Be the sound dogs run to

We have three dogs. Our three girls say that’s one (or two) too many but the crazy company of three incredibly different canine personalities lifts all of our hearts every day, so I reckon what they really mean is they don’t like the fact that owning three dogs means that one of them always needs to be on dog walks.

I wouldn’t say we did an incredible job of training our dogs. They all have variable success in coming when called, depending on what they are really interested in. One will do anything for a ball. One for attention. And the other - for food.?

But there is one sound that makes them all come running, at any point of the day.

The sound of a serrated knife chopping on a board.

No matter where they are sunning themselves, chilling out or chasing their own tail, it’s enough for them to stop and act.

This morning’s call left them disappointed - I was chopping an orange. So they came but were not satisfied

It doesn’t mean that next time they’ll think “Oh last time was an orange so I’ll give it a miss this time” Instead, they HOPE. They hope it’s all of their favourite - carrot tops and bottoms. Or even better - scraps of cheese or the best of all… MEAT

Spud might be hoping for a banana. George for some crusty bread bits. And Milly? - well her favourite is that cheese that all the others will try jump in front of her to get first. She’s often too polite to take the plunge and commit to taking it before it’s too late

That sound of chopping food, that action isn’t always for them. And sometimes it’s not worth it for all of them

But there are enough moments where they all get something out of it, and that keeps them coming back again and again. They’ll come every single day, and never get tired of the sound, because they know that I’m going to reward them enough with what they’re hoping for

NOW. Imagine that was your email, in their inbox.

You want them to open it.

It’s not possible they’ll always love it, or feel it’s just for them

But it needs to be enough that they all feel it’s the food they needed (or just really wanted)

Sometimes only a few will benefit

And sometimes you’ll get them all, with a popular shared favourite topic or offer.

We often worry that we’re going to email too often, or freak out when one email gets a huge reaction, and one other gets barely a whisper. They all count. It’s the big picture you need to remember.. When we make sure we’ve got what our readers need at least some of the time, they’ll open them all. Because this one could be the day you give them real meat.

Be the sound that dog's run to.

(Has this changed the way you see email? Let me know in the comments)

Rachel Klaver is a marketing strategist and owner of?Identify ?where we help small business owners develop a marketing strategy and action plan for their business. This newsletter is based around ideas in her new book MAP IT Marketing coming out in 2022. You can also check out her?podcast ?here