Partner power: have a great e-newsletter, but not enough people to share it with? Build your subscriber list with a co-registration campaign

Entrepreneur, August, 2005 by Catherine Seda

WISHING FOR more subscribers to your company's e-newsletter? Then create a co-registration campaign to connect with a new audience--visitors on other websites will be able to sign up for your newsletter on the spot.

Newsletter owners with a list size comparable to yours might do a free cross-promotion. Search the web for newsletters with content similar or relevant to yours. For example, if you publish a parenting newsletter, look for newsletters on pregnancy or children's sports. You can also try finding partners at the Co-Registration Directory (www.coregdirectory.com), a free service run by Co-Reg Complete.

If your newsletter contact list isn't big enough for cross-promotion yet, or you want to boost your subscriber numbers quickly, work with an agency that brokers co-registration deals, such as Aptimus Inc. (www.aptimus.com), PermissionDirect (www.permission direct.com) or SilverCarrot Inc. (www.silvercarrot.com). Rates can range from 4 cents to more than $1 per subscriber, with a minimum investment of $1,000 to $2,500. But before you buy, make sure you ask these questions to prevent being accused of sending spam:

1. WHERE WILL MY NEWSLETTER OPT-IN FORM BE POSTED? If the co-registration agency won't tell you which sites will post your sign-up form and won't give you tracking data, then the agency might be sending unsolicited e-mail.

2. HOW WILL MY NEWSLETTER SIGN-UP INFORMATION 100K? Make sure your company or newsletter name and a description are included. People should sign up for your newsletter specifically, not one on a particular topic, or your e-mail could be mistaken for spam.

3. WHAT KIND OF TRACKING INFORMATION WILL I GET? At a minimum, you should receive the times, dates and IP addresses where newsletter sign-ups occurred. Get actual websites whenever possible.

Customize your confirmation e-mails sent to new subscribers. Thank them for subscribing from the referring site, and offer newsletterlike content. This helps safeguard your company against potential spam complaints--and it makes new subscribers feel welcome.

Speaker and freelance writer CATHERINE SEDA owns an internet marketing agency (wvwzsedacommunication.com) and is author of Search Engine Advertising.