Blog readers

[David Jackson]

I was wondering about the users who subscribe to my blog - is it acceptable practice to market to them, for example with information products?

No it's not, Tom. Readers who subscribe to your blog do so to receive your blog updates - not to be solicited. I never solicit my blog subscribers. Instead, if you have something you want to promote, write a review about it and make it part of a blog post. It will have the desired effect, without being a direct solicitation to your subscribers.

David Jackson

[Lynn Terry]

Hi Tom & welcome to the forum :)

Are you referring to promotions ON your blog, or promoting something to those who subscribe to your RSS feed or email subscription?

[David Jackson]

Are you referring to promotions ON your blog, or promoting something to those who subscribe to your RSS feed or email subscription?

I took his question as meaning directly soliciting subscribers to his blog. But if he meant simply promoting programs on his blog, then, that's perfectly fine. I think we all do that to some degree.

Daqvid Jackson

[lindastacy]

For email marketing, it's all about permission. If you already have email subscribers for you blog, I wouldn't just start sending them other offers. Essentially you only have their permission to send blog posts to them.

On the other hand, if you're setting up a new list, I think you can get permission to do both. I just set up my new mailing list that way. The subscribe page and welcome message both explain that in addition to sending blog posts we'll occasionally send other tips and resources.

Curious what others think of doing it that way?

[David Jackson]

I'm not sure what you mean by "programs on your blog". Is that referring to products such as some of the affiliate offers I promote on my blog?

Yes, that's what I mean.

David Jackson

[David Jackson]

If you're setting up a new list, I think you can get permission to do both. I just set up my new mailing list that way. The subscribe page and welcome message both explain that in addition to sending blog posts we'll occasionally send other tips and resources.

Curious what others think of doing it that way?

Linda, I think that's fine. Like you said, it's all about getting permission first.

David Jackson

[Lynn Terry]

I'm not sure what you mean by "programs on your blog". Is that referring to products such as some of the affiliate offers I promote on my blog?
I wanted to communicate with the users who have subscribed to my blog - is my only option to promote the offer in a post and hope they read it?

Hi Tom,

What are you using to manage your mailing list, or blog notifications?

If you want to share the link to your blog we can take a look and get a better idea of what might be appropriate - or not.

[Lynn Terry]

Hi Tom,

You use Aweber or something similar to manage your mailing list, right?

For RSS subscribers, you simply include the offer in a blog post, and that will appear in their RSS feed as a post to read. Product reviews work well. See: http://www.clicknewz.com/1995/how-to-write-a-product-review/

How long have you had this blog online, and how are you doing with it?

[Lynn Terry]

Are you writing any content yourself? The animated graphics and double underlined links are very distracting, but I wondered if they were working for you. How do you market the blog?

[Lynn Terry]

Do you do any SEO or search engine optimization at all? I recommend this free guide by Dan Thies: http://www.seofaststart.com

It's really hard to write on a topic you don't have much personal experience with. But now that you know how to set up a blog and do certain things, you might consider starting one on a topic you would actually enjoy writing about.