On Christmas Eve I turned off my computer and didn’t log back in until yesterday morning. When I opened my email, there were 175 messages waiting for me. Since I have a pretty good SPAM filter, I knew most of the messages were really for me.
I scanned quickly through the emails and found at least half were Merry Christmas messages. Now I have nothing against Christmas … I love it. Want to send me a hard copy Christmas card? I’ll keep it up through New Years. But if you are one of almost 100 Christmas emails, I promise you it will be deleted without being opened. Nothing against you, I just don’t have the time.
If you really want to send a greeting to your list, you’re far better off picking a time of year when people are less likely to receive mass emails. Groundhog Day anyone? Chinese New Year? International Button Collectors Day (okay I made that one up).
I once belonged to a membership site where they collected birthdays. On my birthday, the first message in my inbox as a happy birthday from the coach. Now I knew perfectly well that the message was just an autoresponder that went to everyone on their birthday, but it still made me smile.
By all means, send the occasional email that is just about wishing your list well, rather than your usual newsletter or sales pitch. Just pick the right time so you get a smile from your recipients, not an annoyed delete.
Andrea J. Stenberg
