Inbox Magazines and their hidden e-Marketing Potential

While conducting research on how web-savvy Internet entrepreneurs like you can super-charge their marketing efforts by using e-marketing in its latest manifestation called Inbox Magazines, we discovered a rather interesting piece of e-mail trivia. We found out that e-mail has been around even before the dawn of the Internet era. e-mail was used by universities and research institutions around the world as early as the late eighties. When pre-Internet services such as GENIE from General Electric and Prodigy from Reader's Digest became popular in the early nineties, these subscription-based services also provided e-mail facilities. In fact, thousands of UseNet use groups were run using e-mail messaging as the only preferred form of communication. Facebook and Twitter were concepts whose time hadn't arrived yet.

Inbox Magazines Today

The playing field may not be as level as it was more than two decades ago. However, the fundamental configuration of e-mail messaging has not undergone a metamorphosis. We still have the "From" and "To" in the header along with the Subject Line. We can still forward messages and send Bccs to those who secretly share our passion. And most importantly, we still have the Inbox.

An inbox magazine, simply put, is a fancy name for a well-put-together e-newsletter. Most of us receive at least one such newsletter in our inboxes every week. We frequently attempt to take the time out to read them. Mary Ellen Tribby, the Internet entrepreneur who is aggressively promoting the product through a well-structured online course, focuses more on the nuts and bolts of the medium as opposed to the nuts and bolts of the message. Here are a few things that Mary Ellen Tribby has mentioned in her training program that deserves repetition:

The importance of Relationship Building

As active users of live chat software on your website or someone who is sitting on the fence waiting to be convinced about the real efficacy of live support software applications, you already know how important it is to build relationships with your online and, in some cases, offline customers. Your customers will gladly share their e-mail addresses with you if you are able to generate the require level of credibility and trust. A weekly or monthly inbox magazine designed attractively in HTML and JavaScript with relevant content and links to additional resources on your website will go a long way in building new relationships and cementing old ones.

Higher than 40% Response Rates

Inbox magazine response rates are known to have touched as high as 40% not necessarily in terms of solid conversions but at least in terms of measurable responses such as visitor traffic, online voting records, etc. This shouldn’t come as a surprise because customer loyalty is something you have already established through ongoing newsletter engagement. Such steep response rates are a logical step to conversion and sales which makes the entire effort really worthwhile.

Incredibly Robust Upsell Platform

Inbox magazines are leveraged routinely by Internet entrepreneurs to upsell their customers through new product launches, upgrades to existing products, the sale of extended warranties and the introduction of new accessories. Resistance levels are low because your readership already knows about your products and services through your inbox magazines. You can also use the platform to make announcements, run contests and orchestrate sales, incentives and promotions

The Pitfalls of e-mail marketing through Inbox Magazines

Remember that at the end of the day, an inbox magazine is still an e-mail message and all the statutes on the subject such as the CAN SPAM Act and the Digital Millennium Act continue to remain applicable. You should also take great care to ensure that your magazine content adds value to the reading exercise and doesn't sound like disguised sales copy. Provide your audience with real value and genuinely attractive resource materials and your customers will not only continue to buy from you but will spread the word using word-of-mouth viral marketing through a quick forward of your inbox magazine to their family and friends.