I could write a whole book on this. I seriously could. It’d be an epic somewhere near the length of War & Peace, the scope of Lord of the Rings and with the delivery of a young William Shatner. To say the least, it would be a thundering response to all the OVERLY CAPPED EMAILS, unsolicited garbage and generally badly-done marketing I’ve seen online. I’m not saying I’m perfect. I’m just saying that everyone who does marketing online should take these tips to heart.

• WHEN YOU USE ALL CAPS YOU ARE SHOUTING.
• WHEN YOU USE LOTS OF PUNCTUATION, YOU ARE SHOUTING!!!!!!!
• Do not assume that just because someone makes one comment, one place, on a bulletin board or in a blog about a topic that they are your target audience. I can’t tell you the amount of times I’ve made a witty remark about something I know little about only to be blasted with emails for months afterwords about something, somewhat related to the post, that I might want to buy.
• Don’t Spam! There’s a thin line between marketing effectively and outright spamming. Follow common sense, make sure the person opts-in to your content in some form, make sure they have an easy way to opt out and be polite. I can’t stress the last one enough. Infact, it gets it’s own bullet point.
• Be Polite! I mean it. Be polite, courteous, informative, respectful, interesting, provocative and… well, be polite. Slamming someone with emails, blog replies, comments on their social networks or constant unsolicited communications will, at best, get you ignored.
• Understand that the best selling message is most often the one you say once and let the customers come to you. If your product is sound, your marketing messages well written and your tactics pure, you will prevail.
• Understand that not everyone needs you, or your product. It’s a true fact of life, and of marketing. Your product services a niche, be that niche one person or one million. Don’t try to be something you are not.
• Proof read your message. Then let someone else proof read it. Then proof read it again. There are those who will never forgive you for a misspelling just as those who will never forgive you for using ALL CAPS.
• Buying a list of names and emails does not give you the right to use that list inappropriately. Understand who’s on the list, how they like to be communicated with and what they want to see. This may take a bit of testing of the waters, but make your first move with a new list softly and respectfully.
• Be clear in what your purpose is when you communicate online. Bait and switch on the internet is likely to get you banned, booed and possibly slandered/libeled for your deceitful practices. If you’re there to sell a product, sell it. If you’re there to be part of a community, do so. Don’t come in with one and sneak the other one in. If you’ve been an active member of a community where you’re bringing support to the table and you occasionally bring up your professional side, that’s one thing. Don’t lead with it, and don’t be deceitful. The internet is smarter than anything you’re cooking up, so don’t try it.
• If someone asks to be opted out or removed from your marketing efforts, respect their wishes. I’m to the point now with a few vendors and online sites I’m involved in that I’m going to start pursuing legal action if they don’t remove me from their databases. If I’m this frustrated, imagine how angry others must be!
• Have fun! If you’re having fun and keeping positive, you’ll be generally more accepted than someone who is not. Thus, keep your messages positive and always spin them so you’re the helpful support specialist, not the seedy sales person.

Like I said in the first sentence, I could write a book on this subject. For now, take these quick tips to heart the next time you’re doing online marketing. Not only are you more likely to catch new customers with honey, but you’ll do so without being stung by the bees you stole it from.