It has been a while since I have done one of the ‘irritating email’ moans but this example from Thursday’s collection of emails caught my eye.
The marketer in question said the email was going to be direct and it sure was that.
When he said he was not going to beat around the bush then what was promised was delivered.This is how the email in question began:
Is Patrick Griffin an Action-Taker or a Tire Kicker?
“Hey Patrick,
“I know you value your time, so I’m going to cut right to the chase.
“No beating around the bush.
“If you are a tire-kicker, please delete this email right now. Log out of your email client, and shut down your computer… because you aren’t going to see success any time soon.
“If, however, you are an individual driven to see success, motivated to do your best, and willing to put forth the effort needed to reach your goals, read on. This email is specifically for you.”
The clear implication from the email is that if the reader does not take the action that the writer requires then the reader is a waste of space.
Now the email certainly got my attention and it has impact but it is just a little too rude for my liking.
People like me who find it rude will probably stop reading at the point I did but I am sure others will be intrigued enough to click on the link to find out more.
Whether it is a good marketing email or a bad one I will leave up to you to judge but I think it does highlight the problems of trying to communicate by email to a large and diverse list.
Got one of those emails and from me he got a very fast delete, can’t stsnd marketers that are that rude, I my opinion the wasted space is the rude marketer
Twitter: chattopatrick
Hi Diana,
I guess there is always a judgment call between writing a hard-hitting email which will definitely get opened and read and a more toned-down version which may go unnoticed.
The trick is to get the emails read and not be so hard-hitting that you cause subscribers to leave.
P.
Patrick Griffin thinks you may like this post too..“You aren’t going to see success any time soon,” said the email marketer
As with almost any email you can only resonate with a small portion of your audience, unless of course your audience is very targeted. The make money niche is a wide and varied audience and as such emails like this are always hit & miss. This email or something very similar has been doing the rounds for a very long time. It obviously resonates with some people, my guess is people new to the industry – there is a sense of urgency and it hits that crucial anxiety button that all those marketing courses tell us we should be hitting.
Fact is the email is not aimed at you or I Patrick and I bet what is being offered is solid gold doo doo, but its an interesting exercise in psychology and marketing
Twitter: chattopatrick
Hi Mark,
I cannot come to any conclusions about the product because I have not seen it but I agree with your analysis of email marketing for this niche.
I was once told (although I cannot remember by whom) that every time you write to your list you run the risk of having people unsubscribe and this is true.
It is totally true that unless your niche is highly targeted then you are going to only appeal to a certain percentage of it with each email.
Thanks for raising such interesting points.
P.
Patrick Griffin thinks you may like this post too..“You aren’t going to see success any time soon,” said the email marketer
Twitter: andrewstark
He does ask an interesting question, just not sure why he had to be so rude?
You could say the same sort of stuff in a blog post, but rather than putting the person down you would lift them up and explain why taking action is so important. Stop learning and start doing is the message everyone needs to hear at some point, but as you said not in such a rude negative way.
I’m pretty careful about who I subscribe to, and if something like that slipped through I would be reaching for the unsubscribe button.
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Twitter: chattopatrick
Yes indeed Andrew. The message is indeed valid and it was simply the way it was delivered that I was drawing attention to.
By the way I have devoted a large part of today to blogging-related matters so I shall be catching up on your blog as I am interested in seeing how your challenge has been progressing.
P.
Patrick Griffin thinks you may like this post too..“You aren’t going to see success any time soon,” said the email marketer
Very interesting post Patrick. I actually disagree with the rude comments simply because I know this person and consider them an on-line friend. I was on a Jon Olson U-stream event about 14 months ago and messaged this person because he was interacting with Jon and nobody else seemed to be paying attention
He was nice enough to answer several questions I had that day, and I eventually got on his list. Over the past year he has responded promptly to every e-mail and tweet I have sent his way. Thus, since I know him, I don’t see the same thing as some of you did.
However, I agree with Mark, it’s a method that has been around, and, in this case, I agree it probably could have been worded a little differently.
Maybe something along the lines of “If you are ready to take action, I have something very exciting you need to see that is working great for me right now. If you are not ready for action, there is probably nothing I could say or show you that would help you, so please just delete this e-mail immediately”.
Kent Faver thinks you may like this post too..Is Ethical Marketing Dead?
Hi Kent.
I like your approach, there are many ways to say something to get our
point across. Yours covers both area’s.
I myself, will unsubscribe if I get rude, or obnoxious emails, at a heartbeat. I little kindness goes a long way.
Monika
Twitter: chattopatrick
Hi Kent,
My blog post relates to the section of the email I quoted in this post and not to any wider matters concerning the individual concerned.
I can confirm what you say that he does respond politely and promptly to emails and Tweets.
I would not even go as far as to say it was wrong to send out the email in the form it was worded…only that I found it rather rude.
And, for the record, I am still subscribed to this marketer’s list.
P.
