An e-zine, also known as an e-newsletter, is a sales tool that does not sell. It's a means to let your customers or prospects learn more about you, your product, or services. An e-zine is used to establish your brand; to develop trust and build relationships. A well-crafted newsletter provides value to the reader and engages them by providing useful information and educating them. It builds a bond, a trust that when your clients or prospects need what your company offers, they will know who to turn to. It establishes you as a leader in your field by sharing ideas and providing useful information. The answer would be — Yes, you need one.
In these times of unpredictability, business owners need to stay in touch with their customers more than before. Your customers need to know that you are there for them and ready to serve their needs. It does not matter if the entire staff is back in the office or working remotely, what’s important to you, and to them, is that you are open for business. And the best and cost-effective way to communicate that you are open for business is by email; an e-newsletter. Having a well-thought out and executed e-zine lets your customers know that you are conducting business as usual. It helps to strengthen the relationship with your customers.
Email marketing is a cost effective way to communicate with your customers. It has an open rate of 17.8% across all industries (Campaign Monitor) with a $40 ROI for every dollar spent (Smart Insights). It only makes sense that email marketing and in particular the e-newsletter form part of your marketing strategy for continuance and growth.
First Things First, You Need to be Compliant
Before we look at the mechanics of a good newsletter, you first need to determine what is the goal for the newsletter. Is the goal of your business reflected in the content of your newsletter? Are you looking to generate leads, drive traffic to your site, collect more email contacts, or to strengthen your connection with your customers.
Whatever the goal for your e-newsletter is, it needs to be legally compliant and must include in the newsletter template the following — CAN-SPAM requires that you have a footer in your email with your address and an easy way to unsubscribe from your emails if they don’t want to receive them anymore. And have GDPR a similar but more comprehensive privacy law that passed in Europe in 2018, requiring (among other things) that email marketers only send newsletters to those people who have manually opted to receive them. In other words, wherever on your website you collect email subscribers, you cannot automatically check the “opt-in” box for them if these recipients live in Europe. They must deliberately check this box themselves. (HubSpot)
The Makings of an E-newsletter
Your recipients opted-in to receive emails from you — great. They have expressed an interest in hearing from you — even better. The look and readability of your e-newsletter is very important. Remember, it is an extension of your brand and you will need to give a lot of thought to the design and content.
Eight Points to Keep in Mind
Decide on a layout that looks clean and is easy to read. The design needs to be mobile friendly too. It should be easy for your subscribers to read and click on links embedded in the text and graphics.
Provide content that’s informative. The goal for your newsletter and your line of business will determine the content. Keep the content short, informative, and engaging. Also provide links to encourage click-throughs to your website, blog, or to a call-to-action.
Include images to enhance your content. But don’t clutter the design.
Pay special attention to your subject line. It is the key that will open the door to your e-newsletter. It needs to relate to the content and entice the subscriber to open it.
Once the content has been written, you have a click-worthy subject line, and the images are in place, it’s time to proofread your newsletter. You will need to go through your content looking for misspellings, grammar and punctuation faux pas. Finding mistakes in your newsletter after it is sent can lead your subscribers to think you are careless; that your company is not reliable. It can raise doubts about how your company operates.
Personalize the newsletter every chance you can. By addressing your subscriber by name in the newsletter and by tailoring the information to their interests.
Keep in touch on a regular basis. They expect to hear from you and will want to read what you have to say. Each time that you send an e-newsletter, make sure you are adding value to their day.
If you are looking to grow your mailing list, you can market your e-zine as a stand-alone piece. By marketing it as an informative vehicle, you are positioning your brand as the expert in your field.
Email is Not Going Away
Email has been around since the internet began, it’s not going away any time soon. It is expected that by 2022 it will increase to over 347.3 billion daily emails (Statita). The potential to reach your target market, communicate with them and increase your profit margins are endless with a strong, well-executed email marketing campaign that includes an e-newsletter tailored to their interests. Business owners who know the importance of an informative e-zine and the potential it has to add to the bottom-line place email marketing at the core of their company’s marketing strategy.
Open the lines of communication with your customers and enter into a conversation with them through your e-newsletter.
If you would like to work with a professional copywriter, one whose background is in sales and marketing, contact me at info@miamiwritingservices.com for a complimentary consultation.
