Your newsletter FAQs answered |
| Posted by Yesim (yesim) on Apr 19 2010 |
Is a newsletter worth doing?
For most businesses the answer is a most definite YES. Newsletters are a great, cost-effective way to keep in touch with customers, build your reputation, promote your business and stay top-of-mind for the service or product that you provide.
What should I include in my newsletter?
Information that is relevant to your audience. What are they interested in? What’s going to be of value to them? It’s a good idea to plan ahead and have a calendar for topics that you’re planning to cover for the next 3-6 editions. If you’re really smart these can coincide with events that you might be running, a new product launch or anything else that’s happening within your business. Just make sure you don’t use your e-newsletter for blatant selling only.
How can I ensure I always include relevant & interesting information?
Keep track of good ideas. I have a Word document in which I record all my e-newsletter ideas, and any topics I get asked to write about by my readers. Many of the topics you’ve read about in my newsletters are as a direct result of you asking me to write about them. Why not ask your customers what they really want to read about? For inspiration sign up to Google Alerts* and see what other people are writing about your area of expertise.
Can I outsource the writing of my e-newsletter?
If you don’t enjoy writing or haven’t got the time, then there are good professional copywriters (such as Caroline Jenkins from www.writewords.com.au) out there, who can help to write your e-newsletter. If you decide to write it yourself, then make sure the grammar errors and spelling mistakes are kept to a minimum by checking and double-checking what you’ve written. The odd error here and there won’t matter (unless your subscribers are the Oxford university alumni), but it will put readers off if it’s really poorly written. Better to get the professionals in. Another option is to write the newsletter yourself and then have a copywriter read over it for you.
What’s a good open and click-through rate?
Please don’t let anyone tell you what a good or bad open rate (how many people open your e-newsletter) or click-through rate (how many people clicked on links included in your newsletter) is. It varies so much depending on who your subscribers are, what type of business you’re in etc. Obviously your aim is to get as high an open rate as possible. To achieve this, focus on content and subject titles. Rather than comparing yourself against statistics you’ve heard or read somewhere, focus on changes in your own open and click-through rates. Compare the results from different subject titles you’ve used. A tool like www.aweber.com allows you to see exactly how many open and click-throughs you are getting.
Can I use Outlook?
I don't recommend using Outlook to send your e-newsletter. Mass e-mails sent from Outlook often get caught up in firewalls. It’s also impossible to track open rates and very time-consuming to handle subscriptions. By using a tool like www.aweber.com, you can create a professional looking template, track your open and click-through rates and manage all your subscribers really easily. It costs me approx. $20 per month.
What is spam?
One sure way of really annoying people is to send them your e-newsletter without their consent. If you’re not adhering to the following, your newsletters could be considered spam:
Consent – the message must be sent with the recipient’s consent
Identify – the message must contain accurate information about your organisation
Unsubscribe – the message must contain a functional 'unsubscribe' facility to allow your readers to opt out of receiving messages from you
For more information, go to the Australian Communication and Media Authority website:
How do I get people to sign up to my newsletter?
Allow people to sign-up on your website. Include a link in your e-mail signature to your e-newsletter sign-up page. When you meet people who are interested in your area of expertise, ask them whether they’d like to receive your newsletter. Many organisations offer an incentive (receive a copy of their e-book etc) for signing up to their newsletter. While this can be very effective, bear in mind that unless your e-newsletter content is relevant and helpful to them, they may well unsubscribe once they’ve received their freebie.
Share on TwitterLast changed: Apr 22 2010 at 2:50 PM
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| By Unknown on Apr 21 2010 at 5:58 PM | |
| Brilliant tips - just what we needed! Thanks Janet & Ed |
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| Thanks for the feedback | By Unknown on Apr 22 2010 at 11:43 AM |
| Great, glad you found it useful! Good luck with it! | |
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