Reading Time: 4 minutes

Email marketing is essential for all business owners… so how do you overcome the fear and intimidation that often accompanies it?

Are you a business owner who hears the phrase “email marketing” and starts to sweat? Then this episode is for you!

I got to chat with Dolly DeLong on the Systems & Workflow Magic Podcast about the myths business owners believe about email marketing, and how to overcome that in order to grow your business.
Read on for the details, or listen to the full episode here.

How to Overcome Roadblocks to Email Marketing

I’ll never forget the very first time I set up an email automation for my business. I was preparing for a speaking engagement, and I knew I wanted to share a bonus resource using an automation in MailChimp. When I finished setting it up, I felt like I had climbed a mountain… and that I had unlocked a new, powerful piece of my business.

But getting there was time consuming and intimidating. It felt like something only tech-savvy business owners did, but I knew it was something I had to figure out if I was going to take my online business seriously. 

I know I’m not alone! Tech intimidation and fear is real, and it can be easy to procrastinate and tell ourselves lies about email marketing. But the best way to motivate yourself to get started is by smashing the negative beliefs, because the truth is that you do have enough time for email marketing. You are capable, and you can do this.

Here are some of the most common negative beliefs about email marketing, and what to do about each of them:

I don’t have time to figure this out

We’re trying to serve our clients, take care of our family, and post on social media. We have so many things to do that we believe we don’t have time to figure out the technical side of email marketing and automations. We often get to the end of the week and wonder where all of our time has gone.

The fix: One of the best ways to determine where your time is going is by doing a time study. If you track your time for an entire week, you’ll be able to see on paper exactly how much time you spend on each task. Once you have that honest look at your time, you can decide what you can cut and adjust in order to carve out time to work on email marketing. 

I don’t have time to create new resources

Whether it’s lead magnets, freebies, or guides, you’ve probably felt the pressure of needing to churn out new resources regularly. It can lead to major intimidation, and a temptation to give up on email marketing altogether. 

The fix: Ask yourself “How can I make this as easy and simple as possible?” Don’t overcomplicate it. What’s the easiest thing you can create that is a need for your audience? What is it your ideal client needs to know in order to feel comfortable and ready to work with you? What’s their most immediate problem you can solve? 

The bottom line: you don’t have to have 37 different lead magnets to get started with email marketing. Pick one or two and stick with them.

I’m not tech-savvy

Because we believe we don’t have time to figure out technology, we put off incorporating email marketing in our business. Unfortunately, all that does is delay growing your business. 

The fix: Expecting yourself to go from never having used an email service provider (like Flodesk or Convertkit) to immediately having a sophisticated workflow is unrealistic. Take it little by little.

The first time I set up an email sequence took me hours… but then I got faster and faster. Give yourself time and grace in the beginning to learn, and you’ll get better at it after the first few reps. And when in doubt, go to YouTube University, Facebook groups, or outsource help!

I don’t have time to write new emails every week

You have so many other things in your business that you have to do. Even if you have an email list, you might feel like you don’t have the time (or ideas) to come up with new email content each week, and write it out. Maybe you feel like you’re not good at writing, or your emails have to be a huge production with gifs and tons of links.

The fix: Remember that you’re not writing a novel. You’re delivering value and staying top-of-mind to your audience. You can write something short and sweet. 

You also don’t have to write a new email every week; you can batch email writing, and schedule your emails for the entire month to save time.

Once you smash these negative beliefs, you can continue to boost motivation by thinking about all the positive benefits of pursuing email marketing. And there are tons! 

Need a textbook for time management?

Time Management Essentials: The Tools You Need to Maximize Your Attention, Energy, and Productivity is my textbook for managing time with purpose. In this book, I’ve included everything someone would need to know to be successful with time management, including:

• how to define your personal vision
• how to define your core values (and incorporate them in your calendar)
• how to get organized with a time management system
• how to get energized 
• how to get enough rest (the most underrated productivity tool there is!)

Visit https://annadkornick.com/book to preorder today!