NEW ROCHELLE, NY — We here at Talk of the Sound subscribe to every email newsletter and press distribution list the has relevance for our coverage: Federal, State, County and Municipal governments and agencies, the Courts, Law Enforcement, Non-Profits, Local Businesses and Civic Groups.
Few of them get the full benefit of their subscriber/member list and media lists so we often make suggestions to them. Some act on our advice, others do not.
There are three main mistakes we often see so to save ourselves time we are going to publish them here and hope our readers who work with these organizations might implement these three simple (FREE) solutions and perhaps be inspired to do even more.
There are dozens of email marketing services out there but two of the most popular are Constant Contact and MailChimp. What we say about them is generally true for all the others
The number one point is Constant Contact and MailChimp both give users the FREE option to automatically create a web page version of an email “campaign” (i.e., a newsletter or press release). You know how some emails have a line that says “view in web browser”? That.
While some recipients may actually click the link to read the email in a browser it is somewhat redundant (you are already reading the email so why click to read it in another piece of software?). The big deal about that link is that it can be shared through social media so your recipients can distribute your content far and wide.
Here are three things to do that are easy, free and will multiply “reach” many times over, with instructions from Constant Contact and Mail Chimp: (1) enable “View as a Webpage” Link; (2) enable automatically post to your own Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIN, and others (varies by service) when you send an email; (3) add social media “share” buttons to make it easier for people to share your email or page on their social media.
Here is how to do it.
Constant Contact
- Insert a “View as Webpage” Link into an Email
- Connect Your Social Media Accounts to Social Share
- Make it Easy for Contacts to Share Your Email on Their Social Media Profiles with Social Sharing Buttons
MailChimp
- Add a Campaign Page Link to Your Email Campaign
- Publish a Social Post When You Send an Email
- Use Share Content Blocks
In a matter of minutes you can create new ways for your recipients to share and promote your newsletter and the content in each newsletter and auto-publish your newsletters through your own social media accounts which your followers and friends can also share.
The obvious benefit of all this is that your recipients can spread your news rapidly, dare we say “virally”. It will exponentially (and in a trackable way) increase your reach AND make sure the original information is disseminated as you intend. What’s not to love?