When it comes to email marketing, people have a lot of questions. “How long should my newsletter be?” “How often should I mail to my list?” “What offers are going to work?” ”What subject line will get them to open?” Indeed, email marketing is no paint-by-numbers exercise where you just fill in the blanks and POOF, the revenue starts rolling in.

I’ve said it before: email marketing is an art more than it is a science.

But this doesn’t mean there aren’t some reasonably easy answers to your important questions. As a matter of fact, in some ways, there’s one answer that is the Master Answer to all your email marketing conundrums. You’re dying to hear it – I know you are. The answer is, “What if you were the customer.” How often to mail to your list? Well, if you were the customer, how often would you like and do you expect to receive emails? How long should your newsletter be? Well, if you were the customer, how long is ideal for you, based on the content and your interests?

Email marketers (and marketers in general) tend often to think in terms of what’s in it for them, for their company. But the old adage in writing and communications is WIIFM or “What’s In It For Me?” That is, what is the benefit for the reader or recipient of your message? They are the “Me” you should be concerned about. Why should they sign up for your newsletter? Why should they want to open your email? Why should they forward it to a friend? If you start to think about things from your readers’ perspective rather than from your own, you might find some greater clarity in your purpose. Because when you think about things from this perspective, you can more easily answer your own marketing questions. Simply imagine you are the recipient!

Of course, your readers and recipients are all individuals and as such they will each have different answers to the questions you’re asking. But the key is to understand your customers' expectations. If nothing else, there’s what you promised them when they signed up. “Sign up for our weekly newsletter” indicates the frequency to which you should adhere. “Get important tips” implies something shorter than “Read a comprehensive analysis,” etc.

In the end, serve yourself by serving your subscribers. It can actually be as easy as that.

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