Marketing is a multi-front effort. Your overall strategy should include several components designed to work together to achieve the same goal. One of the most effective tools in your arsenal is the newsletter.
Ideally, you should only be sending your newsletter to people who have elected to receive it. Buying or renting email lists for spamming is ineffective and not worth the investment. An email list of interested people is as targeted as it gets.
Send your email only when you have something worth saying. That might be monthly, quarterly, or on specific dates, depending on your business or industry. Sending too often can get your address added to their spam list.
Before you create your first newsletter, it’s important to understand the necessary components of a good email. Below you’ll find the ten essential pieces of a successful newsletter.
1. The Subject Line
The subject of your email is your first opportunity to make an impression. You can have a breathtaking design, valuable content, and an unbeatable offer, but if your recipients never open the email, none of that will matter.
Come up with something interesting, natural, and a bit mysterious. Make it appeal to your specific audience. If an email came to your inbox with “January Newsletter” as its subject, will you read it? Of course not. Me neither. Depending on your type of business, this might mean dividing your email lists into different groups by the customer’s last order, or how they interacted with your website.
Keep your subjects between six and eight words so they fit neatly into the subject line of your recipients’ email clients.
2. Quality Design
It’s important that anything that connects with your fans and customers (whether it’s a website, a social media profile, or a newsletter) is designed well. A poor design hints to your readers that you don’t concern yourself with your appearance. Only use crisp, well laid out images. Ensure that you include enough white space. White space improves the readability of your newsletter by reducing clutter. Consider employing a professional designer to build a quality template for your newsletters; it really makes a difference!
3. A Personal Introduction
Speak to your email subscribers as if they are your close friends. Single column newsletters are popular because they feel like letters to a friend. Address the email to the recipient and give them some updates about your business or topic. Tell them what’s new about your site, what you are working on, and what they can expect in the future.
Write to one person. If your recipient reads phrases like “We’re excited to tell you all…” or “You all will love this…” the message will seem like you are writing a mass email. Speak as if you are writing to a single recipient.
4. Valuable & Exclusive Content
Your newsletter should not be a sales letter. Not directly, at least. Instead of promoting a sale or a product, offer tips, advice, and helpful information. You want to be the go-to resource in your industry for information. Offering valuable content that is interesting and helpful will make your recipients excited to receive your newsletter.
Post you latest blog and link to the full post (this drives traffic to your blog!), come up with a tip of the month, share interesting articles you came across that your audience would like to read, etc.
Your subscribers have offered you access to their precious inbox. Repay their kindness by offering them something they couldn’t find elsewhere. Offer them additional content that you won’t offer to just anyone. This could be a second part to a popular blog post you wrote, or special access to a promotion. Give out a promotional code or exclusive information tailored to your fans. Remember: You should be cultivating a deeper relationship with your email list subscribers than you would your website visitors.
5. Customer Stories
Testimonials from your customers speak to your credibility. Offer these stories to your email recipients as evidence that your product has value. Seek out testimonials from well-known people in your industry for the maximum effect.
These can be especially powerful if you can link to an outside source that backs up your claim. For example, if your company builds custom websites, include a testimonial offered by a customer and link to their website so your readers can see the actual work you performed.
6. Referral Link
It’s easy to share content online these days. We expect easy methods of letting our friends know about something we value or enjoy. Include a referral link in your newsletter for one-click sharing with a friend. This is a great way to expand your exposure and get new subscribers.
7. Press Mentions
Mentions on TV, radio, magazines, or newspapers extends the reach of your brand and exposes your business to groups of people you could never reach on your own. Because media outlets have to be choosey with their features, your mention in their precious space or time means you must be something special.
Let your subscribers know about these mentions. Link to any press articles, videos, or other content that talks about your brand. Your fans will want to see it.
8. Engagement
Complete each section of your newsletter with a powerful call-to-action. If you are showcasing a product, include a “Buy Now” button. If you are previewing a blog post, include a “Read More” button. If you are promoting a Facebook or Twitter contest, show them how to interact with your brand in a clear way so there’s no confusion.
Remember: Every interaction you make with a customer should usher them down a path that leads to a conversion.
9. Links to Your Social Networks
Part of the job of a newsletter is to encourage traffic to your various online presences. If a person is willing to give you their email address, they’re interested in a closer relationship. It’s very likely they would be willing to converse with you on your various social networks. You should be offering links to your social media profiles on every web page you create and correspondence you send – this includes newsletters!
Further, subscribers often forward emails to their friends who might be interested. Make sure to offer plenty of opportunities for someone who isn’t currently a fan to become one.
10. Signature & Full Contact Information
A newsletter is a personal experience for a user. They have offered you access to their inbox. You should respond in kind by signing off with your actual name whenever you can. If an edition of your newsletter is from a specific department in your company, use that team leader’s name. Otherwise, use the CEO.
Always include ways for your recipients to contact you. Include everything: website, email, fax, telephone. Don’t make your fans search for this basic information.
Written by Tasha Mayberry, Co-Founder of Social Media 22
Tasha is the Co-Founder of Social Media 22 with her husband Pavel. Social Media 22 is a web design and internet marketing company that helps companies gain online visibility and obtain new business using easy and affordable techniques. They specialize in custom website development, website revamping, blog and newsletter design, search engine optimization, social media marketing, public relations/media outreach, and overall marketing for entrepreneurs and small businesses.
Tasha has gotten clients on major news TV networks including Good Morning America, Fox, and NBC. Additionally, their clients have been seen in many magazines including In Touch Weekly, Marie Claire, Baby & Child, The National Enquirer, Pregnancy & Newborn, and more as well as major radio shows.
For more information, visit www.socialmedia22.com
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