If anyone should be sad about the new world of widely-available free information, it should be the newsletter publishers. The flow of free information has swelled into a flood, squeezing the life out of people who used to make a living explaining what is going on. It is tough times indeed when the competition is free.
In theory, information ought to sell especially well on-line. For instance, a copy of a paperback book shipped from Amazon.com has to travel by mail, while an electronic newsletter shipped as a PDF file costs the price of a click.
Three Reasons
In practice though, newsletter publishers have not done so well online. There are three reasons why.
The Internet was created as a tool for scientists to share information, not to sell things. Then came CompuServe and Prodigy for personal communication.
Many of the early marketing folks sent mass E-mail or posted notices on newsgroups. There were a few successes, but more often angry users flamed the marketers for abusing the commons.
For instance, there were the attorneys Martha Siegel and Larry Canter, who posted ads for immigration services.
They and their business have become notorious, but not in a good way.
Later came permission marketing, where advertising on the Internet was more acceptable if the user asked for the notice. Without permission it is abuse; with it, people have your attention and might well buy from you.
Many Web users have been on line long enough to view commerce favorably. And the hard sell that worked well in the mail turned users off to newsletters online.
The second reason why newsletter publishers have trouble selling subscriptions is cultural. The Internet was built on a culture of free, open exchange of information.
The hard-core users find paying for content repugnant.
Among the early geek society there was a saying, ”information should be free.” The problem is that it runs right into the goal of the publishers, to make money selling information.
For newsletter publishers it is even worse. On line, information is free.
There are thousands of people and organizations with Websites on all kinds of topics, from options trading to “Star Wars.”
Many of them work their keystrokes for hours, for no money at all.
The third reason that newsletter publishers have trouble online is information overload. On the Internet, free sites add to the glut. Prospects are drinking from a fire hose of information. That deluge of content makes it difficult for them to focus their attention.
Who has time to read all the free information, to find out which part is any good?
Meanwhile, a shopper looks through a pile of mail, gets a subscription offer and groans, “not another one.”
Even if they tear open the envelope and scan the salutation, they toss the letter into the wastebasket.
The publishers say that they dig through raw data for hidden insight. That might be true, but it is hard to do. And the Web users do not see it. Ask yourself honestly whether your newsletter does.
Stop Charging for Content
So what can you do if you want to make a buck with information on the Web? One option is to stop charging for content. Turn it inside out and make money from advertising instead.
Only a few newsletters make money from ads online. One that does is TechTarget, which has 19 e-zines for Information Technology professionals. All are free.
Rates, at over one hundred dollars CPM, are sweet.
Sell Your Newsletter the Traditional Way
But if you still want to sell your newsletter the traditional way, here are some ideas.
Tip one: Get the cash up front. The sale is not over till you have payment. Buyers either clip and mail a check or fill in a credit card number. If you wince at asking them for money on the offer itself, soften it. Instead, take the credit card number on the order but only charge it at the end of the free trial.
Decades ago, Joe Karbo had the right idea in his ad copy for “The Lazy Man’s Way to Riches.” Ask for the check with the offer, hold it, and then only cash it if the buyer likes it. He promised to return the checks uncashed if they found the information was not useful.
Jay Abraham did it too. He used to promote a seminar for a steep price. The checks sat on a back-room table. Attendees got their personal check back, uncashed, if the bootcamp did not help.
The information in a newsletter may be useful, but the buyer does not feel they need to have it. So the publisher worries whether the buyer will pay for it. The bill-me buyers often do not. The upfront payment puts worries about pay-ups out of the way.
Tip two: Upgrade your guarantee. The industry standard used to be a 30-day risk-free trial. Cancel within 30 days, get a full refund, keep the issues. After that, no cancelling.
As response rates to newsletter mailings fell, publishers tried different guarantees, to give prospects comfort. Some offered a 90-day risk-free trial. Others gave a full refund within the first 90 days; a prorated refund after.
Cancel any time, even on the last day, and get a full refund, no questions asked, and you may keep the past issues and bonus reports, to boot. It’s like telling buyers, “You never have to pay for this newsletter.” But it does open the publication to abuse.
Tip three: promote short trial subscriptions at low rates.
For instance, the Dow Theory Forecast may seem pricey to regular buyers of stock market newsletters. The weekly letter, at $259 a year, is steep. A 3-month trial at $79 makes the letter easier to buy. Online sellers bill both monthly and yearly.
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