Email Newsletters as Marketing Tools
Email newsletters are a very effective marketing tool. They enable you to maintain regular contact with customers and attract prospects to your business. They also give you the opportunity to present yourself as an expert in your field.
Content of an Email Newsletter
To ensure that people maintain their subscription, your email newsletter must be worth reading. When creating content for your email newsletter, remember these tips:
- Good content interests your readers. People are not subscribing to your email newsletter to read about you or the history of your company. Give them something of value, like tips, frequently asked questions about your product or service, interviews with experts in your industry, or case studies of customers successfully using your product or service.
- Keep it short. People are pressed for time. A good email newsletter keeps stories brief and does not overwhelm with too many subject areas. Keep the newsletter to about 1,000 words in length and do not have more than about five "departments". Brevity is important for another reason. Your email newsletter should make people click through to your Web site so you can gauge the success of the newsletter as a marketing tool. If you provide too much information in the newsletter, people won't click through.
Frequency and Timing of an Email Newsletter
People are inundated with email messages. Don't let your newsletter become a nuisance by sending it too often. The frequency depends on the type of industry you are in. For some, a weekly newsletter that highlights product sales or upcoming events is effective. Other businesses may not have adequate content for a weekly email newsletter and may decide on a monthly or bimonthly cycle.
Timing is another factor in the success of your email newsletter. Most businesspeople know that Monday mornings are not the best time to deliver an email newsletter - people have a lot of other email to respond to and a newsletter can get lost in the shuffle. To determine the best time, use a simple test. Send the newsletter on different days until you can determine which one gets the best response.
Consider holidays as well. Depending on the type of business you have, you might be able to tie in the content of your newsletter with a holiday or occasion. Links to holidays make your newsletter timely and can increase readership. A fitness center might use the concept of New Year's resolutions in an email newsletter. Similarly, an accounting firm might use the months of January and February for tax tips. Check the calendar for occasions that may apply to your products and services.
Other Email Newsletter Tips
- Personalize the message with the subscriber's name.
- Make sure the subject line gets the reader's attention and encourages them to read the newsletter. A subject line that says "February Newsletter" will be much less enticing than one that says "Weight Loss Strategies" or "Tax Tips".
- Give readers a choice between text and HTML. Some users have slower connections. Plain text can make your email newsletter more accessible to them.
- Always offer an easy way to unsubscribe.