Remember the last time you opened a letter from someone you miss? Yeah, me too. The last one was a Christmas card, where friends always enclose a festive photo of their children, and a beautiful message. Yesterday, as I opened their card, the song "Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas" was playing in the background. Inside the card were the words to the SAME song. I instantly felt closer to these dear friends, who live far away.
Moments like this happen to each of us every day. They come like random acts of kindness. And they leave an indelible mark of peace and grace in our lives.
Steve and I believe keeping in touch with our newsletter is one way to share a warm virtual touch with his subscribers. This December, we decided to create two newsletters, to touch two different groups (or segments). We crafted one message for subscribers who have collected any of Steve's original works or reproductions. Collectors received a special message of gratitude for their patronage and first-to-know Studio news. The rest of the subscribers received the same warm greeting, with a broader message. And guess what! This activity reminded us of the top 10% of folks who have added Steve's work to their world.
Just in time for the Holidays, for both segments, we offered a 20% discount code for in-stock reproductions, with free basic shipping or local drop-off.
Artful Mail by FASO gave us the tools to reach the folks who follow Steve's newsletter. Here are the 8 tips that will help you too. (Links to FASO support FAQs are at the end of this post.)
1. Review the subscriber list and assign a segment to each email address that you know. For us, a bit less than 10% of the addresses were from collectors and friends we personally know. The segment 'Collector' was assigned to their email.
2. Add a new segment for non-Collector and assign the rest of the subscribers to that segment. (This is how we separated subscribers into two different segments.) On the Subscriber screen, click Actions in the upper left. Choose 'Select All Visible'. Scroll through the page and unclick anyone assigned to the 'Collector' segment. Click 'Actions' again, then 'Assign Segments', and lastly click the segment for the selected subscribers. Repeat for additional pages.
3. Add a Discount Code in FASO.
4. Write the newsletter to send to your 'Collector' segment, including the discount code and expiration date.
5. Write the newsletter to send to the other subscribers, including the discount code and expiration date.
6. Make a note to disable the discount code after the expiration date, so folks can't continue using it! Put that note in a place where you will see it when you need it.
7. Send a test email of each newsletter. Review them carefully for spelling mistakes, grammar, that every link opens the right page, and it's something YOU would want to receive.
8. Once you're sure the newsletter is final, and ready to send, pick which version to send first. During the Sending step, pick which segment you want the newsletter to reach. Repeat for the second newsletter.
You may be wondering how long all of this took. Really, it was pretty fast! Adding subscribers to segments for the first time took about 1 hour. Writing and testing the newsletters, 1 hour each. For 3 hours of effort, we get to reach out to almost 700 subscribers. Time very well invested with the folks who WANT to stay in touch!
What's your favorite?
I would love to hear about your favorite message. Reply to this email and let me know!
Wishing you peace and love this holiday season!
