Q+C Email Marketing Bootcamp Pre-Work
Bootcamp starts soon, but before you dive in, there’s some prep work to do. This will make Day 1 flow faster + more efficiently.
Let’s take a couple minutes to look at the big picture. This is a fast-track, intensive bootcamp to get your email marketing game ready for the big leagues.
Whether you already have an email list, you have no idea what an email list actually is, or you know you’ve wanted one for a while, but nothing was motivating you to get started until now—this course is going to rock your socks off!
I’ve studied so many big name entrepreneurs and business owners, and the one thing they all swear by—you guessed it—an email list. The biggest reason is the personal connection you don’t get with anything else besides in-person interactions. But you’re probably a one-person-show, wearing all the hats, doing all the things, trying to make it work! That’s a lot to juggle.
One-on-one conversations take a lot of time, so make sure you’re finding ways to connect with more people at once. And in a way you have more control over! You can post all day long on social media, but you still won’t have the reach you get from sending an email.
Email is something that’s really hard until you crack the code. The combination of clarity, consistency, compassion and conversation unlocks the hearts and wallets of your past/present/future clients + customers. Once you’ve found your magical combo, automation is the key to email marketing bliss.
Take the time to set it up right, and you’ll only have to worry about email marketing once a month or once every quarter! You’re the boss. Make the decisions today that benefit your future self by saving you the most time + energy down the road. Shortcuts usually create headaches. The more time you free up for your future self, the more time you’ll have to handle all the orders, make all the cool stuff and actually have a life!
Clarity
Just be real. Say things directly and honestly. You don’t have to dance around things or make it fluffy + light. Everyone’s time is important and limited so if people are willing to share some of theirs with in in one form or another, be grateful! Keep it fairly short + sweet most of the time.
You know the saying—keep it simple sunshine! KISS has been around for a long time, even if the original version is kinda rude. But to the credit of the original version, stupid is just a reminder that if it’s not simple people are going to feel stupid, and they’re going to say no, leave, unsubscribe, and take their business elsewhere.
Most writing is recommended for a 4th grade reading level. It’s hard to go back that far, but most of all keep the industry slang, the big words and the stuff you wouldn’t share with your 4th grade friends to a minimum.
Consistency
Keep showing up! Sure, there’s so much noise in the world. Over 294 billion emails are sent each DAY. Yes, day. Fact check me on it. The average person gets 121 emails per day. HOLD UP! I know you just slapped yourself in the forehead and thought,
‘Well why should I send ONE MORE?!?’
Yeah, it’s a ton of emails, but how many do you read? How many do you delete? How many do you just open to get out of your inbox? How many should you unsubscribe from because you never open them anyway, and it’s just piling up + stressing you out.
Take some time before we get started and Konmari the eff out of your inbox. Strive to get it to zero. Set up some folders, dump the Spam can, and check out the very helpful unroll.me service that helps you unsubscribe to all those senders showing up in your hoard of emails. It’s very freeing to clear your digital clutter! Keep + file away only those emails that truly bring you joy.
Back to the point—you’re one of several awesome people showing up to share what you’ve been working on. When you’re not showing up, people tend to forget about you. Out of sight, out of mind. Ouch! Truth hurts, bae. You’ve gotta show up because sometimes people get lazy. Sometimes people get distracted. Sometimes people get so wrapped up in their lives, but it’s refreshing to open up a little bit of inspiring news every once in a while!
When I say be consistent, I’m not talking fight the social media noise and try to email people daily—unless time is running out for an important offer and they know this is a rare occasion. I’m saying, stop by like a best friend who is busy too, but they still want you to know they’re thinking about you. Once a week is a solid consistency rate, and for some businesses, bi-weekly is perfectly fine. Make those emails worth their time. Don’t show up just to remind them you exist. Be consistent with a purpose.
