Email is still the tried and true purveyor of digital communication. Curating an email list is one of the most important assets a business can have. Think about it, an email list consists of visitors, clients, customers, who are interested in what you are sharing. You share your story, your brand, business updates, and yes your products and services. They believe in you, who you are, and what you are all about. It’s where you can turn prospective clients into customers, and customers into fans.
Businesses market and share information to their readers usually in the form of the ubiquitous newsletter. Newsletters have been around for centuries. In the 1980’s with the advent of personal computing and desktop publishing tools it became affordable to create great looking newsletters full of vital content for customers. Another decade later newsletters were online with email subscriptions. Email management systems like AWeber, Constant Contact and Mailchimp have come along to make it even easier to create newsletters. Even with the easy availability to email management and design tools most email newsletters need some TLC. Here are a few tips to give a little life to the sometimes drab looking email newsletter.
5 tips for creating rockin’ newsletters:
1. Content
The newsletter content should be useful and relevant for the reader. Spend some time cultivating unique content that the reader wouldn’t have already found with a simple search. If you do share a news story inform your readers your opinion on the story and why it is important. Readers will spend just a few seconds scanning the newsletter to see if the content is interesting and more than a quick scan. Yes you can share your products and services in your newsletter but I recommend that it not be more than 20% of your content.
Be consistent with delivery time and date of your newsletter. Consistency builds trust with your readers.
2. Beware of Copy and Paste
Copying and Pasting from Word, emails, or other newsletters bloats the HTML (the behind the scenes code) which causes formatting issues. Copy and paste your text into NotePad or WordPad type editor and then paste into your newsletter. This will strip off all of the formatting. Once in the newsletter you can format to fit your brand and style.
3. Color scheme – coordinate the colors
Your newsletter is an extension of your brand and as such your brand’s color scheme needs to be effectively used in your newsletter. I have seen many a newsletter with blackground and blue text. The black and blue was the brand’s color but it was completely unreadable. Show your colors, but not at the expense of losing the content.
4. Content that goes on forever
Try to keep your newsletter to 2 or 3 flicks of the finger (mobile) or scroll wheel (desktop). Having too much content can be overwhelming for the recipient. I have seen quarterly newsletters that just on and on, with full articles and large images. Share introductory paragraphs with thumbnail images and a link to your website where your client can read the article in its entirety. Less is more.
5. Mobile friendly Design and Readability
A BlueHornet study found that 75.4% of US email users said a poorly designed email negatively affected their perception of a brand. It all starts with whom the newsletter is from. The To field should have a person or a business that is recognizable to the reader. The subject line should convey a reason someone should open the email. The font style should be consistent. Break up the text with images, bulleted items and bold headlines.
Over the last few years most people access their emails through mobile devices. Statistics show that nearly half (43%) of emails are opened on a mobile device and by 2017 it is predicted that 78% of email users in the United States will access emails via a mobile device. So while having a great design using a template provided by one of the email management systems is good, I recommend you start using a one column simplistic approach. The one column design allows the newsletter to be viewed easier through a mobile device. Also make it responsive – in that the newsletter will expand if viewed in various size device screen sizes. For instance the newsletter will expand if viewed on a tablet and contact if viewed on a smartphone.
One last tip
Make your content shareable on social media. Most email management systems include social icon options where your readers can share your content.
So let’s get creating fabulous useful, mobile friendly newsletters!
