Another good post Justin…

This brings up a suggestion for the aweber programming team though:

If aweber list owners attempt to send a broadcast with a blank subject line or a subject line that still contains the default subject "Insert Subject Here" there should be a prompt by the aweber system saying, "ATTENTION YOU FOOL: Don’t you want to insert an appropriate SUBJECT LINE before you email your entire list of thousands and make a complete fool out of yourself and generate a ton of confused customer email responses?"

Feel free to reword the prompt of course. It might be a bit harsh… ;0)

It’s good to know that I’m not the only one that has sent out a broadcast message with a subject line that contains the default phrase: "Insert Subject Here". It’s only happened a couple of times in 5 years, but it sure causes a lot of confused responses from my customers when I do it. And dang I feel like a fool when that happens…

Actually, the way AWeber is set up, it is difficult (though as I know from sad experience, not impossible!) to get it wrong.

I keep trying to think up suggestions on how to improve the system, but to date, have failed.

Some day soon though…..

FIRST, YOU GUYS ARE THE ROCK STARS OF EMAIL MARKETING

Here’s my two cents…

No matter how correct I believe an email is, I always take the extra step of sending out a test email before sending a broadcast. Then I actually go read the email in my inbox in both HTML and Text and check the links.

It takes a couple more minutes, but I am amazed how often I see a silly mistake that would have fallen through the cracks–and been seen by thousands of other people.

Some other things I do just to keep me from screwing up:

I never compose a message online at Aweber. Instead I compose in a spell checking word processing program then cut and paste over at Aweber.

If I am trying a new HTML template for email I send it first to my “test list” which contains addresses from Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo, and AOL. If it looks good at each of these then it’s pretty much good to use.

In HTML templates I don’t call back for any website CSS, I include “hard coded” tables so I know how the email will appear. Too often trying to connect to CSS causes problems from an email program and you loose all formatting.

I link only to graphics at my website rather than some third party site. When you link to someone else’s graphic image you never know what they may do with the image. Besides, it’s rude.

I save a copy of every email I send on my “Work” computer so I can use them over again or to “adapt” for a new product or service. I rarely have to create a “brand new” email, typically I start with one that is similar already – even for HTML.

When I write a link in a text email I write it on three lines using spaces in the anchor tag so it will be clickable to the largest number of people.

[a href=" http://www.All-In-One-Business.com/emailreport "]
http://www.All-In-One-Business.com/emailreport
[/a]

( To make this link "work" change the [ to < and the ] to > )

In most email readers both of the URL’s will show up as clickable in a text email.

If I write a text email, I make sure to cut and paste into notepad before I place it at Aweber to remove any “smarty quotes.”

Though sometimes I STILL screw up. I had been writing two messages on the same day for two different products, and one subject line I toyed with was almost insulting. I decided I wouldn’t use that subject line after I read my test email.

I went back to Aweber and hit the queue now without changing it. I didn’t notice until I got complaints the next day that I had likely offended thousands of people.

Anyone is welcome to pick up more tips in the email marketing report here (it’s free):

http://www.All-In-One-Business.com/emailreport

It’s a little dated, but there are tons of helpful tips.

Speaking of errors…is there a way that AWeber can make it possible for customers to go back and fix mistakes on broadcasts that were already sent so that new/prospecitive clients of ours won’t read a mistake that was made in our archived newsletters?

One ‘typo’ that I often make (and which probably could be dealt with by programming ‘pop-ups’ like Jim suggests) is with the placeholder tags.

I often draft my emails in a text editor and type in the placeholder tags, e.g. {!firstname} - and sometimes, my finger slips off the SHIFT key, making it: {1firstname} or even {firstname}

And of course, the email that goes out has the embarrassing ‘wrong’ placeholder in the email subject or body!

Oh well, at least I’m not alone

All success
Dr.Mani

I like to be extra cautitious while sending the emails, especially when I am posting them in my newsletter. So not only I send a test version of them, but also read them after a day or two. That helps me to improve on the quality of my English, and the flow of my ideas.

A carpenter would say: "Measure Twice - Cut Once".

I guess the email author equivalent might be: "Proofed by Two - Instead of just You!"

I say this because my business partner and I share the responsibility of sending to our multiple lists, and take a moment to send the proof to each other in test mode before we send the broadcast.

If you have two sets of eyes to check the email first, all the better. Dont assume the other person has to be an email marketing expert, it is EVEN BETTER if they are not.

In this manner, you will each be looking at the email from different perspective "angles", yours perhaps as the compiler of the email, and the other as "Joe" or "Joanne" email receiver :>)

If you’re a professional online marketer you should have a written procedure you follow for sending out emails through your autoresponder.

This procedure should include testing the email (and if it’s a big list sending the test to more than one person).

For most online marketers email marketing is the most powerful, profitable tool you have.

If you want professional results with your emails can you really afford to approach your email marketing like an amateur?

Kindest regards,
Andrew Cavanagh