Autoresponders Are a Publishers Best Friend

By Bill Platt
Posted Friday, September 3, 2004

How many times have you subscribed to a new ezine, and then when the first issue of the ezine arrived, you were scratching your head as to how your email address ended up on the list? Our lives are often so tedious that little details often slip right from our memory.

The point is this. If it happens to you, you can rest assured that others have the same experience as well.

Sometimes when this happens to us, we just unsubscribe from the list after that first issue. We cannot remember what compelled us to subscribe in the first place, and the first issue of the ezine does little to rekindle our initial enthusiasm for the ezine.

As publishers, autoresponders can serve us well. When used correctly, autoresponders can strike while the iron is hot, cementing the subscription for the new subscriber.

If your ezine has been around for a while, or only for a few issues, seriously consider taking the time to compile a *Best Of* issue.

Be certain to list subscription instructions near the top of your *Best Of* issue, and also ask people to forward it to their friends.

Your *Best Of* issue should be placed into an autoresponder email address, and then given away at every opportunity. The moment the issue is ready, you can notify your subscribers of the existence of the issue. In the ezine information area of each issue, you can also remind subscribers that the *Best Of* is available at such-and-such email address. Ironically, some of your subscribers will download your *Best Of* several times.

The most important reason for building the *Best Of* issue is not for the benefit of your current subscribers, though most of them will appreciate your making it available to them. The best reason to implement the *Best Of* autoresponder is for your new subscribers!

When someone subscribes to your ezine, they will receive their *Welcome to My Ezine* notice. As they are reading the *Welcome* message, their enthusiasm is bubbling over. Waiting for that first issue will be tough unless there is an invitation to receive their first issue NOW.

In your *Welcome* message, you should let them know that if they would like to get started right away reading your ezine, then they should send a blank email to your autoresponder address for the *Best Of* issue.

New subscribers will gorge themselves on your *Best Of* issue, and they will remember your ezine when the first new issue arrives in their mailbox. If the *Best Of* issue was precisely what they were looking for, you can rest assured that they will eagerly open each subsequent issue of your ezine, with delight in their hearts.

If you do not have the ability to set up autoresponders on your own domain, one company that offers a free autoresponder service is: (http://sendfree.com/)

If you take the time now to implement the *Best Of* autoresponder, the rewards will most certainly be long-lasting. Remember, the best time to get a new subscriber to fall in love with your ezine is when their interest is the highest --- at the very moment they subscribe to your ezine.

About the Author
Bill Platt owns (http://thePhantomWriters.com) . Do you need free content for your website or ezine? Our archives deliver more than 300 free-reprint articles available for your use. (http://content.thePhantomWriters.com) . Do you write your own articles? Let us distribute them for you to our network of 6000+ publishers & webmasters (http://thePhantomWriters.com/distribution)