"How To Effectively Use An Autoresponder"

"How To Effectively Use An Autoresponder"
Written By Jeff Schuman © 2004
http://www.Team-Schuman.com

First of all let's define what an autoresponder is and what is does.

An autoresponder is a feature that allows you to generate
automatic customized responses whenever a specific e-mail
address receives an e-mail.

Typically, this feature is used by people when they are
away, notifying the sender of an e-mail that the recipient
is away and will be back on a specified date.

Alternatively, it can be used as a business tool to send
specific responses with information, such as pricing
information if a customer sends an e-mail to a specific
address, i.e. sales@yourdomain.com.

Here's 10 effective ways you can use an autoresponder
to improve your time management and increase sales.

1. Collect names and email addresses. I use an autoresponder
on my website sign up form to capture customer information
for follow-up with my weekly newsletter

2. Publish a price list of all the products and services
that you offer. You could also include order forms,
product descriptions, and other sales material. This is
great way to keep people up to date on what you sell.

3. Use it for training. When a new person joins me in
a program I am in I follow-up with them with my
autoresponder which contains a series of short messages
designed to answer questions about the program as well
as give them my contact information if they have any questions.

4. Give away free reports. This is a great way to capture
your prospects name and email address for future follow-up
as well as pre-sell your product, program or service for
future sales.

5. Use an autoresponder for frequently asked questions-FAQ's.
Save yourself time and money by putting those questions and
your answers in an autoresponder format to respond to your customer.

6. Put testimonials from people you are doing business with now
in an autoresponder and let people read them at their leisure.
Everyone likes to read what satisfied customers have to say.

7. How about putting your entire website in an autoresponder.
As people surf the web after a couple of hours they don't
remember every website they have been on. By emailing different
pages of your website over a period of time they can learn
about you as well as come back to your website for future
reference without having to find it or bookmark it.

8. If you publish an eBook put the different chapters
or excerpts in your autoresponder. This will allow
your customer to download the eBook or just to read it
as an email when you send chapter by chapter over a period
of time.

9. Do you archive issues of your ezine? If so put some of
the best ones in an autoresponder an let your prospects
and customers access them through your autoresponder. This
is a great way to catch people up on your ezine as well as
build relationships over a period of time.

10. Use your autoresponder for anything you can think of
to keep in touch with people an a business and personal
way. We have used ours for Christmas lists, when our best
friend was dying of cancer, to train people on a product,
to give updates on our kids, and many more ways.

To summarize let me say this. Get yourself a quality
autoresponder and use it. I personally feel 2 of the
best are Aweber and GetResponse.
http://www.team-schuman.com/aweber
http://www.team-schuman.com/getresponse

They are reliable and and easy to use. It is a tremendous
way to save time and build relationships over a period of
time. There are very few things I will spend money on to
build my business, but a good autoresponder is at the top
of the list.