{"id":422,"date":"2014-05-16T16:00:44","date_gmt":"2014-05-16T22:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.allenwyatt.com\/blog\/?p=422"},"modified":"2014-05-12T19:18:35","modified_gmt":"2014-05-13T01:18:35","slug":"understanding-the-mix","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.allenwyatt.com\/blog\/understanding-the-mix\/","title":{"rendered":"Understanding the Mix"},"content":{"rendered":"

Most everyone knows that I publish free online newsletters for a living. That may sound like a bit of a contradiction\u2014earning a living from publishing something free. In light of an e-mail that I received from someone the other day, I figured I better lay out a bit of information about how it is possible for me to earn a living from something that is free.<\/p>\n

You see, my newsletters are free in the same sense that over-the-air broadcasts from your local radio and television stations are free. Everyone knows how they make the money necessary to pay the bills\u2014they generally sell advertising. Or, they may sell a product (such as a coupon book) or they may sponsor an event (such as concert).<\/p>\n

The idea is that if they give something away for free (the content), you as a listener or viewer will stick around for the advertisements, purchase a product, or attend an event. If enough listeners or viewers do that, then the station makes money. If enough don’t, then they go out of business.<\/p>\n

The other day I had someone who was kind enough to write to me about why they were unsubscribing from my ExcelTips<\/i> newsletter:<\/p>\n

Sorry Allen,<\/p>\n

This kind of email just makes me want to unsubscribe which I have done. A culmination of recent attempts to sell stuff and unsolicited reminders makes me think thanks but no thanks. I am perfectly able to make my mind up about what I need without having it pushed..shame because it started well but has just become irritating. Perhaps the constant selling up and my understated English nature just don’t go together<\/p>\n

Ralph<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"vintage4\"<\/a>Ralph’s e-mail, as sent, was a response to an issue of ExcelTips<\/i> where I, in my “Publisher’s Notes” section, asked people to invite someone to subscribe to the newsletter. It seems my request was enough to push Ralph over the edge and cause him to unsubscribe after receiving ExcelTips<\/i> for almost four years.<\/p>\n

In looking into Ralph’s interaction with me over the term of his subscription, I couldn’t find any e-mails I’d received from him before, nor could I find any record of him having purchased any of my e-books or archives.<\/p>\n

What is potentially bothersome to me is that there may be other “Ralphs” among my subscribers who think that ExcelTips<\/i> (or any of my newsletters) should be free of advertising, that I shouldn’t ask anything of subscribers (like asking that they share a newsletter with others), that I shouldn’t let subscribers know about e-books or archives, or that I shouldn’t let anyone know about great offers elsewhere.<\/p>\n

So, I figured I would lay out for anyone and everyone exactly how often I publish content and advertisements\u2014in other words, the “mix” of the two that forms the basis of my business. I’ll break this out into sections on regular newsletters and daily tip services.<\/p>\n

Regular Newsletters<\/h3>\n

I publish the following newsletters 52 times per year, once per week, absolutely free:<\/p>\n