Jeff Bezos just snapped his fingers and made the happiness and financial security of millions of people -- poof! -- disappear.
Awful news.
But Bezos cosplaying as Thanos underscores the importance of mastering email marketing.
Pay attention.
This could have a huge impact on you.
Here’s the story:
Yesterday, every Amazon Associate Partner (that’s Amazon’s affiliate program) woke up to a benign-looking message that said, “We’re writing to inform you of upcoming changes to our program”.
Typical corporate vague-speak.
Easy to ignore.
And that’s probably by design.
Because when you click through to see what these “upcoming changes” are, well, it’s a shocker:
Without warning, Bezos and crew have SLASHED their affiliate payout rates. In some cases all the way down to 1%.
Dayum.
Imagine spending countless hours and thousands of dollars building up an Amazon affiliate business only to have the rug pulled out from under you overnight.
Suddenly, you’ve got to worry a lot more about bills, groceries, rent/mortgage, a stressed partner, etc.
That SUCKS.
And all because the world’s richest dude decided, “Eh, our traffic and sales are at an all-time high thanks to the pandemic. We don’t need our affiliates.”
Rough stuff for sure. But an important (if painful) lesson on owning your own offers and traffic source.
When you own your own offer(s) and traffic source(s) it doesn’t matter if Bezos, Facebook, Google, whoever is having a bad day, you’re not affected.
You can go on giving value and making sales.
That’s why smart business owners prioritize email marketing.
Not affiliate marketing, which can disappear overnight.
Not social media, which puts you at the mercy of another platform/business’s whims.
Not content marketing like a blog, podcast, or YouTube which, again, puts you at the mercy of external forces. (Just look at how Google scrubbed Dr. Mercola from their search results, effectively banishing him from the Internet.)
Don’t get me wrong.
All of these can (and sometimes should depending on your goals) be part of your overall marketing mix.
But they all play second fiddle to email.
Because only email marketing gives you the opportunity to connect with the most important people in your business -- your clients -- WITHOUT the pernicious influence of Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, Google, et al.
^^^ No matter what kind of cranky mood those dudes happen to be in one day, you’ll be fine so long as you treat the people on your list right.
That’s true if you’re a business owner with a list…
OR, a freelance copywriter who offers email marketing as a service.
In fact, I’d argue that email marketing is the #1 skill you should master as a freelance writer.
It’s always in demand.
It has high perceived value.
And (for all the reasons I listed above) clients will pay you a pretty penny if you can deliver results.
I want to help you get better results with your email marketing.
Earlier this week I gave you a copy of my 21 Subject Line Templates & Formulas tool.
And I’ve got more tools headed your way soon.
But for now, I close with a question:
“What’s your #1 challenge with email marketing right now?”
Please hit reply and share your answer.
That will help me create tools that are customized to your needs.
Customized tools = better results.
Talk soon,
-Paul "I think Bezos is a big jerk" Buzan
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