Newsletter formats

What are the best Newsletter formats and how can you apply them to your business? The answer will surprise you and have you back at the drawing board.

A regular and consistent approach.

Emailing a newsletter every week is the most productive period of approach and one that should be followed without blemish.

Furthermore, your readers should be waiting for the next instalment with excitement to ensure a high open-rate.

If this sounds a bit much, consider some of the ones that really work.

I confess to being a two-week man and struggle to continually meet that however, I know I am wrong.

The local grocery chain sends out a new email every week. It has prices, specials and a bundle of pictures.
Many readers would not consider moving from the house without checking this out before spending a penny.

It maintains a loyal customer, keeps them informed and even allows for stocking considerations on the weekly special.

As a football tragic, I eagerly await each week's football news. Teams, injuries and news stories to titillate the mind. Would I miss one? Never.

My health club has a weekly tip for promoting a better lifestyle. I love to read what I am doing wrong and novel ways to ease the pain. Consequently, I wait for the latest version. Does this make me a loyal customer? It certainly does.

This is a common question with a relatively easy answer. In other words, write what your audience wants.
Firstly, a newsletter is not a sales script. It is entertainment and building ongoing loyalty.
Above all, it is a product that can be shared with others.

A local car tyre reseller sends a monthly newsletter to a large audience gathered from his three stores.
The newsletter is long and involves a lot of reading. My first thought was to call Richard and tell him so but I hesitated to watch the results.

The classic car section is always interesting as is the latest racing tips. Similarly, the off-road report has us all reading and the latest tyre developments keeps us reading.
The demographic is probably male but hey we probably spend more on tyres or take an active part in the purchase.
I needed a tyre recently and it was not an exercise in who to buy from or at what price it was when can they do it. Trust has been established.

Don't always trust your stats

I am a firm believer in statistics and certainly use them often to understand my readers but they can be wrong.
I will send an email at least fortnightly but certainly in a regular manner.
My greatest moment is when I visit a customer and they randomly praise my newsletter, moreover, they will cite examples for praise.

I was watching a podcast today by Hubspot's marketing man Noah Kagan. Above all, Noah is a fast and furious talker who relates to his one hundred thousand customers. A lot he states but only 25% read and just a few clicks so who are the converts, that small per cent.

I sent a Newsletter to my base today asking for help. I wanted them to like something I did. A 60% open rate and the problem solved in just a short time amplified that my readers were indeed loyal.

Are newsletters about selling or something else?

As explained earlier, a newsletter is not there to sell your stuff, however, it must always have a call to action.
You never know where in the buying cycle your reader is. Moreover when they are ready to jump give them a trampoline to bounce on down when the time is right.

Certainly, it is not full in your face approach but a more subtle offer that grabs ready buyers.

It is all about know, like and trust

The three pillars of marketing are as ancient as selling itself and as modern as tomorrow.

These three words should never be underestimated and are the foundation of your newsletter.
Therefore a regular publication is dictated by the Know element. The more often the greater the result.

Content is always important

I have used the word entertainment prior in this blog and it is important to remember. You want them to welcome your next email with a degree of excitement.

You should also understand that when people search your site they want an answer to a question. Sending a newsletter can be the same. Take a misconception and expand it out to a logical answer.

Is dress sizing always the same or are Vietnam and China different. Why we buy a different size in Abbar brand than the Brittany range for the perfect fit?
Furthermore, we have Abbar at 20% discount for March.

It answers a common question that everyone wants an answer to. We know it is marketing and if you fit a smaller size it makes you feel good.

I have used Constant Contact for many years and have recently been appointed as a partner.

I have tried many of the email companies only to be left disappointed in what they offer.
Emailing needs to be easy to do and cost-effective.
I don't care what you are selling, the income from just a few orders will pay for your annual email hosting.
I always consider the lifetime value of a client when looking at my costs.
If you email regularly with OK content you will achieve new business. It is a numbers game.

Your list is an asset

When we say an asset, we mean one with real value that can be sold on the open market. Plus with a business, it can be valued at x$ per name.
I wrote how to build a list previously that tells of ways to gather those names and keep them occupied. if you are retail then everyone that walks in the door should be gathered.

For online workers, it is harder but possible to grow a list furthermore one that works.
List

Build your Constant Contact start

There are quite a few details to get right before you send an email.

Build a 12-month plan	Don't be ad hoc
Create your branding	Consistency
Use their first name	Personal touch
The length of a post	Standardise
Who to follow up	Don't waste chances
Growing your stats	Understand your list
Cleaning up your list	Clear deadwood

Understand your mission before you start the journey. That way it is easy to build a list of headings on which and when to write.

