Everyone knows there’s a world of information and services on the Internet. So what does that mean for your business? Do other businesses or consumers that are looking for a service or product that your business offers discover your service? The answer might be a big “NO” to you. Just like us, you have placed advertisement on newspapers and magazines and the results were not as good as you expected. We once placed an advertisement on a magazine that claims to have over 1.5 million subscribers nationwide. We spent nearly a thousand dollars for the ad and only got a few responses. What went wrong? The answer is very simple! Our ads were buried among over two dozens of advertisements and it was not targeted to the right audience. We are getting smarter. We now get quite good responses from Ezine ads.
As businesses are finding that whether shopping around for a right publication to advertise, learning the ropes of a newly established online operation or operation smart by advertising to the best audience, the Internet online newsletter or Ezines often provides a better chance for online advertisers. Similarly, Internet businesses find they can communicate with customers and market their services more efficiently via the online publications. A key advantage of Ezine advertising is that it’s more targeted and much more cost-effective.
What are Ezines? Ezines are content-rich and informational online publications that are delivered to subscribers with permission through email. Most Ezines are free to subscribers. Individual Ezine may focus on a particular topic or subject. For instance, our own B2B Ezine covers news and latest trends on business-to-business markets in cyberspace. Each Ezine usually displays classified ads or feature advertising placements. More and more businesses have come to realize the importance of advertising on Internet Ezines and newsletters. Here are some main reasons that why you should focus more of your budget towards Internet Ezines advertisement:
Cost-Efficient
Print publications such as magazines and newspapers usually charge $15 to $25 dollars per word for classified ad, or $200 to $300 per inch column. Needless to say, they are very expensive to small business operations. Most Ezines are able to deliver at much lower cost because of its low cost on production and delivery. In a print magazine you will see full color glossy ads that were produced for thousands of dollars. In Ezines, even feature advertising can be found between $300 to $800 that is much cheaper than traditional advertisement.
Instant Delivery
Most Ezines are published on a daily or weekly basis. When you place an ad with your favorite Ezine you can always expect to see it in circulation next day or within a week. Traditional advertising you will normally wait up to two or even three months to see your advertising in print. With a good Ezine advertisement information is just a click away since your ad is hyperlinked to your website URL, and Ezine subscribers can simply click on your URL, email address and get their information within moments.
Less Competition
A print magazine usually has over three dozens of ads while Ezine only has about a dozen or less. Would you rather compete with three dozens of other advertisers or a dozen?
More Targeted
Almost every Ezines are opt-in mailing lists. People who subscribe a particular Ezine are willing to receive them. Therefore, Ezines are more targeted to those who share the same interests and they eventually will read your ad.
Global Audience
Ezines are one of the very few ways to truly reach people all over the world. Even I live in the central Illinois, my B2B Ezine reaches subscribers from over two dozen countries. It doesn’t cost me a penny to send the Ezine directly to them. If your services are available globally you need to consider advertising in Ezines.
If you are looking for a cost-effective alternative to print advertising, Ezine is one of the most efficient ways to reach people who might be interested in your services or products. However, designing a proper and effective ad is another important task. The following rules may surprisingly maximize results to your efforts.
Highlight buying incentives like free bonuses and money back guarantees. One of the most effective ways is to offer something FREE. People love free offers. The message will encourage them to click on your website link.
Use short sentences and attention-grabbing keywords. Make your subject line short, straightforward, and to the point. Grab readers’ attention in the very first sentence.
State your product’s benefits and features. Ad content should focus on providing information rather than forcing sales.
Include a hyperlink to your website and email address.
Finally, choosing an Ezine for your advertising needs some homework. First of all, evaluate your marketing needs and set a budget; determine who are your targeted customers; then search and shop around. Always ask for details about demographic information and any special offers. When you ask more questions, you might even save money for your ads. Sometimes Ezines may offer last minute special rates that are much lower than the regular rates!
Brian Su is a senior consultant of http://www.SmarTechLab.com – an
Illinois-based consulting firm that specializes in e-business
development and marketing strategy. He also manages a popular
microportal at www.DollarTemplates.com that provides pre-made
e-commerce and portal web templates to webmasters and net
entrepreneurs around the globe.
