Re: [epub] Simple question - Making money with your ezine

["Dr.Mani - Heart Disease Guide, About.com" <sivaraj@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

From: "Dr.Mani - Heart Disease Guide, About.com" <sivaraj@giasmd01.vsnl.net.in>

Dear David:

Welcome to the list, and thanks for your interesting question.

> I'm wondering how the publishers of the 
> electronic newsletters make their money (I'm assuming that you do it for more 
> than just the love of it).  Are you completely advertiser supported, and if 
> so is that enough?  Does anyone charge subscribers?

While there are many who do run newsletters for only the
fun of it, there are an equal (or larger) number who have
a profit-motive behind their efforts.  There are many ways
to generate revenue off a newsletter, here are some:

- advertising.  

Selling ad space on your ezine is one very
common way to make money off it.  Beware, though, of
over-using this avenue.  An ezine that has more ads than
content, or inappropriate advertising, will soon be shunned
by readers.

- sponsorships.  

Similar to ads, but this involves a longer lasting,
more integrated, relationship with the sponsor.  The product
or service being promoted might be woven in seamlessly
with various parts of the ezine's content - editorial, contest,
quiz, poll, sweepstakes, feature article etc.

- affiliate programs.  

If you can't find advertisers, another method
to generate revenues off your ezine is to sign up for affiliate (or
reseller or associate) programs related to the topic of your
ezine, and then run ads for that program in your own ezine.
For every sale or lead generated, you get a commission which
might defray the costs of running the ezine.

- selling your own product or service.  

Your ezine provides you
access to that most sacred of places - your target audience's
INBOX.  Not once, but again and again.  As long as you don't
abuse that privilege.  This means you have the opportunity to
showcase a product or service you provide to that audience -
again and again.  Until they order :-)

- generating leads or webpage visits. 

If you have a system by
which you make money off your website - say, by banner ads
on your site, or when you are paid per page view your site
generates - your ezine might be the channel to advertise your
website.  By telling your readers what is new on your site
regularly, you've found a way to be in their view repeatedly.
This is of utmost importance on the Web, where out of sight
almost always means out of mind.

- joint ventures. 

 Another exciting - though tricky - way to make
profits off your ezine is joint venture endorsements.  Find another
service or product that is a right-fit with your audience.  Then
offer to JV with that business.  A deal might be struck where
the ezine owner is paid a percentage of all sales generated
off that ezine, or a flat rate per ad run, or for leads developed etc.

- selling your ezine.  

Once you reach critical mass, there might
be someone somewhere who wants to buy out your ezine list.
To them, it might be cheaper to buy a developed ezine, than 
build one from scratch.  Look at this as akin to an ezine IPO !!!

- leasing your services, or even your ezine

Instead of selling out your ezine, you might offer to run it on
behalf of another business.  You'll still continue running the
ezine for someone else, but the business will pay you for it.

Or you could lease your list to another service or business.
Caution:  If this is your intention, please be sure to make it
clear to your readers even before you sign them up.  Many
will hate you if you rent out or lease your list without prior
permission.

- rewards programs

Interestingly, I found this out recently.  Haven't tried it yet, 
though :) 

There are many new ezine distribution services
that offer you rewards for using their company to deliver your
list.  In return, they offer you incentives.  For instance, 
Topica.com offers a $300 reward for lists larger than 1000
members, that have atleast one message a week for 3
months.  Egroups has a special POWER list offer, where
the ezine owner shares in ad revenues generated off their
lists, if they are larger than 1000 members, with minimum
numbers of messages per month specified.

- paid subscriptions.

I mention this last because the Web, in my opinion, still isn't
ready for this model.  One newsletter that stands out in this
respect is the WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE edition,
which charges around $49 per year.  But if you intend charging
for your content, make sure you have something worth paying
for.  Danny Sullivan, the search engine guru, offers a free ezine,
which is content rich, and an additional paid-for ezine on which
even more details are provided.  Ralph Wilson, the online marketing
expert, also follows a similar model - one free, with additional paid-
for info.  

But on the whole, asking subscribers to pay for content
isn't yet practical on the web - that's just my opinion though, 
wonder if anyone has contrary experiences.

I'll stop this long note here.  Thanks for giving me a chance to
look back and wonder about the money making opportunities
I've missed on my own ezines :-)  I'm one of those wackos
who put out my ezine primarily for fun !!!

I'll end this note with a brief plug for my new series, written
for the EBOZ website, on newsletter creation and promotion, 
called the NEWSLETTER COACH...  Check it out at

http://www.newslettercoach.com/tutorial/

Cheers


***************************************

Dr.MANI Sivasubramanian, M.D.

Your Coach to Successful Ezine Publishing
http://www.newslettercoach.com/tutorial/

Subscribe FREE to Dr.Mani's HEART BEAT
http://www.drmani.com/heartbeat/subscribe.htm

***************************************

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