The same way Kanye called Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 2 simply “Pt. 2” on The Life Of Pablo, is the same way I’m following up yesterday’s The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Email Marketing with simply “Pt. 2” today.
In this addendum to yesterday’s entry, we’re actually gonna dissect something from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (the book, rather than simply the guide).
Anywho, slight spoilers ahead if’n you never read the first book of Douglas Adams’s wild and zany sci-fi book.
This email picks up after the Vogons (evil and misunderstood aliens) destroyed Earth. After Arthur (the main human character) and Ford (the main alien character) hitch a ride mere seconds before Earth explodes, they find themselves on a Vogon spacecraft…
…not the place you wanna hitch your first ride.
Why?
Well, besides the whole destroying Earth thing they just did, they’re also one of the most unpleasant races in the galaxy.
They’re vile.
Ill-tempered.
And they create some of the worst poetry in the galaxy (and often use it as a form of torture).
Well, Arthur and Ford are trapped on this Vogon ship, endure the tortuous Vogon poetry, and are on the verge of being thrown out of the spaceship by a Vogon guard… until they almost convince said guard not to.
Here’s what happ’n’d:
Despite their terrible poetry and brute force, the Vogons are an intelligent species.
But even they (almost) fall victim to persuasion.
As the Vogon guard pursues Arthur and Ford, Ford (the alien) has a brilliant idea…
Ford tells Arthur…
==
“Try and understand his problem. Here he is, poor lad, his entire life’s work is stamping around, throwing people off spaceships…”
“And shouting,” added the guard.
“And shouting, sure, said Ford.
==
Because Ford showed just a wee bit interest in the guard’s life and problems, he almost convinced the guard to abandon his job of stamping around, throwing people off spaceships, and shouting.
The fact that the Vogon guard still tossed them off the spaceship ain’t important for this email. Nay. Because this little back-and-forth gives an important insight into email marketing, at least as we know it in the galaxy:
Here’s what I mean:
If you showed your target audience the same level of interest in their life and their problems, then, well all your email campaigns will become more effective.
It’s that extra bit of attention that builds trust and loyalty.
I mean, it almost convinced a Vogon guard—largely considered one of the worst races in the galaxy—to abandon his job.
Don’t you think it will convince your human audience to, well, abandon a few of their shekels to solve an immediate problem in their life in which you just demonstrated you understand deeply and viscerally?
Spoiler alert: it will.
Best part?
This strategy works far more effectively than offering discount after discount. Especially in the long term.
So, with this I add the “understand your audience’s lives and problems” as an addendum to the Hitchhiker’s Guide to Email Marketing.
Understand this and prosper.
And if you’re still having trouble conveying these key email marketing ingredients into emails you send to your list, then, well, I can help.
Not only can I help you craft better, more persuasive, and more profitable emails…
And help you create an email strategy that doesn't rely on discounts…
…but I also take each new client through an extensive interview process where I “abduct” your deepest and darkest audience insights from the gray matter in your head into each and every email I write.
So, if’n you’re interested in doubing, tripling, or mayhap even quadrupling the revenue your emails make, book a call here.
And we’ll go from there.
John
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