Email Mistakes TpT’ers Make that Lead to Less Money

Have you ever opened an email expecting it to be helpful and it’s like they started the email without knowing where it was going? After a few sentences, you close it and do something important (like scroll Instagram).

You run a five star (Ok, 4.7) TpT store, so you have the ability to run a lucrative email list. Your emails should be clear, concise, and full of teaching magic to relieve any fears.

Your emails should be as inspirational as the Great British Bake Off, as easy to put together as Duncan Hines cake mix, and as enjoyable as a gourmet chocolate cake. 

Here are a few mistakes teacher authors make when learning how to run email lists.

Too Much Text

15 lines of text with no spaces is an emailed textbook. Not even teachers enjoy reading textbooks. We use them as paper weights to separate graded papers.

Even 7 lines of text with no spaces is too much. 

Ignore everything you were taught in high school and college about paragraphs. (Yes, you were right. You are never going to use that.)

Your paragraphs are now 1-3 sentences.

These spaces help your reader flow through ideas faster and easier. They are in their inbox for entertainment and quick tips. Not for rambling.

If they wanted to read a textbook, they have 34 copies not being used in their classroom.

It’s All About You (Even Though You Don’t Mean to Be)

So many teacherprenuers start their emails with, “Hi!!! I’m Jen and I love English, my dog, and popcorn.” 

It makes my small intestine tie itself in a bow. 

Why? 

Because it sounds like we are standing in a staff meeting and the assistant principal just said, “Time for an ice breaker!”. Which was followed by 47 death glares and you saying, “Hi!!! I’m Jen and I love English, my dog, and popcorn.” 

But you are better than that.

Your emails should be getting 15 replies saying, “Thank you so much for your emails. They are making my life so much easier.”

Begin your emails with a question about a struggle teachers are experiencing. Then solve it.

Do not talk about your animals besides a brief mention. Do not use I or we more than twice. Do not ramble on about backstory. Period. Ask yourself, “Does this help my teacher audience do something?”

The focus should always be on your customer. Their struggles. Their excitement.

Solving their problems and making their life easier is how you make connections and money.

It’s All Automation

Email marketing gurus have trained us to think we must segment, and tag, and treat email addresses like there aren't actual humans behind them.

That those email addresses are holding credit cards hostage just waiting for us to check all the proper email list checkboxes before they will release a few dollars.

Segmenting and tagging is the most efficient way to do it. If you have a team, no fear of email unsubscribes, and confidence oozing out your fingertips.

For mere teacher author mortals, we need an easier strategy that will make us more money.

Send weekly emails.

Show a fun way to teach a boring lesson. Give away a freebie to save teachers time (and make them love you forever). Commiserate with them on teaching frustrating topics, then provide tips to make it easier. Give them an opportunity to rant about things they can’t say to anyone else.

That builds know, like, and trust faster than giving away free girl scout cookies.

If you only send automated, vanilla emails, you'll be sucking money out of customers the same way my one-year-old tries to get milk out of his empty bottle. It works short-term.

Weekly emails are fresh, timely, and help your audience in ways they never imagined.

Sounds Like More Work, Huh?

It's not.

(At this point I can write 6 months of emails and schedule them weekly in 10 hours.)

It's serving your audience the way they want to be served. Like a perfect slice of chocolate cake from a gourmet bakery that was made just for you.

Not like banana pudding sloshed on your plate as you go through the cafeteria lunch line.

Which experience would you prefer?