What To Write About
Your newsletter must contain interesting content. One of the most difficult parts of starting an email newsletter is to figure out what you are going to write about, so here are few ideas that usually work well:
Provide industry news highlights that have taken place since your last newsletter
Offer tips and advice for your readers
Present your readers with case studies
Include regular polls, and then publish the results of the poll in the newsletter
Express your personal opinion about industry news
Try to make it fun too. Include a joke, funny comic or a random quote (which can be totally off base)
Again, simply presenting news about your company could make your readers hit the Delete key faster than you can hit the Send button. Make it fun and interesting as possible, and don’t be afraid to switch it up every now and then; perhaps a poll one week and a case study the next.
Friday, May 13, 2011
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
How To Write an Email Newsletter Step #1
Your Newsletter’s Value Proposition
The first step to writing an email newsletter is to choose a value proposition. Certainly, you love your business or whatever the newsletter is about, but you shouldn't expect your subscribers to take time out of their busy days to read your newsletter without there being some benefit for them.
One of the biggest mistakes new email marketers make when starting their newsletter is to make the whole newsletter an informational piece about their own business. I hate to break it to you, but unless you’re a large multinational brand, nobody really cares about the latest clients you got or the newest service you launched. Not that your newsletter shouldn’t include these details, but it does mean that you have to add something else that is subscriber focused.
For example, what if you not only tell your subscribers that you launched a new product or service, but you also offered them an exclusive 20% discount on that same service. Or, along with company news, include a special report each month.
Your value proposition, then, should be something in your newsletter that is meant to benefit your subscribers in some way, and this should be chosen before you start your email newsletter. Simply adding in a free report, periodic discounts or contests can boost the success of your email newsletter right off the bat, and can ensure that they read your company news as well.
Oh, and remember to advertise your value proposition on your subscriber sign up form, don’t keep it a secret.
The first step to writing an email newsletter is to choose a value proposition. Certainly, you love your business or whatever the newsletter is about, but you shouldn't expect your subscribers to take time out of their busy days to read your newsletter without there being some benefit for them.
One of the biggest mistakes new email marketers make when starting their newsletter is to make the whole newsletter an informational piece about their own business. I hate to break it to you, but unless you’re a large multinational brand, nobody really cares about the latest clients you got or the newest service you launched. Not that your newsletter shouldn’t include these details, but it does mean that you have to add something else that is subscriber focused.
For example, what if you not only tell your subscribers that you launched a new product or service, but you also offered them an exclusive 20% discount on that same service. Or, along with company news, include a special report each month.
Your value proposition, then, should be something in your newsletter that is meant to benefit your subscribers in some way, and this should be chosen before you start your email newsletter. Simply adding in a free report, periodic discounts or contests can boost the success of your email newsletter right off the bat, and can ensure that they read your company news as well.
Oh, and remember to advertise your value proposition on your subscriber sign up form, don’t keep it a secret.
Monday, May 9, 2011
How to make a good Email Marketing Strategy
The following tips will help you to plan and implement a great email marketing strategy.
Know your audience
You should probably have a good idea of who you are marketing to if you have been in business for a while, but it’s also important to consider how your specific audience uses email. If you are marketing to people who probably don't have alot of time on their hands, it's probably good to keep your newsletters short and straight to the point. Determine how your specific audience will want to receive email, and how often, for best results.
(Put a newsletter signup widget on every page of your website.)
When you make your email list an important part of your website, you are making it appear more important to your site visitors – which can make it more likely for your audience to opt into your list. Be sure that your signup box is prominently placed “above the fold” on your website. Add a newsletter sign up offer to your social media profiles and blog as well to make sure you have maximum impact.
Set a delivery schedule.
Your list members will come to expect and look forward to your messages if you set a regular delivery schedule. Boomerang makes it easy to create automatic weekly newsletters based on your blog posts so you can consistently stay in touch with your list. Take time to analyze your email list’s performance so you can identify whether or not specific days or times of the day work better for your subscribers.
Use social sharing elements
Your audience is also looking for you on social media as well. By using social sharing elements in your email messages you can increase your social media presence and help your audience spread your message for you. With one click, they will be able to share your latest article on Facebook or spread the word on your latest sale on Twitter. Whenever you release a new newsletter, announce it on social media and give a link so your followers can sign up.
Use your past performance as an indicator of future strategy
Your email strategy can only get stronger with time. You can use Boomerang’s reporting tools to analyze your message impact, understand what changes need to be made and plan for future performance. Take note of when your messages were sent and what effects are seen on your website and social media. You can use this information to be sure that your messages are having the impact that you intend for them to have.
Know your audience
You should probably have a good idea of who you are marketing to if you have been in business for a while, but it’s also important to consider how your specific audience uses email. If you are marketing to people who probably don't have alot of time on their hands, it's probably good to keep your newsletters short and straight to the point. Determine how your specific audience will want to receive email, and how often, for best results.
(Put a newsletter signup widget on every page of your website.)
When you make your email list an important part of your website, you are making it appear more important to your site visitors – which can make it more likely for your audience to opt into your list. Be sure that your signup box is prominently placed “above the fold” on your website. Add a newsletter sign up offer to your social media profiles and blog as well to make sure you have maximum impact.
Set a delivery schedule.
Your list members will come to expect and look forward to your messages if you set a regular delivery schedule. Boomerang makes it easy to create automatic weekly newsletters based on your blog posts so you can consistently stay in touch with your list. Take time to analyze your email list’s performance so you can identify whether or not specific days or times of the day work better for your subscribers.
Use social sharing elements
Your audience is also looking for you on social media as well. By using social sharing elements in your email messages you can increase your social media presence and help your audience spread your message for you. With one click, they will be able to share your latest article on Facebook or spread the word on your latest sale on Twitter. Whenever you release a new newsletter, announce it on social media and give a link so your followers can sign up.
Use your past performance as an indicator of future strategy
Your email strategy can only get stronger with time. You can use Boomerang’s reporting tools to analyze your message impact, understand what changes need to be made and plan for future performance. Take note of when your messages were sent and what effects are seen on your website and social media. You can use this information to be sure that your messages are having the impact that you intend for them to have.
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