Eggblogg

UK Businesses losing customers because they don't reply to emails

Why am I not surprised at this?

In this week's NMA we learn that '38% of UK consumers have decided not to use a business because of poor response to email queries, customer research specialist The Listening Company has found. It also found that 3 out of 10 consumers had difficulty finding contact details on websites.'

And then there are those who make it impossible to get off their mailing lists. Today I made 2 abortive attempts to 'unsubscribe' from emails, one was iStockphoto, whose emails contain a teeny weeny link at the foot telling you that To unsubscribe, Click Here and change your Control Panel settings. Please note this may take up to 2 weeks to process. And then you need to remember your login to access your control panel. Two weeks? Give me a break.

Then there was the lovely Pipex, t/a Supanames, with their press release emails coming from the attractive sounding noreply@supanames.co.uk telling me 'If you do not want to receive any more newsletters,  http://sitecontrol.supanames.co.uk/newsletter/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=a63def9b72fefea8af0c38057a32c2cc' - go ahead, feel free to click on it for me and unsubscribe me if you can. All I got was an error message. Nice!

20 blogging ideas

Chris Brogan knows a thing or two about social media and he's just come up with a list of 20 ideas for topics to blog about. I love this kind of post, for people like me who need inspiration (aka lazy bloggers).

Thanks Chris, I may well take on something here, I liked the idea of 'Mother-Daughter' interview, but maybe interviewing a client instead, and get them talking about their perceptions of things like, well, blogs.

eTips: a brief guide to Web 2.0 & related links

I'm aware that many small business owners I meet are baffled, if not a little doubtful, about the whole social media/Web 2.0 thing. Actually most won't have heard of 'Web 2.0' as it's a bit of industry jargon. nevertheless it's something we all need to know about sooner or later!

Today's eTips is a basic introduction.

If you're looking for further resources, there are obviously tons out there; here are some I've been reading recently:

From the Journal of Direct, Data and Digital Marketing Practice, this in-depth paper on the implications of Web 2.0 for business - hefty but worth it

Caroline Middlebrook's Big Juicy Twitter Guide - Great stuff - I must read this properly all the way thru!

From Dosh Dosh, the importance of quality over quantity in blog posting and how it's just as important what you don't as what you do publish...

Copyblogger's Keyword Research for Bloggers - essential info, all free.

The guilt of the lazy blogger

I am constantly amazed at how some bloggers appear to fit so much into their waking hours. It's so impossible to keep up, I find myself beating up about it, the way I used to years ago. I've exhanged one fat guilt trip for another!

In the eighties it used to be 'All these fit, toned, energetic, high powered women who are in the gym every day at 7am, at their desk by 8, sit on the board of directors, manage pelvic floor exercises while doing the supermarket shop and still manage to rustle up an immaculate coq au vin after work ... no wonder I can never lose weight/get a great job/find a man or whatever, I just don't put in the work!

And now? Well, I lost the weight, got my man and work for myself, so no problems there. But ...all these bright, hard working, well-connected people posting long lists of fantastically useful links, scanning hundreds of other blogs, commenting, digging and tweeting and online networking all day ... no wonder they're soooo popular, no wonder they get asked to speak at the coolest events and sell so many copies of their e-books - it's never gonna happen to me because I just don't put in the work!

Anyway, can't hang about. Got blogs to read, new information to absorb. Maybe I'll just have a cup of tea first.

Better the devil you know?

This article at Marketing Profs touched a nerve for me.

So many business owners admit that all the print advertising, direct mail, etc they do is a waste of money. So why not try something where the results really are measurable ... er, like email marketing?

Because it's easier to stick with what you know, even if it's rubbish?

Like putting up with an unhappy marriage for years, rather than risking something new?

What  a nice thought for Valentines Day!