Email Copywriter

I started writing email copy back in 1996.

At the time of the old Internet bulletin boards and Usenet.

Back then us early internet marketers had basic email scripts or just the free email addresses from Yahoo! with contacts stored in address books.

It was fiddly, inefficient, but effective.

We would literally exchange email addresses with people who wrote to us or bought our basic eBook products (usually just a plain text file with zero images).

Now you might expect me to say 'Oh, those were the days'…

But today's email marketing is so much more fun.

An email copywriter must now take a very strategic approach of considering the full multi-channel touchpoints in a consumers or customers buying process.

The fundamentals of direct response copywriting are used by a good email copywriter, which means the message is more important than fancy graphics.  The relationship is more important than the creative design.  The gradual sales process is more important than the big bold glitz of other medium such as TV.

Indeed, the email channel is inherently a personal medium.  The spam trigger is all too easy to click if the recipient feels intruded upon.

Regular contact with interesting, friendly information has been the hallmark of good quality email copywriting since 1996.  And despite all the current dynamic content and personalisation fields, back in 1996 it felt far more genuine than much email marketing feels today.

The best email marketing I see today still uses mostly plain text emails.  Perhaps a graphic, providing it is highly relevant.

And a personal friendly tone that follows Jay Abraham's 3 dictates (paraphrased):

1. The primary goal of email copywriting is to build the relationship with the audience
2. The second goal is to elicit information from the recipients to provide insight as to their interests and buying process so you can increase the value of your messages
3. Only third is the actual goal of converting the person to a lead or sale

Why that order?

Because without 1 and 2, number 3 will be far less frequent, and you will quickly deteriorate the value of the email database.

Subtle and insidious. Personal and friendly. Open and unassuming.  This is the way to approach email copywriting.

I have provided a very clear example of this on the email marketing main page. Enjoy.

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