Brand Marketing – What’s In A Name?
Brand marketing is the art of creating a unique identity that differentiates a product from any other in the marketplace, and reflects a promise you make to clients about what they can expect from you.
Brand building begins with the name of your company or product or service. And that’s why choosing a name for your email newsletter is one of the first, and most important choices in email marketing strategy.
This might seem elementary. But many factors lie behind the choice of a great name for your e-publication.
1. Is the name catchy, memorable, short?
A name like “Mark Vaughn’s Crazy Car Accessory And Roadways Kit E-zine” might be descriptive. But will people remember it? Instead, try “Mark’s Crazy Car-zine”
2. Is the name relevant?
Try and pick a name that is related to the subject matter of your content.
3. Is the name descriptive?
If possible, your name must tell potential subscribers what to expect from your email marketing, or at least provide a hint. e.g. Weekly Marketing Tips E-zine
4. Is the domain name available?
Once you’ve decided upon a name, check to see if the web domain name is available. For instance, if you’ve decided to call your opt in mailing list “Heart Beat”, see if www.heartbeat.com is available.
If it is, reserve it. Now!
If it isn’t, you may decide to
• revise your decision and choose another name
• look for variations on your choice e.g. www.heart-beat.com
• see if .net, .org or other extensions are available e.g.www.heartbeat.net
5. How will it rank in directories and search engines?
Online directories and search engines will list your e-zine in alphabetical order. Try and pick a name that will take advantage of this fact.
Don’t call it “AAAA Heart Beat”, that sounds amateurish. But if your e-zine is about the flu, you might call it ….well …. Aaatchoo!
6. What is its brand value?
Your email newsletter will be your unique branding tool. It will put your name or your business’ name in front of your reader at regular intervals. The name you choose should exploit the value of your brand.
That’s what brand marketing is all about. Showcasing your brand to your audience and getting them to recognize, appreciate and engage with it over time.
Brand Marketing Exercise: How to pick your e-zine’s name ?
Step 1:
On a sheet of paper, write down:
• the topic / subject of your email marketing newsletter
• a description of your e-zine in up to 25 words
• your name (or the name of your business/product/service that you want to brand)
Step 2:
– out of these words, pick the top 4 or 5 keywords (that is, words that matter the most in describing the content of your e-zine)
– list them in alphabetical order
– try and find at least one word in the top 5 letters – A,B,C,D or E
Step 3:
Now put on your creative cap!
Start thinking originally, uniquely, out-of-the-box. Mix and match these top keywords into a short, pithy, descriptive title. Keep in mind the criteria discussed above.
Sure, it’s tough. Hey, no one ever promised this was going to be easy.
Step 4:
Get opinions and feedback from friends and family. Or even your early opt in subscribers.
They might surprise you with some wonderful suggestions. And relationship marketing is all about fostering such a connection with your audience – and you can start doing it right from the very beginning!
Step 5:
Then, check if the domain name is available. Visit your favorite domain registration service (I like Namecheap.com) and check to see if your name is still available. If it is, GRAB IT.
You can reserve a domain name for 2 years by paying a nominal fee. There are many new domain registrars, and some offer special deals for their customers – so look around… you may save some money!
If the name you’ve decided upon (or its variant) has been taken, go back to step 1 and try again – until you get that elusive GREAT name. Believe me, from a brand marketing ROI perspective, it is well worth the time and effort you spend.
Should your emails contain advertising?
Whether or not you should run advertisements in your e-zine is another important decision in your email marketing strategy and it has a significant effect on your brand marketing.
Ideally you should decide this before you send out your first issue.
Allowing ads into your e-zine is a double-edged sword. It can have advantages; at the same time it could become a brand marketing nightmare if things go wrong!
Benefits of running ads in your email newsletter:
– it generates revenue from your opt in mailing list which compensates your time and expense for email marketing
– when used properly, it provides your reader added value in the form of information about products and services related to your topic
– it offers a chance to promote your own products, services or affiliate programs that you join (just insert an ad into your email marketing templates, and you’re good to go)
– it gives you a chance to participate in ad swaps to grow your list of email addresses
Disadvantages associated with advertising in your email messages:

– it might cast some doubt on the credibility of your content, and raises the question of bias, which adversely affects your brand marketing efforts
– some readers might be offended at the attempt to sell them something, and might sign off (which is why you should closely monitor your email marketing statistics)
– when overused, the ads might leave valuable content buried and hard to find
– if a product or service you advertise is bad, you might be tainted by association
So, in summary, the decision to allow advertisements into your emails would be entirely up to you. Choose well. And if you realize later on that you’ve made a mistake, fix it quickly.
Visual Brand Marketing & Your Website
Your website is often the first interaction your customer or prospective buyer has with your business online. Making a good first impression is important for your branding success. So build an attractive and functional website.
Hiring a designer to create your ezine’s website has its pros and cons. If you are hard pressed for cash, or have the necessary HTML skills, you might go the ‘do-it- yourself’ route.
Here are some basic tenets to remember:
- keep the website simple and neat
- don’t use many graphics or heavy, cutting edge technology
- ensure the site loads quickly
- try and maintain a professional appearance that helps create trust
All these choices are part of your brand marketing initiative and have subtle but definite impact on your audience. When you execute them well, your chances of success with email marketing go up dramatically.
For more tips, tricks and secrets about how to make email marketing profitable, be sure to check out our new EMAILNAIRE home study program. Get details here – click now.
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