About half the mailing lists I've started have never taken off. This is normal, as far as I can see. Sometimes there's a flurry of interest for a month or so, but insufficient momentum to keep it going. Other times it was just a bad idea to start with. Both cases are indications of insufficient market research at the start.
When this happens to a list, you can either try to breathe life into it by sheer force of willpower, or let it go. If you choose to do the latter, be sure to announce that you're closing the list rather than just let it die down.
Example 6-1. Closing a list
Since this list hasn't had any traffic for over six months, I am going to close it down at the end of the week. Thanks to those of you who contributed early on, and I hope to see some of you in related groups in the near future. All the best, Fred. |