Subscribers and customers respond with glowing feedback,
online sales jump and your customer relationships and brand
loyalty deepens. Here are some useful tips that might help
in creating a successful newsletter.
Define Success
Ask yourself “What is the purpose of your newsletter?” A
newsletter is a substantial investment of company resources
in terms of time and energy, and you need to define in as
tangible terms as possible the purpose of your Newsletter.
Voice and Personality
Establish a voice or editorial personality – whether newsy,
serious, gossipy or funny – that is synergistic with the
image you want to portray and connects with your audience.
Remember that email newsletters aren't email promotions
designed to stimulate immediate action. Sales and
promotional copy don't suit e-newsletters. Nor does the
traditional tone of broadcast corporate communications.
Think of your newsletter as a one-on-one conversation. Just
imagine sitting in a coffee shop talking informally with a
customer. That's the starting point for your approach--a
more personable and appropriate "human" voice will come
naturally. Drop the jargon, drop the sales pitch, be as
honest as you can, and talk like a human being.
You can have as much or as little personality as is
appropriate. Consider adding a brief editorial, a comment or
two, an editor's note, a couple of lines of commentary, a
touch of opinion; adding a little human element here and
there. Sign editorials, give authors a byline, or list some
names down in the administrative section of each issue to
which your readers can relate to.
From Line
Whether a person’s name, name of the newsletter or company
name – determine what will resonate best with your readers
and stay with it.
Subject Line
“Vol. 1, Issue #8” or “Company News” are not enticing
subject lines. They are certainly consistent and simple, but
they don’t tell your readers anything that will motivate
them to open your email. Your subject line is your calling
card - entice your readers with the most interesting or
intriguing information in your Newsletter..
Style/Format
Establish a format and layout of your Newsletter that is
clean and simple, with elements of the Newsletter (table of
contents; “Tips”, subscription information, etc. located in
the same spot each issue).
Content
Figure out what your readers want and give it to them. Seek
continuous improvement by obtaining reader feedback and
monitoring click-through rates to determine what types of
articles are most popular.
Another dilemma that we all confront is too much information
and too little time. The newsletter’s job is to keep readers
on top of trends and the latest developments in the
industry. Aim for articles and feature stories to meet one
of the following criteria by including either: major
industry occurrences, forward thinking industry ideas,
education on issues or new techniques, or business
opportunities.
Whether your customers work out of a corporate or home
office, employees need answers to questions and tips for
improving business activities. E-newsletters provide you
with an opportunity to point out work inefficiencies, and
share relevant best practice. When you create a newsletter,
try changing your focus from selling products and services
to solving your customers’ problems. Think about what they
need and give options they don’t know exist
Frequency
Determine how frequently your readers want to hear from
you/receive your Newsletter – and what you can commit to. As
a thumb rule, a weekly newsletter is ideal. However, don’t
launch a weekly newsletter if you are not absolutely certain
that you can distribute a quality Newsletter every week. A
fortnightly newsletter is a good option too.
Timing
Test and pick a day and time that works best ...and stick to
it. Readers should almost be able to set their watches by
the receipt time of your Newsletter.
Make it Viral
Provide information readers can act on or that stimulates
reaction – forwarding it to friends and peers, stimulating
purchases or requests for additional information. Make it
easy for readers to forward articles and information to
peers and friends. Provide a “Forward to a Friend” link that
enables readers to forward the Newsletter with a
personalized note.
Search
Make it easy to find articles of interest and back issues.
Provide a table of contents and links to articles within the
newsletter and to resources and past Articles on your site.
Printing
Consider providing “printer-friendly formats” on your Web
site.
Personalize
At minimum address the reader by name. The most successful
newsletters have a human being associated with them...and a
personality. If possible, your Newsletter should be “written
by a person” at your company...not the company.
Write in layman terms with simple vocabulary
Not everyone has the vocabulary that you and editors do. Use
words that are easy-to-understand, and if you do use
technical terms, provide a definition that people can relate
to. There is nothing more frustrating then a definition that
makes less sense than the word itself.
Test
Test the Newsletter on few email addresses to check for
errors and other issues – before sending to the entire
distribution list.
If you lack experience in print media, seek out assistance
if you know someone in the field. If not, don't worry – the
above mentioned basic principles apply. Plan to research
your material thoroughly and avoid factual or editing
errors, as they will make you seem less credible.
Add hyperlinks and include updates on old material should
new information surface. The typical form of newsletter is a
one-way communication where you provide information to
customers, such as product updates and announcements. You
have the option of formatting your e-mail by including
colorized text and a variety of fonts, but not all e-mail
software supports HTML mail. Consider writing your
newsletter in plain text or offer two mailing lists- one for
plain text mailings and the other for HTML e-mail.
Make sure you Include:
* Table of Contents
* Hyperlinks for customers who want more information for a
featured topic
* Exciting secrets or tips related to your product or
service
* Contact information
E-newsletters can take up a good amount of time if not
managed correctly. The use of a list server (a piece of
software that runs on your Internet provider's computer or
on your own web server) is a good option. It will
automatically manage a list of e-mail addresses. Once you
send your newsletter to the list server, it distributes the
letter to the stored addresses. For more information on list
servers, contact your Internet service provider. If you opt
to use another method, make sure you have a plan for
handling incoming and outgoing mail when your customer base
increases.
In conclusion, your newsletter can serve as an extension of
your business that will reach out to your customers. It
will allow you to maintain regular contact with them and
serve as an effective and rewarding addition to your
marketing arsenal. These tips should help you put it all
together and help you create an exceptional newsletter.
Warmly,
Iyunk77
No comments:
Post a Comment