Stop Harassing People on Email.

Every one of these unread emails is from the same person.

22 emails in 40 days.

I’m getting these emails because I downloaded a free lead magnet from this person’s site, to learn how to solve a problem I had.

The lead magnet was good, actually — good enough that I eventually would have purchased this person’s paid product.

But now I won’t. Because I don’t like being sold to this way.

Is it because it was 22 emails? Not entirely. I'd prefer to get 7-10 emails over a month rather than 22.

But, if all 80% to 90% of the 22 emails helped me get closer to my goals or solve my challenges, I might have felt differently.

And maybe 10% to 20% of those emails could have nudged me into the paid product.

But that isn't what happened. It was pitch after pitch after pitch.

It’s like a telemarketer who won’t stop calling to sell a life insurance policy or a cruise to Jamaica when you clearly don't want it.

And now I’m turned off, and the should-have-been-sale will never happen.

Here’s the problem: Some email gurus and market-y marketers will tell you this email assault IS how to conduct good business.

“If your subscribers love you, they want to hear from you daily!”

“If they don’t like what they see, they’ll unsubscribe!”

Maybe those are both true.

But I’ll bet the majority of people who sign up for your lead magnet or newsletter don’t actually love you. Love is a strong feeling, after all.

And they certainly aren’t expecting to hear from you daily and to be pitched at constantly, unless you tell them this is going to happen.

This kind of strategy is an easy way to tarnish your reputation. And it’s the opposite of how I think about building my brand and business for the long run.

Do I plan on using email marketing in the future of my business? Absolutely.

And here’s how I plan on doing it differently:

An insanely valuable lead magnet: I want people to get more value from my lead magnet than they do from most paid products from other people.

Personalization & Segmentation: When you collect someone's email, you should treat them like a distinctly different person from everyone else on your list. Who are they? Where are they at in their journey? What do they care about? What are their biggest challenges?

Appropriate expectations: Next, I’ll spell out exactly how many emails you’ll get, in what frequency, and why. And I’ll include a simple link to click if you’re no longer interested.

Value-driven emails: I want the accompanying emails to blow people away with value. I plan on taking what I learned in the second bullet above and tailoring each email to solve the problems that readers tell me they are struggling with. They should learn how to solve a deeply pressing problem, for free.

And at the end, if they want to take their business further, I'll present my paid offer as an option.

Remember, email marketing done well is about helping your prospects and customers get closer to achieving their goals.

Do that, and you won’t have to hard-pitch someone 22 times in 40 days.