It's still to early to give a solid number...

But I have a joint-venture deal with a local naturopathic clinic. We're doing marketing on all fronts, but have been regular with a weekly email column from the doctor (or sometimes the staff or his family) to the patients.

It's changed the dynamics of the patient-doctor relationship entirely. Patients are more "on board" when they come for an appointment. Less resentment over paying their fees. They're grateful for the attention.

It's also helped increased overall "sales" by 169%, including a 235% increase in supplements sales.

It's really strange that most small businesses aren't using email marketing. They generally are on tight budgets so email marketing should be a no brainer.

But, sadly, I remember one chiropractor I spoke to last year who was all ready to start a weekly ezine to his patients, until he heard he'd have to pay $20/month for a service like GetResponse to collect the names and broadcast the emails.

Then another doc told me how excited he was that he could start an email list for free with Yahoo Groups.

Shows the importance of working only with those who understand ROI, and not trying to educate them on it from scratch. Not unless they're gonna pay you for it.