Bond Swap

It is now time to turn to your competitors for opportunities to grow your list and add additional revenue to your bottom line for low or no cost.

For example, I just finished the media buy recommendations for all of our newsletters. My advice is to reduce them to help control costs through the end of 2008, that the difficult economic situation continues to all effects. But my number one focus is on the contrary, for every marketing manager to focus on the optimization of marketing and editorial relationships we have with our fellow publishers and is aggressively swap announcement, invited editorials, and joint ventures (JV).

The idea is to develop synergistic relationships that are mutually beneficial - to find areas of deficiency in competitors and reflect on how your company can fill the void.

One potential partner could have a very good front-end product (eg, low cost e-books), but no up-sale (for example, a kit containing higher price schedules DVDs, CDs, and workbooks). Another potential partner may have an innovative back-end, but no viable product front to bring new customers in the door. Others may have large lists of qualified but need to be closer to drafting their lists. (This happens often when traders gather names on their websites or by mail, but not a regular publication - for example an e-newsletter - to offer those who sign up.)

Here are some tips to keep in mind when looking for potential partners:

aec Do your homework. Find out in advance who will be at the industry events you will attend. (See the program for speakers, vendors, and participants.) Subscribe to e-newsletters. Read promoting their e-mails. Maybe even buy some of their products.

aec Watch occasion, all as a way to maximize your brand. When you go to industry events, do not eat dinner alone in your hotel room. Go to functions. Mingle. Network. Have a genuine conversation with a potential partner ... then, if there is a synergy between your two companies, exchange business cards.

aec Before contacting a potential partner, become familiar with its products and target audience and understand how your company may be able to match its range of products or marketing efforts.

Thus, once you have connected, now what?

Ad Swaps

Assuming you have two electronic newsletters, you can test the waters and see how your list will respond with an exchange of advertising. In other words, you run an ad in its electronic newsletter and runs a small ad in yours.

To give meaning to the results of this test, you must know your opportunity cost "- the" cost "you will incur for running an ad off your list instead of your own listing . If you're used to sell advertising space in your e-newsletter, the cost could be simply a flat fee, charge you a fee. Or, if you know the average turnover of an issue leads, you can calculate the potential "missed opportunity" to let run another ad to your list on a given day.

You must also agree to share important information with your partner. Before his announcement is broadcast in your e-newsletter, pointed out that all the problems of creation. (Maybe the copy is too inflammatory to your list. Maybe he is too competitive.) Provide your partner with your e-newsletter is sent and the size of speed, open rate, and rate clicked on an ad. The exchange of performance data is essential for a sustainable and mutually beneficial. There must be a win / win for the partnership to work.

Whether your goal is to attract names for your e-list (lead generation) or make sales, to reciprocate. If your partner is letting you do.