AWeber vs. Constant Contact, and why we switched

Posted by Wildfire Marketing Group | March 9th, 2010

We have recently switched over to AWeber after using Constant Contact for several years – a decision we didn’t take lightly.

In the not so distant past, Constant Contact was the only real solution for sending bulk email. Unfortunately, they took this position for granted. They refused to improve their software and began providing progressively worse customer service. Along the way several competitors sprung up, offering the features Constant Contact was missing while providing far better customer service, all at about the same price. AWeber happens to be one of those companies.

The biggest complaint we had with Constant Contact was their customer service . On three separate occasions, they were unable to process our payment due to outdated billing information. Rather than notify us, they chose to immediately suspended our account. You would…

Email marketing is on the rise again

Posted by Jeremy L. Knauff | June 18th, 2009

You may have noticed that it’s getting more difficult to empty your inbox lately and that’s because in an effort to drum up business in these tough times, many companies are becoming more active with their email marketing campaigns.

On one hand, this is a sign of just how powerful and cost-effective email marketing is. On the other hand, the increase makes it makes it more difficult to get your message heard over your competitors. So how can you ensure that you get the most from your email marketing?

• You need to continually work at building your targeted opt-in list. The more qualified prospects you can reach, the better. Don’t be shy about asking people to sign up, and be sure to make it easy for them to do so.
• Send your newsletter frequently enough for people to

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The sum of it’s parts…

Posted by Wildfire Marketing Group | August 21st, 2007

Does your marketing strategy consist of a little newspaper advertising here, some direct mail there and maybe email marketing from time to time? If so, it’s pretty similar to that of many other small businesses. That’s not a good thing because it’s inconsistent and your marketing channels are not working together.

Marketing is a collective activity in that when multiple channels are used together, the results are almost always far greater than the sum of the channels. Direct mail, radio and television can support internet marketing to bring you results that you could never achieve with the same budget used in any one of those mediums. This is because after the creative aspect of any marketing campaign, the effectiveness is due largely to repetition and consistency. When your prospect is on their way to work and they hear your ad,…

Don’t overlook your subject line

Posted by Wildfire Marketing Group | June 19th, 2007

A large portion of our communications are conducted via email these days, however, most of us are not making it as effective as it can be. You might be surprised how many people include weak subject lines, or don’t even include a subject line at all. You may save a little time by using a generic subject line or even omitting your subject line completely, but think about this ? other people are just as busy as you, so if your subject line isn’t compelling, they will likely glaze over your email and focus their energies on the ones that they can tell are important. On the other hand, avoid using the feature in Outlook that lets you tag your emails as important. Most people don’t pay much attention to that, and it only works with Outlook anyway.

Implementing email marketing for your business

Posted by Wildfire Marketing Group | April 7th, 2006

Email marketing is a tool that can, and really should be utilized by businesses of all sizes, regardless of the industry. For new or small businesses with little resources, email marketing is a powerful way to consistently reach your prospects in an inexpensive manner. For established businesses and businesses with larger marketing budgets, email marketing is a great way to provide more traction to your other marketing channels. If you are already developing content on a regular basis for your print newsletters or blog, then much of the work for your email campaign is already done.

The first step in launching an email marketing campaign is to determine if you’ll handle it in-house our outsource it. If you’ll be handling it in-house, you’ll need to choose your platform for delivery. If you’re not the technical type, then you may want…