Day Twenty-Two – Automation

Before I die, I wonder how long my automated email system will be? 5 years? More? At the moment some of them are about a year long. And they keep growing. For our Prolist (people interested in teacher education) I am now writing a new email each week, adding to it's already considerable length. It is like a slow drip Chinese torture, and my guess is that 70% or more of them are just spammed out, but there is a devoted 20% who open and read them: that is the person I am writing to. What I love about this system is that once the work is done, the work is done. Of course it needs feeding – that is another topic – but first create something to read, build something they can be involved with... Your Task – How To Build An Automated Lead Generating System

It's one part of a mosaic, and you need to build it. Some key words here: Auto-responders In Japan these are called step emails, which I like better as a name. That name has a feeling of leading somewhere, and these definitely need to do that. These are emails that your email service (MailChimp, Aweber etc.) schedule to go out after a deliberate delay from the email that preceded it. It can be anything from an hour to several months – it's up to you. Broadcasts These are emails that go out once: usually they are topical – your take on a major current event – or they contain special offers, information about an event or a special invitation to something. They are one-time only "broadcasts" to your list. Lead Generation It means – lead them into generating some income for you! The purpose of your automated email system is to convince them to meet you in person. Alexander Technique is a belly-to-belly business: you need to get them into a room with you. Keep that in mind as you write your emails… How It Works Auto-responders are the backbone of your list. They are informational, relationship building messages designed to maintain a connection between you and your followers over a long period of time. In Japan, we've had people come to the studio who say things like: "Oh, I've been reading your E-zine for 2 years and I finally decided to come." Broadcasts contain your offers. They are better made as a concentrated burst over a short period of time, then go silent again. Once your list grows in size, you can plan ahead: decide an event, decide a timeline, plan out a series of emails, set it all up in your email provider, then push the button and launch. How To Build An Automated Email List Start simply. Write one email per week. When you write it, think "universal." Is your message readable in a month, a year, even 10 years? If so, it is perfect for an automated system. Each email needs a delicate CTA – maybe a PS with a link to a page on your website where you keep up-to-date information on your next Introductory class, or the latest events. At first you have just one stream, one message. Bring everyone on to that list. Once that is getting meaty, and you have the hang of it, you can start offering different "seminars" which lead people to another automated series of emails that end in an offer. Since they are already on your main automated list, these can simple end, and the person is still getting your regular message. For example, you might lead them into one of your AhoAlexander offerings – a "how to" series that ends with an offer of an Introductory session that specializes in this topic. These side lists are where tags come in handy. Anyone who decides to join one of these "email seminars" can be tagged as interested in that topic. As your list grows, you may sometimes send "broadcasts" just to these folks. However, for now start with one list… One email. Every week. Do that, and the rest starts to do itself. Your mission (should you choose to accept it) is to start writing one email per week and slowly build an automated email list that eventually offers over a year of information for anyone who joins it.