The Technology No One WANTS - a story of email BS & lies

I’m sitting among 80+ college freshmen in a giant lecture hall at SUNY Fredonia, my undergrad alma mater.

It’s 1988. Dr. Chilberg’s my favorite professor - from up in the nosebleed section, I see he’s rocking big dark glasses & a salt-n-pepper closely-cropped afro.

But even from far away, I feel his energy - he loves teaching Communication 101.

Today, he’s sharing a new technology to REVOLUTIONIZE how we communicate.

He calls it “Electronic Mail.” 

E-Mail, he says, is the wave of the future.

We’ll never have to walk down a dorm hall again to talk to each other - just simply send a message via computer & pick up the phone nevermore!

Ever the extrovert, I am HORRIFIED by this.
ALSO! How do we DO this “E-Mail”?

It’s 1988. There are no smart phones. Or laptops.

Only the geekiest (& richest) kids have computers in their dorm!

To get ONTO a computer you have to slog across the freezingest, windiest, snowiest tundra in Upstate NY to access a computer lab-

Where you’ll find amber-vision monitors, dot-matrix printers, & a confusing procedure to LOG ON>

No Thanks, Dr. Chilberg. Ima keep walking down the hall to talk to my people.

This E-Mail idea is total bullshit. NO ONE IS GOING TO DO THIS!!>

_________

Hahahahaha - well. No one ever said I was a visionary.

32 years have passed, and we’re still using email.

You may love it - you may loathe it. But email is not going away.

I mean - here you are. Reading this blog - which I will pare down to use as an loving email to my audience.

And why does my audience OPEN my email -

Well, probably the same reason you’re reading this blog!

Maybe you like that I offer education. Tools, strategies, etc.

Inspiration or motivation.

Maybe you’re even entertained - especially remembering the amber vision teach of yore or the 1988 fashion sense of an Upstate professor in dark glasses…

But I write those email with my audience in mind each week because to connect & help.

• To be of service.
•  To nurture our relationship & create trust.

 An email list is an asset in your business - one you can NEITHER abuse nor ignore.

Even right now when people don’t know what’s happening next.

I’d argue - ESPECIALLY right now. Because people need connections with people they TRUST.

An email list develops your relationship with those you’ve worked with before & may work with in the future.

If you’re not growing relationships, then you’re not growing your small business.

The cool thing is - unlike 1988 - we have SO many ways to build relationships with people we want to help!

• Social media…
• IRL networking & connections…
• Speaking & teaching opportunities…
• Public relations…

But email is one venue that most people ignore - or do wrong.

What do YOUR people need from you - right now?

Give it to ‘em - a simple, short, to-the-point email to let your audience know you’re thinking of them…

• Tell a story.
• Share a tool.
• Provide a solution.
• Give a discount.
• Offer an incentive.
• Provide hope for what’s coming.

Emails don’t have to be long. Or fancy. (In fact, talk, like you’re speaking to a friend & your open rates, will be much higher.)

And since right now we CAN NOT walk down the dorm hall & say hi to our suite-mates in real life…

Or co-workers…clients…

Or our audience….

It’s time to send an email. With love. And service.

Reach out - don’t worry that you’re “bothering people.” Or “don’t know what to say.”

Those stories keep you out of connection! 

Instead, try, “My email will help someone feel ________”

Or “This email is a love note to help someone with __________”.

Get out of your lizard brain - the one that’s trying to keep you safe.

Like mine, from 32 years ago, that mentally yelled at Dr. Chilberg, “THIS IS NOT GOING TO WORK!! NO ONE WANTS THIS.”

I was wrong. Is it possible you are too?

Grow YOUR email list with this INCREDIBLE free training my friend & colleague Sneha Hiremath graciously did with me on Facebook.

Sneha’s a tech genius & launch strategist. The 10 simple tools she provides to help you GROW your email list are gold!

You can also grab Sneha’s, freebie here! She’ll give you easy ways to optimize your website so you can lead generate & grow your list!

Write a loving email to your audience - even if there are only 3 people on the list & one of them is your best friend, and the other two are former colleagues!

Craft it. Keep it short & loving. Press send.

Change your mindset on this topic & you can truly grow your business!