If you have nothing meaningful to say, don’t say it.

Posted on May 22nd, 2008 by Larry Chase

It’s better to say nothing than feel obligated to communicate without substance, since that type of communication will send the wrong message to your audience. You want to condition your audience to see your name and know there is something in it for them, be it a solo email, paper catalog, sales letter or search results snippet. There is something called muscle memory. If people get trained to hit that delete key when they see your email, it will seem more natural as time rolls on for them to simply kill your message rather than to really consider whether to open the message. The same is true for direct mail and TV ads. You want your audience to say “Oh, it’s the Apple commercial,” or “My LL Bean catalog for spring is here. I’ll stop what I’m doing and look at this.” That’s a tall order to fill. But anything less than that type of anticipation could prove fatal to the success of your campaign. In short, whether it’s editorial or advertising, aim to delight your target audience.

The Internet Marketing Tip above originally appeared in Larry Chase's Web Digest For Marketers which you can subscribe to at no charge at www.wdfm.com.