Writing newsletters can’t be that hard? Right?

Katelen Perez T'Seyen

31-08-2020 •

8 minutes reading time

Is it worth investing in email marketing and sending newsletters? Yes, definitely! But even though many companies understand that email marketing is a great tool to have a personalized connection with subscribers, they often don’t know how to get started.

Newsletters are a great way to interact with your subscribers – but there are some pitfalls to be aware of. Always remember to be personal, targeted and brief. A lot of marketers might be creating a perfectly designed newsletter but send out so much information in so little time, that this is too overwhelming for their audience.

Don’t be afraid to send more emails

Having a strong design and copy for your newsletter is great, a lot of that effort is wasted when you overinform in one go. This is why “less is more”, is the key strategy for communication. Don’t think that you can only send out information once a month or even once a year, if you know your subscribers, you’ll be able to create the right amount for each of them.

The risk of a monthly newsletter is that you want to share so much, that your newsletter soon holds 5 or even more articles. This causes information overload, where only the top articles get most attention, and the articles at the bottom getting lost in oblivion. Also, not all information is important for everyone.

If you have an article that’s so important to share that it has to be at the top of your newsletter, maybe it’s important enough to dedicate an entire campaign to it? That way, it gets you reader’s full attention, and there are no other distractions on the screen that could attract his or her eye.

Targeted content will always perform better than one big blast

Each person is different and will therefore be interested in different topics. Think about the different newsletters you receive, and which ones got your attention. Ask yourself why? With each newsletter you create, ask yourself the question, would I want to read this? Will it spark my interest?

Your company always has something to share, I can’t dwell on this enough! Know who you are sending what information to and make sure you have a great subject line to back it up.

A newsletter should help you reach your objectives, either if it is to get more sales, leads, more website traffic, etc. It all results into having an engaging email list.

Now let’s discuss important element to create an engaging newsletter and audience:

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1. Choose your topic

Knowing your subscribers is the key element to any communication. If you are unsure about what they would like to receive, ask them! Asking your subscribers is the best way to get more insight on what to communicate and to whom.

A great newsletter is one where you focus on 1-2 relevant topic(s). There is no use for you to put all of the news and promotions into one. This will - by default - create an irrelevant newsletter to many. If you have a strategy set – which I highly recommend – you will be able to have a good idea on who and when you can send to, at any given time.

Another great thing is to include the latest trends and how they are relevant within your company. This way you have even more relevant content and shows your subscribers that you’re up to date with the latest news and trends around the world or locally.

Gather the team with all departments, ask them to bring topics to the table and start the topic brainstorm. Not only is this a great productive team activity, collecting topics from different departments can give your contacts the chance to get to know your company from all angles. It will create that personal connection as if they are a part of your team. After the team brainstorm divide them into seasons, months, relevant moments where those topics can individually shine! Once you have this rough schedule, you’ll be able to create content more easily throughout the year. And if something unexpected does come along you can just replace or add it to the relevant month.

2. Get them excited!

Bring your content in a fun, exciting and brief way.
Nobody likes reading an endless newsletter.
Make sure to stay on topic and write easy to read articles.
Aim for a smile and curiosity behind the screens

If you do feel the need to add more information, you can do this through links to the blog or article on your website. This will create a call to action, you’ll want people to see or act on.

Use creative ways to spark their excitement, there are endless possibilities!

Fun pictures
How it’s made videos
Quotes
Links to educational videos
Introduction of the team
Do’s and don’ts
Sharing recipes with your product
Start an exclusive contest, where they post the result

Like I said endless possibilities! People love to learn and share their knowledge, so why not educate them in a way that you can benefit from and will make them feel more intelligent and engaged in your company, employees and products/services.

What gets you excited about newsletters and product info?

Newsletter Ideas:

Opening showroom: show off your new products is all we want to do. Find an attractive way, you can set up a contest or a small gift bag to the first to register. Giving your subscribers that extra touch can do wonders.
Share your most popular blog(s) and tell them why they are such a trend now.
Share customer experiences, pictures or quotes are always a great way to show more insight into what others experience.
Team bio: let the subscribers know who works at the company and what their favorite product is and why.
Display special promotions, events or giveaways
Internal newsletters: reach out to all employees telling them about the upcoming birthdays, office lunches, events or highlighting all the newcomers with a bio on who they are.
Share the company’s story, why they started this and their value that stayed intact in all the years of service.
Tips and tricks: not only about your product but something that might connect the product to an everyday product. For example, a baking recipe.

Create a clean, exciting and visual newsletter, remember this is a great way to spread the word fast and to all that want to hear from you.

3. Exclusivity

As we are in a world of many ways to communicate to your audience, we should always make sure to bring value and be consistent of what your company represents. Because we want newsletters to be an added value to our communication, it’s important we also bring them something different and exclusive.

Your newsletter should have information that they can’t find on any other of your social platforms. This will bring the added value of subscribing to your newsletters, this way they will get more inside information.

What’s (y)our goal/objective?

Looking at your strategy and subscribers, what do they want and what do you want to achieve? These are the questions you can ask yourself in order to set your objective and share relevant and amazing content. Test it out with your contacts and see your click rate grow every time. Write it with passion and enjoyment, this way you can come along way.

Questions to ask yourself and your team

Would I open this email based on the subject?
What gets my attention in a newsletter?
Which topics do I miss in the newsletter?
How do I feel after reading this newsletter?
Do I feel triggered to act on the call to action?
Does this layout represent our company and clients?
Is it all consistent and clear?
What new things will my clients discover?
Will this news be exciting for the target group?
....

Start with a strategy, collect topics, new products or releases that are on your timeline. Have a media library set up, so you can have all the means needed to send out successful campaigns easily and with less effort.

Enjoy the full process and your contact will do the same. Now let’s get started with your amazing newsletter and spread the goals and values of your business, have fun with it!