Compassion
A majority of creative types are empaths. They have heightened emotional receptors that allow them to feel deeply when others share their stories. Raise your hand if one of your top 3 priorities for being in business is because you want to help people in some way. Put your hand down.
I see you. I know you. I am just like you. We are trying to make a difference. We’re trying to make the world a better place. You want to do something good, and a lot of times this comes with some baggage from your past telling you that it’s wrong or impossible to do something good, be compassionate, AND get paid.
Guess what, honey. Kindness isn’t the currency, and your rent isn’t going to lovingly pay itself just because you’re a good person.
Email is one way to provide free value that eventually leads to a sale, or many sales. When you’re compassionate with your email content, people feel connected with you. They think, ‘man, I wanna be friends with them! I wish we could hang out in person and just chill. They seem so nice!’
Getting a piece of your time + energy through the products and services you create fulfill a tiny bit of that desire to connect with other nice, kindhearted human beings. Part of being compassionate is sharing things that inspire and motivate others to pursue more of what makes them feel good about their lives. It’s also about leading by example.
Compassionate creatives are the most fulfilled and I’d be willing to say they realize they are wealthy in many ways. Abundance doesn’t always mean a McDuck sized vault of money to swim around in. It’s not about stacks on stacks of glittering gold bars, vacation homes all over the world or shiny big toys like fancy boats, cars and planes. There’s nothing wrong with wanting access to those things if that’s what you truly desire, but you can’t take any of those things with you and every single one of those shiny toys depreciates the second you sign the dotted line. Is that a savvy business investment? Probably not.
Many small business owners + entrepreneurs are motivated to make more money so they can do more good in the world. Compassion drives them to buy an ad from the local school’s yearbook, sponsor a little league team, donate food to the local pantry, volunteer at animal clinics, get a table or tickets to fundraiser events, contribute items to silent auctions, and show up to help when the world feels like it’s totally falling apart.
Compassion is what keeps them clicking to open your emails. They want to feel like part of something good, even if it’s by associating with good people like you. Share those good deeds, but don’t expect gold stars. You have to do it for the right reason or people will see right through you.
Conversation
Do not talk like you are a computer. Do not be boring. Do not talk about things that bore you. If it’s boring for your to read, listen to or experience firsthand, it’s probably not exciting for anyone else. A lot of people don’t really like reading, or at least they say that. That’s why most of the internet is pictures—well, mostly memes—or visual elements of some sort.
Even though an email is one sided initially, the conversation it carries can take you places you never dreamed. When someone hits reply and tells you a short story about how what you said really resonated with them, helped them through a tough time, or inspired them to feel a new way you’ll probably be smiling all day long. It’s one of the best feelings as a business owner.
We spend so much time creating content, making our craft, sharing and being vulnerable trying to pay our bills and have a better life. It feels lonely as hell sometimes! Every comment, every reply, every testimonial and 5 star feedback from your clients + customers put fuel in your tank and keep you going when times get tough. It always ebbs and flows, but hard times don’t go away if you clam up and shy away. You’ve gotta keep showing up and moving the conversation forward. Nothing changes if nothing changes. If you’re creating for crickets, maybe it’s time to change things up a bit! Refresh your approach.
With email marketing, you are the Captain steering the ship. You share from your soapbox, your mountain top, your pulpit. But if you’ve ever watched a good conversationalist, an excellent speaker or a captivating actor/actress you know you have to get on people’s level to really communicate clearly. It’s scary, but look them in the eyes with your words. You’re miles apart, separated by screens and wires and wide open spaces. Bridge the gap by keeping it real. Listen to Justin Timberlake and just ‘Say Somethin'.‘
Getting Started
Ok! That turned into a blog post. Now let’s get down to the nitty-gritty! Here’s your to-do list. I’ve also made it into a fancy little printable PDF, complete with checklists and space to save your login info for safe keeping. I have so many usernames and passwords, it’s hard to remember them all! Click the button below, or use the link from your email to get to work on Lesson 1.
