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Review of Ezine Announcer
The most critical piece of software in my article submission arsenal is EzineAnnouncer. I've been using EzineAnnouncer, developed by Jason Potash, for ten months with a great deal of success and just a little aggravation. EzineAnnouncer automates ezine submission to directories and announcement lists, registration of articles in directories, submission of articles to ezines and article announcement lists and posting and tracking of free ezine ads. Article and ezine submission projects that used to take me a dozen hours each are now reduced by more than half which greatly improves my efficiency and profit margin. EzineAnnouncer is easy to install and comes with five tutorial videos that are a must view for new users. Without viewing the videos even the most seasoned computer professional can have problems getting started with EzineAnnouncer. Even after viewing the videos I had some questions which were answered by Jason in a timely manner. Included with EzineAnnouncer is a database of article directories and announcement lists, ezine directories, free ad ezines, ezine announcement lists and numerous ezines that accept article submissions. Unfortunately, the current database is sadly out-of-date which is not a problem if, like me, you have your own database which can easily be added to the software. Jason has assured me that a newly updated database will be available in January with all current owners receiving a free copy. The real value of EzineAnnouncer, in my opinion, is the automation of submissions. Many of the included resources require the use of submission forms and each form is different. The database has each form pre-filled using macros and the information you provide when setting up your ezine or article. E-mail submissions are made using premade e-mail templates that are easily customized for each submission project. EzineAnnouncer keeps track of submissions and projects by providing an onscreen report so that you can start and stop submissions without losing your place. Technical support for EzineAnnouncer is said to be available by e-mail but in ten months of use I have yet to receive a response to my requests for technical support. Fortunately my issues were minor and I was able to fix the problems myself by backing up the database and reinstalling the software. EzineAnnouncer has allowed me to make hundreds of dollars and saved me countless hours while handling submission projects for clients. This is a necessary tool for anyone promoting ezines or articles if you can handle the minor issues that accompany the use of most software programs. EzineAnnouncer comes with a six month guarantee so risk of purchasing is minimal. Visit http://tinyurl.com/yd5c for more information about EzineAnnouncer and Jason Potash. (c) 2003, Davis Virtual Assistance. All rights in all media reserved. The author grants reprint permission to all venues so long as the article is not used in spam and the copyright and by-line are included intact. About The Author Bonnie Jo Davis is webmaster of the Articles That Sell Center. Visit http://www.ArticlesThatSell.com to learn everything you need to know about marketing with articles and sign-up for the free monthly newsletter.
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You both will be promoting the e-zine which means more subscribers. 3. Allow Archiving Allow your subscribers to archive back issues of your e-zine on their web site. They may need content for their web site. If people visit their web site and like your e-zine, they will subscribe. How To Develope Content For Your Ezine Without Having To Write Your Own Articles Do you struggle with creating content for your ezine? You think you are not good enough? Or you just don't have enough time to write quality articles? Here's some good news: You're not alone! 21 Questions to Ask Any List Service Before You Sign on With Them If you publish an e-mail newsletter, or "e-zine," you'll need to sign on with a list service (or "listserve") to manage your subscriber list. There are many types of listserves out there, so here are some guidelines to help you choose one that's right for you. Do they use MULTI-PART MIME technology? You'll need this if you want to publish an HTML newsletter. Otherwise you'll have to send out multiple versions for users who can read HTML, users who can't read HTML, and users on AOL. Do they offer some type of ORIENTATION OR TUTORIAL? If you're new to the game and/or technologically challenged then you'll appreciate any type of help they offer for new clients. What's their CUSTOMER SERVICE like? Are they prompt to get back to you via e-mail? Can you call them if you have a problem? Are they available more than standard business hours? What about weekends? Contact them and see how long they take to get back to you -- if it's longer than 24 hours, definitely keep looking. Do they NOTIFY list owners if there's a PROBLEM with their service? If so, how, and how quickly? Do they have CUSTOMER TESTIMONIALS to share with you? Or even better, client references? Contact some of these folks to see how their experiences have been. Do other BUSINESSES LIKE YOURS use their service? 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You want it to be the person's name if possible. Along the same lines, some spam filters screen out e-mail that does not appear to be addressed to the individual person. Who has ACCESS to their servers and your list? Anytime you hand over your customer list, you're taking a risk. You don't want your service or anyone else using your list for spamming purposes. What happens if some addresses are UNDELIVERABLE? These are also called "bounces" or "bounce-backs." You don't want them to automatically remove names for "soft bounces," which are due to temporary conditions like full mailboxes. How do users SUBSCRIBE AND UNSUBSCRIBE? Do they have to visit a Web page or can they do it via e-mail (best if both options are available). Is the process single or double opt-in? (Double is better for more security - the user has to respond to a confirmation e-mail before she's added to your list.) Is the process kept simple? Can you customize your LIST SERVER DOCUMENTS? This means messages like your subscriber welcome and goodbye messages. (You'll definitely want to be able to do this, since the prewritten messages many list services use are horribly cold and confusing.) Can your e-zine give PERSONALIZED GREETINGS AND MESSAGES? Not necessary, but a very nice feature. For example, if your e-zine came to me, it would start off with something like, "Hello Alexandria!" How often do they BACK UP their servers? It should be at least once every day. Also ask if you can download your lists to back them up on your own, as a backup to their backup! Can you send a TEST MESSAGE out to yourself or another person before you send out each issue for real? You'll definitely want this because it's the best way to see how your e-zine looks on the recipient's end, do a proofread, and check all your hyperlinks. Can you see stats on your CLICK-THROUGH rates? If you publish in HTML, you should be able to see how many people - and even exactly who - opens your messages. Can they AUTOMATICALLY ARCHIVE your issues if you'd like them to? Some services will archive your e-zines at their site, others can configure it so they're archived at your own site (which is better). Are they currently BLOCKED anywhere on the Web? If so, it may mean they've been reported for allowing spammers to use their network. You don't want to work with any list service that's been blocked anywhere, because it means that your e-zine won't reach all of your readers. Newsletter Software Newsletter Software |
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