SURVIVING THE EZINE ONSLAUGHT!

By Ben Pedersen (c)2000

 

I have an ezine. It goes out once a week to
a bunch of happy subscribers.

John Doe has an ezine too. Every Wednesday,
he unleashes it. It zips out to hundreds of
gleeful recipients.

Everyone else has an ezine also. On a regular
basis, they shoot their ezines out to eager
subscribers abroad.

It seems that 99 percent of the globe wants to
run their own ezine. And, their desires come about
with good reason.

They KNOW that an ezine can be the most effective
way to send information. They understand that if
you're a savvy entrepreneur an ezine will make a
few bucks too.

It's because of this fact that there are thousands
of ezines on thousands of different subjects.

There are even ezines on ezines that rate other
ezines!

If you're an ezine publisher of any type, can you say
"stiff competition?"

Quite frankly, It gives me a headache just to
think about it. As an ezine publisher myself,
It's no wonder why I use a lot of aspirin.

The competition is stiff because every entrepreneur,
web marketer, you name it, is running their own
newsletter. And, a vast majority of them are
free - just like ours.

No matter your market, your subscribers have a choice -
stay around and devour your information or, fly the
coup and UNSUBSCRIBE.

It's not like it used to be. With all the free newsletter
services out there anyone can run their own ezine.

Guess what?

They are!

My friend, our subscribers aren't a captive audience any
longer. They have a CHOICE. Infact, they are most
likely the valued subscribers of your competition as well.
You've got to be ready for this or you'll be washed out.

Your ezine has to be a "cut above". It needs to be the
"grade A" type of ezine.

If it isn't, your competition's ezine will
be and that's a sad tale my friend. But then again,
after reading this article, that won't happen.

Follow this checklist and your ezine will be first class.


ORIGINAL CONTENT.

Break out that 'ol pen of yours. It's time to write!
Your ezine subscribers are looking for original, quality
content and they'll go where ever they can to find it.
They'll even visit your competition.

I can hear the opposition load and clear.

What? You can't write?

BAH! If I can write, ANYONE can.

Even if the very thought of writing makes you recoil in
horror, I have some simple steps that'll help you cope.

1. Plan out your article. Take a blank sheet of paper
and write the topic you choose in the center (e.g.
internet marketing). Then, think of as many facts
as you can that pertain to that topic.

2. Now you've got all of these facts that surround that
topic right? Take those facts and organize them
into an article. This is called mind mapping and it
works wonders. For more information on mind mapping
go to http://www.profitquick.net/oct17.htm

In short, there's no way around it. Thanks to the sheer
volume of ezines around, the competition is stiff. In
order for your ezine to be a success, you must write
some original content.


HOW MUCH SHOULD YOU WRITE?

While we're on the subject, what about the length of the
articles you write?

Usually between 450 - 700 words do the trick. Just be
sure that your not writing long, boring 1,000 word essays
conveying the same message a 250 word article could. You
run the risk of losing your reader.

On the other hand, if you've got a great tip that you need
1,000 words to fully explain, go for it. Just be sure that
you write to keep your readers entertained that long.

You'll find me writing articles of all different lengths.
One week I may spend 200 words explaining a topic and the
next week I may use close to 1,000.

Basically, make an article as long as you need it to be
but don't over-write. It doesn't have to be long to be
valuable.


USING OTHER PEOPLE'S CONTENT

About articles......

You may choose to use the writings of other authors as
well. That's great because nobody knows EVERYTHING
about your field so don't pretend that you do either.

If your readers are looking for something that you're
a bit sketchy with, find someone who's an expert in that
area and publish their work. There's no shame in that.

Remember, your ezine is successful because it's a
valuable resource for your subscribers.

Never forget that and publish stuff that they NEED either
written by you or by other people.

If you do publish others' articles, be sure to get
permission. Most likely authors will have some kind
of note on their site about copyright. If you have ANY
doubts, ask.


BEFORE YOU UNLEASH THE BEAST

Be sure you edit your ezine. So many people publish
ezines with spelling errors, typos and other mistakes.
They don't take the time to proof read their ezines and
that's plain insanity. If you're one of them, shame on
you.

Proofread your work before it goes out. After all, it's
your reputation. If you don't, you'll look like a
schmuck.

Print your ezine out and read it word for word. I
do this and I find errors every time.

Remember, your subscribers are taking their time to read
your ezine. Respect that and give them your time by
editing it.


TO TIE IT ALL TOGETHER....

*Write your own content.

*When writing your own content size only matters
SOMETIMES.

*It's good to write your own work AND publish others'
work as well. (That's what I do.)

*Find other good articles to publish if they provide
VALUE to your readers. BUT, ask permission.

*Edit your ezine, every week.


That's it folks! This isn't chemistry. It's just
a dose of good old common sense