You know that feeling you get when you realise you should have read a book months, if not years ago? Yup, I had that moment when I opened Newsletter Ninja. And the worst part about it is… I’ve had it on my kindle since 2018 and simply haven’t had the time to get to it. Meanwhile, over all that time, everything continued to be wrong with my mailing list.
I didn’t get to read this book earlier because I knew I’d want to get through it in only a few sessions, and be in a position to make notes as I went along. So it didn’t fit into my usual last thing at night/first thing in the morning reading routine. Anyway I finally got to it and I’m delighted to have done so. Although I do now have a tremendous amount of work ahead of me to correct all the bad things I’m doing (things that right in the back of my mind I knew all along were wrong). But I feel enthused enough to get it right from now on so I shall press ahead and get the work done.
If you are thinking of building a mailing list (and if you’re an author you should be) or have one that isn’t performing as it should, get this book. It’s easy to read, and I enjoyed the conversational style Tammi has throughout. It’s full of helpful advice, tips and links so you can find out more and I urge you to do this now so you don’t become like me. I cringed at the ‘don’t do this’ bits, and again when I realised what I had been missing out on building. Don’t do that guys, get this book and set things up right from the start. You won’t regret it.
Talk about ahead of her time! 2018 and she’s already wearing a facemask!
Hahaha… she’s probably a prepper
Yes, I found a lot of helpful advice in this book, must read it again one of these days!
Yes, it is packed full of information. I just need to put it into action now!
I’ve read this book and found it really useful for getting my head round the newsletter “best practice.” Her delivery is very entertaining and made me laugh! The thing that sticks with me most is “but you are not your reader!” in response to authors who say, “but I never sign up to newsletters..” or other “but I never…” comments. While I chuckled over it, I do wonder if it’s a British thing, that we’re less inclined to follow authors than US readers. Then again, the majority of my list are UK readers and they’re also the most responsive. Perhaps it’s that UK readers “get” the style of my books more! One thing I would say, is that having the responsibility of a list and the commitment to communicate regularly does add another pressure to the writing life, especially when I send out a newsletter and have to brace myself for the inevitable unsubscribes. I know I shouldn’t take it personally but I do! ☹️
Or ‘why would anyone sign up to hear what I have to say’ I’m trying to write something as my ‘cookie’ at present, another thing taking me away from my actual WIP, however if I can do that and set up correct sequences, a challenge in itself, I think the whole thing will be worth it. I don’t worry about the unsubscribes. One less chance of hitting the next pay threshold, is actually what I think Like Tammi says, Wendy, it’s like dating. Now, it might have been a while since either of us did any of that but we do know that not everyone is a good fit for us.
I just need to grow a thicker skin! I must admit, when I get enthusiastic emails back from readers after sending out a “newsletter” (wish I could think of a more inspiring word than newsletter), it’s lovely and that helps enormously to feel all the effort is worth it. Posing questions in your missive helps with that, I think, so I must remember to include one every time.
Good luck with it, Georgia!
Yes, that’s a tip I picked up in the book. Questions really do get some interaction. And good luck with it to you too, Wendy! 😀
[…] but just hadn’t found the time to sort things out. Recently though I finally got round to reading Newsletter Ninja by Tammi Labrecque, made notes, and got stuck […]