Patrick Griffin thinks you may like this post too..“You aren’t going to see success any time soon,” said the email marketer
Well put Patrick – and you actually made a counter-point I typically try to adhere to – keep reviews to the issue at hand rather than the person. I will often tell someone I think their program is a scam b/c programs like that cannot sustain themselves. The person becomes offended and asks if I think their a scam artist. The reply is no, but they might want to re-think what they promote. Same issue here -might want to re-think that sentence. Thanks again!
Kent Faver thinks you may like this post too..Is Ethical Marketing Dead?
Hi Patrick.
Good post. I hate rudeness, and find there is no need for it. I am appalled at the emails that I come across. I will hit the unsubscribe button as fast as I can
There is just more proof, that these kind of people don’t want to take the
time to build a relationship, since in most cases, what they are offering is
worthless.
Good way to start a week.
Monika
Twitter: chattopatrick
Interesting comment Monika.
I this particular instance I would tend to agree with what Kent has posted above.
P.
Patrick Griffin thinks you may like this post too..“You aren’t going to see success any time soon,” said the email marketer
Twitter: tetutor
Hello Patrick,
Great post today it brings up a valid point about connecting with your audience.When people write emails they may not even notice how they would come across to the reader.Personally I have trouble conveying my thoughts on paper *so to speak*. I also agree that a few changes in the wording would have made a HUGE difference.
Twitter: chattopatrick
This is very true John. Sometimes only changing a single word in an email can make a huge difference in how it is perceived.
I think this goes to show that email marketing is something of a minefield.
P.
Patrick Griffin thinks you may like this post too..“You aren’t going to see success any time soon,” said the email marketer
I’m looking for it, if I remember I’ll get back. I do see this as a possible unsubscribe just like the ones that come from a nondescript or the best one, myself.
I like to save these as a reminder of what not to do.
Jim
Twitter: chattopatrick
If you are on that person’s list then I would not be tempted to unsubscribe just on the basis of that one email…oftentimes his emails are both witty and entertaining.
Patrick Griffin thinks you may like this post too..“You aren’t going to see success any time soon,” said the email marketer
Twitter: ITSergioFelix
Hey Patrick,
Well my perception to this is exactly what you just said in your last bit: “trying to communicate by email to a large and diverse list.”
I agree with the other commentators in that there was a strong message in the e-mail but it could have been (more than likely) probably reworded to something a bit nicer.
I’m pretty sure there is a high percentage of procrastinators out there (even more than action takers) but sometimes we also have people just getting started and these people are genuinely excited to take action right away.
I don’t get offended by these kind of e-mails as I get these on a quite regular basis now and from a lot of people not just unknown marketers so I had to grow a thicker skin.
My impression is that sometimes marketers can get a bit desperate and start to get a bit tougher on their lists, since what they want is money one way or another.
I have been on webinars where the speaker is practically insulting the audience in order to make them take action.
That e-mail could have been sweetened a lot by trimming the extra…
“If you are a tire-kicker, please delete this email right now.”
All of this wasn’t really needed…
“Log out of your email client, and shut down your computer… because you aren’t going to see success any time soon.”
I think this kind of marketing is a little too much for me but hey, we’re all different.
Hope you have a great start of week Patrick and speak soon man.
Sergio
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Twitter: chattopatrick
Hi Sergio,
I think this email was indeed aimed at the newcomer to marketing and those who certainly need a push in the right direction to get themselves in gear.
So with that said I know exactly what the marketer was aiming to do.
Just because I found it rude does not mean that others did not find it inspirational or just the thing they needed to get them to take action.
I am not even saying that the rude approach is the wrong approach.
Just because an email may be perceived this way to a segment of your list does that mean that it was wrong to write it or send it?
I suspect the email was written for dramatic impact (the person concerned does have excellent writing skills) and it is interesting to hear so many other views here on this blog.
The approach where – on a webinar for example – the audience is virtually insulted can be an effective tool.
I think the logic goes like this:
There will be people who don’t like that approach and will want nothing more to do with you but you are not targeting those people so it does not matter so much if you annoy them.
There will be people who actually do like this approach and think your direct and plain speaking style is just what they want to encourage them to take action and so many of them will consider buying what you have to offer.
This has proved to be a great talking point…I am glad I posted it.
P.
Patrick Griffin thinks you may like this post too..“You aren’t going to see success any time soon,” said the email marketer
Patrick this is a very interesting post. I agree that this tactic is kind of a put down. It’s in your face marketing with negative implications. Like you, I was turned off by the fact that I have to take action with the offer to have value. To me, it just says classic marketing spiel. The aggressive tactic turned me off and shuts me down. Marketing can be done better than that. I think it is obvious that there is not much of an attempt to connect with the audience or list in terms of a relationship.
Marcus Wahl
skype: mcwahl1
Twitter: chattopatrick
Hi Marcus,
A lot of people have said here that they would find such an email to be a turn off.
However if such emails actually bring in good results does that mean they are wrong per se?
This has proved to be a very interesting talking point indeed. Thanks for your input.
P.
Patrick Griffin thinks you may like this post too..“You aren’t going to see success any time soon,” said the email marketer
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