Most bulk email is boring

Yep, social media, rss feeds, and a whole host of 21st century communication methods are his is really the same issue as the previous one.

Self-centered content is dull. It’s like getting cornered by that awful friend of a friend at a party. You know the guy.

“But enough about me. What do you think about me?”

It’s hard to ditch the guy at the party. It’s very, very easy not to read or open an email.

I get dozens of messages every day that are so boring and self-centered I can’t be bothered to unsubscribe. I just set up a rule to automatically throw them in the trash as they come in. Or I let them pile up in the spam filter until I feel like deleting 20 or 30 at a time without looking at them.

For awhile, it looked like email was old-fashioned anyway. RSS was where it was at. We were going to create amazing connections with our blogs. Not only could we have terrific conversations, but our content was linkable, findable via search engines, and part of a global dialogue. Who needs boring old email?

But here’s the secret that smart online marketers know: When you want to move from conversation to commerce, email just works better.

Email lists are more responsive than RSS subscribers. They’re more engaged. They’re less likely to drift away and forget you. And they’re more profitable.

Email is a more intimate medium than RSS. If RSS is a networking event, permission-based email is a dinner party. (As opposed to mailing to an email list you purchased, which is some jackass cold-calling you to sell life insurance during your dinner party. Don’t do that.)