Auto Responders: The Marketers Magic Trick

Imagine if John (an avid poker player) visits your website. You sell a book that helps him improve his poker game. He's highly interested in what you have to offer, but he's just not ready to purchase yet. He's still recovering from that extended holiday and needs to pay off the credit card that he maxed out playing poker online.

He sees a form on your site asking if he'd like more detailed information, and so he fills in his name and email address. Within seconds an email is sent to John with a short summary of the benefits offered by your book and a couple of useful tips he can use right away.

A few days later, John receives another email that goes something like this:

"Hey John, I know you're quite busy, especially with the holiday period coming to an end, but I just wanted to get in touch with you to let you know we've got a special coming up for that 'How to win at poker' handbook you've always wanted."

John's forgotten that he'd been looking to buy a book like this and this email reminds him that he needs to improve his game. John adds buying the handbook to his "To Do" list and goes about his daily business.

Another few days later, John receives another email; again, reminding him that the special is about to end alongside another juicy tip that's in the book. John realizes he doesn