the value of what you are delivering. I have a list that averages an open rate of 52% and always give a teaser into what the link is delivering. The click through rate is 38% on average.

        The open rate can reflect anything...the click through rate reflects desire. Personally, a click through is a better indicator of engagement than a simple opened email.

        If you don't have a link in your copy, you can't go any further than open rate data and someone opening an email is usually only the first step to what you want them to do.


        Now, I may be wrong with that frame of thought but that is pretty much how I view it.
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        • Profile picture of the author Shaun OReilly
          Originally Posted by Ldimilo View Post

          I am going to disagree here. It all depends on the value of what you are delivering. I have a list that averages an open rate of 52% and always give a teaser into what the link is delivering. The click through rate is 38% on average.

          The open rate can reflect anything...the click through rate reflects desire. Personally, a click through is a better indicator of engagement than a simple opened email.

          If you don't have a link in your copy, you can't go any further than open rate data and someone opening an email is usually only the first step to what you want them to do.


          Now, I may be wrong with that frame of thought but that is pretty much how I view it.
          Let me clarify...

          I never said not to include any links in the e-mail and
          neither did I mention open rates (which are inaccurate
          in any case).

          What I'm saying is to split-test the difference between
          sending the full content in the e-mail vs teaser to the
          full content on a separate web page.

          With both cases you'll likely want to include a link to some
          paid offer.

          What I've observed in my own testing is that including all
          of the content in the e-mail consistently produces higher
          click-through-rates to the offer than just including teaser
          copy to the content on the web.

          Think about it...

          With the full content in the e-mail, the subscriber only has
          to click one link to get through to the paid offer.

          With teaser copy in the e-mail the subscriber has to click
          twice: once to get through to the web page with the
          content and another click to go through to the paid offer.

          It's great that you're getting an average CTR of 38% with
          teaser copy. Have you split-tested the teaser copy vs. the
          content in the e-mail?

          Only then will you know the most effective route for your
          particular list.

          Dedicated to your success,

          Shaun
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  • Profile picture of the author mhastings
    depends on the length of the message. If it's more than a couple of short paragraphs, link it
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  • Profile picture of the author KirkMcD
    I prefer everything in the email.
    I tend to read my email offline, and only save the ones that are interesting for followup.
    If it is just a teaser, I'm not even gonna bother reading through.
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  • Profile picture of the author tj
    Originally Posted by shabit87 View Post

    Hey Warriors,

    I wanted to know when you receive emails after joining a list do you prefer reading their message within the email itself or viewing it at a blog via a link within the email.

    Please share your thoughts. Why do you prefer one over the other?
    I prefer the email - in this way I can read it also "offline" .

    Timo
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    BIG BRAND Copywriting - Sales Letters + Bonuses for Warriors. $97 - Guaranteed! | OFFER NOT CONVERTING ? Need People to take action NOW?
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  • Profile picture of the author DavidSaaf
    I would rather say diversify and you can't go wrong

    You want to hit 'em from a different media!
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    • Profile picture of the author Shaun OReilly
      Originally Posted by DavidSaaf View Post

      I would rather say diversify and you can't go wrong
      No.

      I would say TEST and then you get the right answer
      direct from your list members.

      Diversifying will lead to compromised results.

      Split-testing will lead to optimal results.

      Dedicated to your success,

      Shaun
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  • Profile picture of the author massey5782
    Banned
    [DELETED]
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    • Profile picture of the author Ldimilo
      Originally Posted by massey5782 View Post

      I prefer to read it in my e-mail as it is convenient and time saving. However, if the info is really good and unique that I don't know anything about, then I go over to the blog.
      You highlighted my point exactly. Listen, I read Paul Myers newsletters religously and he offers his content all in the email. But because I VALUE his newsletter, if he changed to a teaser format, I don't imagine that that link would completely derail his Open & CTR.

      It's all about value perception here. We can talk all day long about what each of us prefer but at the end of the day, someone who considers what you have to say or your offer valuable will click regardless of whether it is a teaser email or full blown one. A lot of times, they won't even read your email and scan down until they reach the link.

      People will jump through hoops if they think that on the other end they are going to get what they want.

      I think that a better split test would be to put the link at the very end of the copy and then compare CTR with a teaser email. This way, you can actually see if folks actually READ enough of your email to warrant the click.
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