Affiliates who have earned the trust of their site visitors generally have built an opt-in email list for the distribution of newsletters. But its not easy to prepare a full newsletter on a regular basis. And sometimes it makes sense to send a quick message to all or part of your mailing list, reporting some news, a special or an update on a timely matter. Sending an instant message is an option, if you set your site up to do it. In your next newsletter, ask for the IM addresses of your subscribers, and tell them exactly how you will use them.

Many site visitors will have instant messaging set up with one of a number of providers, including AOL, MSN and Yahoo. Because the programs for each do not easily interoperate, software has been developed by a number of companies such as Trillian, Everybuddy and Jabber to give the affiliate sending a message the ability to issue the message once for distribution to members of the various systems.

Instant message services are set up with a mechanism that detects whether a recipient is online, and allows the recipient to read the message as it is typed. Alternatively, the recipients IM mailbox can hold a message for someone who isnt online. With the increase in broadband connections, using IM is a highly efficient way to reach loyal and interested site visitors. If you decide to use IM, do so sparingly and judiciously, as a way to keep close to your site visitors and give them a quick way to respond to you.