Start with a dozen ideas of interesting elements and then break them down into subtitles.
This is an easy way to establish a writing pattern.

Woodcutting axes	Get the job done right
Best brands	10 brands you might know
Favourite handles	Oak, Chickory or metal
Sharpening	Traditional method v new

This is used as an example of headline building for a month of newsletters.
The target audience of course but an easy series to write a few words about.

These are very different elements and can be part of a segregated list.

I have a total list broken down into a variety of groups.

A new arrival wanting information on a product will go into an autoresponder. An introduction and product description agitation and close.
When they come out the other end they will go to a newsletter group.
You will never know when a buyer is ready, in fact, the buyer rarely knows until an event creates an urge. It may be a week, month or year so you need to stay in front of them with consistency.

I needed something from my list so I chose a small list and sent an email.
My goal was to get 5 people to write a review on my Google My business posting.

I have achieved seven recommendations within an hour so my mail was a success.
Today the same list, along with 10,000 others, will get an email on the Coronavirus.

Becoming a Constant Contact partner.

After many years, in fact, over a decade of email marketing, Constant Contact invited me to be a partner. An offer that I accepted without thought due to a long history with them.
I accept an obligation to help small businesses develop successful marketing practice and in fact provide a support service for all my referrals

Newsletters and emails need to work and there is a right way and a wrong way to get the sales working.

We are not here for fun, we want a return on our investment and we want it quickly.

This will vary between businesses however many things remain consistent.

Consistency

The most important issue is consistency and the occasional approach will not gain traction. Make a plan and work the plan the easy way.

Constant Contact includes a great schedule tool so prewriting is possible. This is great if someone else is scribing the material for you.

Link to Social media

As a business. you need at least seven customer touches before people buy. Known as the Rule of Seven, it is a well-established principle that has held true over the life of marketing.

Linking your social channels with your newsletter gives you greater touch.

Don't treat your newsletter as a sales tool.

Many of you will fall into this trap wanting to gain the best results possible for your effort. However, what will happen is the customer burn out. They will get sick of constant harassment and quickly opt-out of the list. Keep it fun and light and importantly top of mind.

Always have a call to action

I understand this goes against not selling but when the fire is hot give them somewhere to strike. This could be a button, a link or any way to guide a keen player to a closing situation

Branding

Keep your brand consistent and use your logo or layout the same every time.
You want people to notice you and recognise your work instantly.
Colour is included here for the same every week. At Constant Contact, you save your template and just type your words to update thus saving a lot of time

Page length

Most people will tell you to keep it short but some of the ones I like best are very long. I understand that what you are writing is what counts, however, the main thing is consistency

Linking

If they want more info, take them on a journey. When you grab the real interest point readers want to be filled with knowledge. You will see it when they say “that looks interesting” and the thirst for knowledge will drive them to a sales page, hook, line and sinker.

Email marketing by affiliate.

Pictures:

Make it pretty. People read pictures to find interesting topics. They scan through your page waiting for something to jump out and grab their interest.
Pictures must be relevant to the subject and legally obtained but use them liberally throughout the document.

Heading

Get their attention early. This short paragraph can change your open rate by 80%.

At the start of a newsletter, you put in a call to action and who the newsletter is from.

I scan my emails instantly deleting rubbish so you really need to stand out by name and interest. Readers are waiting for your information and want to know immediately what it is about so grabbing a really snappy header is necessary.

Keep it short and keep it sweet

Short sentences, short paragraphs and no big words are the writers' dictum.

You are telling a story and maintaining attention so keep it snappy and keep them reading.

The average reader has attention deficit syndrome so give them something to focus on.

Rambling long diatribes simply won't cut it.

Don't sweat rejection

You are going to get opt-outs, it is a fact of life. The old saying that you can't please everybody all the time remains true.
Opt-outs are good for you as they are part of a list cleaning process that you will regularly undertake. Some people will never open an email no matter what. They scan for explicit business and delete the rest.

At Constant Contact, there is a block that asks the readers to share the article thus you pick up a new subscriber email address and add it to your base, an ideal way to grow your subscribers.

Conclusion

Be under no illusion newsletters are the cheapest and most effective marketing approach available today.
The cost is small, it can easily be outsourced, they are trackable in many ways and customers like them.
You may not get an instant rush of sales but over time you will see a trend of new opportunities arising from your mail.

Your audience is kept top of mind, informed and entertained over a long period of time.
I market a monthly billed product and about a sale, a year pays the piper, everything over that is a bonus. In the last few months, I have had several old customers come back because they could understand what they were missing. this is pure gold. If you want to try this for free it can be arranged at Constant Contact and you get my support guarantee as a bonus.