Need Help With Email Marketing

I'd stay away from offering discounts to build a list, unless you have to power to undercut major retailers with a hugely popular product, I think that is a losing strategy.

Why? 'Special Offers' and 'Discounts' are a dime a dozen...

Everyone offers them.

To build a list, and get someone to exchange their email for something, that something needs to be valuable and have a high perceived value as well.

It's all about positioning and your USP.

So you are selling Business cards. Great. Do you have a lot of experience with creating and crafting different types of business cards for different types of businesses?

If so, you could put together a give-away on the most effective business card designs for certain types of businesses and offer that as a freebie...

-OR-

How about using all your experience to come up with a unique and interesting piece on what you see business owners doing wrong with their business cards all the time?

If I was interested in getting business cards made up for my new small business, and I landed on your site and saw you with a giveaway something to the effect of:

Business Card Secrets: The Top 5 Most Crucial Elements Your Business
Card MUST Have In Order To Generate A Huge Response!

Hint: Mess any one of these up and your prospect are far more likely to immediately throw your card in the trash than to actually follow up...

Obviously, this is just a quick example, and there are a thousand ways you could take this, but if I saw a Freebie like that and I was interested in getting business cards made up, I would definitely exchange my email for insider knowledge about how to not flub-up my new card and avoid having prospects simply pitching them in the trash!

Alex

To be honest, in some niches it's difficult to build a list and one of them is a physical item store...

The best bet is a monthly newsletter or a free sample card. But don't expect the same conversions that you'd get in an information driven niche.

However it's imperative that you sign up customers to your list and market to them. These are the guys that definitely have an interest in what you offer, will repurchase and will purchase upsells. I'd focus on linking your autoresponder to your payment processor first and foremost.

Are they similar to post cards?

Do you do this, offering business, cards for your customers?

or do you mean form a business card selling company ?

what is your strategy?

Okay, so you sold someone a box of business cards using Yet Another So-What Discount. What's going to keep them coming back? More discounts?

Remember, there are only three ways to boost profits. Sell to more people - what most folks fixate on. Sell more per order. Sell more often.

Here's an idea for a freebie (and follow-ups) that can result in all three.

"X Ways to Use Business Cards That Won't End Up Buried in a Drawer"

In the report, you give them X ideas for stuff they can print on those little paper rectangles - everything from their own coupons, BOGOs, comps, etc. to whatever your imagination (or, hint, hint, your existing customers) can come up with.

It's okay to offer a discount with a reason behind it (like a first order), but you do not want to train your customers to wait for the biggest discount.

For follow-ups, use tips, case studies, invitations to brainstorming events, all pointed toward one of the three profit-boosters.

You have to add value somehow, otherwise you'll never beat Vistaprint's 100% discount...

If I was doing something along the lines of this

"Buisness Card Secrets:The Top 5 most crucial Elements Your Business Card Must Have In Order To Generate a huge response!

How many emails would it be best to span it over?

One each day (may loose interest?)

A couple of days?