Once someone subscribes, you can immediately begin building a relationship with them by giving them a free gift that they can download instantly. If they subscribe on your website, simply put the gift on the thank you page. If they subscribe over the phone or in person, simply tell them the url to visit in order to download the gift. In either case, send an e-mail with the url to the gift just in case they didn’t get it.
Now that you’ve got that relationship started, it’s time to start building that customer loyalty. Here are the top 7 secrets to keeping your subscribers reading each and every month:

1. High Quality Content

Obviously, the content you put in your newsletter and on your CD needs to be focused, specific, helpful and timely. Your paid newsletter should help your subscriber learn something new or solve a problem. Keep the focus on helping them, and give them at least one article that has complete information rather than a teaser to convince them to buy something.

2. Ask

Find out from your subscribers what they want, and give it to them! You can set up a survey on your website or even do it manually, then mention it in your newsletter. Paid subscribers will tell you what they want.

3. You, Revealed

Allow your personality to show through in your paid newsletter. Let your readers know who you are. Share your humor and your insights. Educate them on some of your experiences with the topic of your articles.

4. Service

Customer Service seems like it should go without saying, but it’s so important to your success that it’s included here. When your clients contact you for support, be sure to respond to them within 24 hours. If you have a support staff, respond to them within 2 hours. Always make the effort to look at things from the client’s point of view.

5. Recognize Subscribers

Put a section in your newsletter to highlight subscribers who are doing something special. It could be they’re starting a new project, they reached a goal (especially if it’s due to your teaching), even if they’re setting up a charity event. Tell the subscribers how they can apply to be in the spotlight. People love recognition!

6. Loyalty Gifts

Send your subscribers a gift after they’ve passed the 6 month mark. One of the best gifts to send is a binder, with CD pocket inserts, branded with your company information, for them to store all of their newsletters from you. Then, if you’d like, you can send them a new one each year.

7. The Extra Mile

Take the time to let your subscribers know you care about them and their success. Send them cards for holidays and birthdays. Set up special gift or very special discounts (VERY special) web pages for them. Make the effort to make them feel special.

Keep in mind: yes, customer loyalty means increased revenue for you, but there’s a more important factor. The longer your subscriber receives your material, the more you will be able to help them achieve their goals, and isn’t that why you’re an Information Marketer?

Many Information Marketers limit themselves by thinking that the only continuity program they can deliver is a monthly content membership site where they teach from their expertise. While this type of program can be fantastic, it’s only one of several hundred types of continuity programs available.
The challenge with continuity programs is providing what your clients need so that they remain subscribers. So what can you, as an Information Marketer, do to increase your chances of having long-term customers in your continuity programs?

The answer is simple.

Provide an essential product or service.

The answer is simple, but the solution is not. You will need to delve deep in your market to find out what products and services they consider essential. Some of these are relatively easy:

• If your client has a website, you can offer private label hosting, autoresponder, and website management services.

• You can publish your own magazine or newsletter focused specifically on one aspect of your market. Printed publications frequently have a better subscription retention rate than online-only publications. The best plan could be to publish in both print and online.

• You can maintain a resource directory that the people in your marketplace need to access on a regular basis in order to solve their problems or achieve their goals.

• You can start a professional organization, like those for doctors or lawyers, and provide continuing education and networking opportunities for professionals in other areas.

• You can start your own online gaming community. With access to resources like elance.com, you could have your own game created, or you can simply have a community site for players of another game where members can meet and share information and ideas.

Take the time to make sure there’s a large enough demand for information about your topic. Visit blogs and forums that are frequented by your target market, and find out what they consider to be essential.

There are myriad continuity program options for business owners, and one of the most lucrative is offering your consulting services to small business owners who do not have a marketing department. Most small business owners know their business, but they don't have the knowledge of how to market their business effectively. In general, many small business owners simply advertise the way they see their competition advertise, and that’s it. You, as an experienced marketer, can help them in ways they never even knew were possible.
There are myriad continuity program options for business owners, and one of the most lucrative is offering your consulting services to small business owners who do not have a marketing department. Most small business owners know their business, but they don't have the knowledge of how to market their business effectively. In general, many small business owners simply advertise the way they see their competition advertise, and that’s it. You, as an experienced marketer, can help them in ways they never even knew were possible.

As your level of experience grows, you’ll be able to help these business owners find new ways to market their most profitable merchandise, products or services. You can also help them increase their income by gaining new clients, increasing their prices because of added value, and earning more from existing clients. Best of all, you can set up your services so they give you monthly, recurring payments!

The first step is to realize that many traditional small business owners don’t have the time or the inclination to get a solid education in direct response marketing. They really want someone to assess their situation, listen to their concerns, and provide them with real solutions.

Do some research in your local area, and find out which businesses are paying a lot for advertising. You don’t have to guess at this; browse through the phone book and identify those companies that use large display ads. These ads cost thousands of dollars per month, and they may or may not bring a return on the investment for the company.

Armed with this knowledge, you can then approach business owners with the confidence that you’ll be able to help them. Ask the business owner for an appointment to discuss improving their bottom line, and get your game plan together.

When you meet with the business owner, find out exactly what their situation is and what their goals are. Use an assessment instrument to help them identify what is most profitable for them, what marketing methods will be most effective for them, and what their priorities are.

Focus on their needs, and then begin to formulate solutions. Your ability to reduce their costs or increase their income (or both) will likely get you a client who will pay you for years to come.