Comments on: Book review: Newsletter Ninja: How to Become an Author Mailing List Expert

By: How to Handle a Dwindling Friendship

How to Handle a Dwindling Friendship — Thu, 16 Mar 2023 06:05:42 +0000

[…] looked at my experience through the lens of grief — you may likely feel all the stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Understanding how you currently feel — and might feel as you process the loss of a friendship […]

By: Sandra Beckwith

Sandra Beckwith — Fri, 06 Nov 2020 03:22:27 +0000

In reply to Gay Merrill.

“It’s an audience of people” is brilliant! Thank you for sharing that.

I just visited your website to see what you write about. Why don’t you pretend you’re one of your clients and offer content advice to yourself? I know that might sound silly, but I’m serious. If a client was paying you for advice about what content to put in a regular newsletter, what would you suggest they do? Also, I think regular how-to tips might be a good fit for you. And if you don’t already, subscribe to your competitors’ newsletters and see what they send people. Subscribe to A LOT of newsletters to see what they send people!

And I love that you offer your subscribers an e-course. What a great idea!

Sandy

By: Gay Merrill

Gay Merrill — Fri, 06 Nov 2020 03:12:13 +0000

Thank you, Sandra (and the universe) for this book resource. I started an email list a few months ago by offering a 10-lesson writing ecourse I had created for a platform. But I’ve been agonizing over what to send out on a regular basis. The pressure is mounting as the weeks and months go by. Aghhh. I want to provide value to people because as someone said to me recently, it’s not a list it’s an audience of people.

By: Sandra Beckwith

Sandra Beckwith — Thu, 29 Oct 2020 15:18:51 +0000

In reply to Alan.

Here’s another thought, Alan: People who downloaded the book because it’s free might not have even read it. I have quite a few downloads on my Kindle that I haven’t read yet, and I’m not unique. These are books I intend to read, but others also download something just because it’s free, even if it’s not the type they usually read, etc.

You really want to be driving readers to your opt-in page in other ways — not just through your perma-free book. If you aren’t doing that already, give that a try before abandoning what you have now.

Sandy

By: Alan

Alan — Thu, 29 Oct 2020 15:00:54 +0000

In reply to Sandra Beckwith. Thanks Sandy, good advice! I'll have rethink about the funnel strategy.

By: Ashley

Ashley — Thu, 29 Oct 2020 00:52:34 +0000

In reply to Sandra Beckwith. That sounds like a great idea.

By: Sandra Beckwith

Sandra Beckwith — Thu, 29 Oct 2020 00:23:42 +0000

In reply to Alan Hesse.

I’m not a big fan of using a book as a lead magnet, so I’d encourage you to create something else that’s short and relevant — a character guide, a map of fictional region for a series, etc. It’s an opportunity to be creative.

Sandy

By: Sandra Beckwith

Sandra Beckwith — Thu, 29 Oct 2020 00:21:00 +0000

In reply to Julia Goldstein.

Everything in the book applies to both nonfiction and fiction — it’s just that all the examples are for fiction. I read it as a nonfiction author and can reassure you that it’s directly relevant to my work. And honestly, I think it’s easier for nonfiction authors to provide useful newsletter content than it is for novelists, so you’ve got that going for you!

Sandy

By: Julia Goldstein

Julia Goldstein — Wed, 28 Oct 2020 21:55:00 +0000

I happen to have sent out an email to my list just before reading your message linking to this review. My open rates are decent (and super high when I send to a subset of beta readers or launch team members). But I’d like to grow my list and find ways to make subscribing more valuable for my readers.

It’s too bad that the book focuses only on fiction, but it still sounds useful.

By: Alan Hesse

Alan Hesse — Wed, 28 Oct 2020 16:12:59 +0000

In reply to Sandra Beckwith. Thats right! I know the books are good because they have great reviews, including 5 stars from Readers Favorite. I suspect I haven't found my audience though, that's probably the issue.