Newsletters, sent periodically by email to subscribers, have proved to be the email marketing campaign most used by companies (over 65% according to Dolist).
Updating clients about the company’s latest news, maintaining regular contact with them to build loyalty, increasing traffic on your site by encouraging subscribers to visit it… there are many reasons to send newsletters. However, certain rules must be obeyed…
3 recommendations for those new to writing newsletters
1.Be informative
Emailing is perceived mainly as a channel of information.
Allow your clients to benefit from practical advice about your area of activity. Present the main factors that contribute to success in your sector, advice on how to obtain clients… You will then take on the role of an expert. A newsletter must not be used solely for commercial purposes.
2.Focus on relationships
Emailing also has great potential for building relationships. It’s the ideal place for letting customers know about your good deals: promote events, send them invitations. Why not take advantage of the newsletter to submit a survey to increase customer satisfaction?
3.Use it as a marketing tool for promoting your products
The email channel is still frequently used as a sales tool. Your newsletter should be a means of promoting your products. Use it to present new products, give previews and inform your clients of promotional offers…
Use accessible vocabulary
The vocabulary should be simple and easy to understand – get to the point! Create a friendly and intimate atmosphere with your subscribers. For example, use expressions such as “Dear Subscribers” at the start of your newsletter. At the end, say you’ll speak to them in the next publication.
How many to send
First of all, ensure that you send your newsletter regularly. It is necessary that your clients know when the newsletter is coming out and don’t forget about you. You can send a newsletter every month, every two weeks or even every week. The most important thing is the content of the newsletter, which must be of a high quality. The main reason for unsubscribing from newsletters in the USA is subject matter which is irrelevant to the interests of subscribers (46% of the total amount of subscription cancellations, CMO Council).
Be careful, however, not to “inundate” your clients with too many newsletters, as this could be counterproductive. Indeed, according to the 2010 email marketing attitude study by SNCD (French Association of Direct Advertising), receiving too many newsletters is the main reason for the French unsubscribing and the second reason for Americans unsubscribing.
Link to unsubscribe
Legally, you must offer a link so that subscribers can unsubscribe. Besides the legal aspect, this will show your professionalism and reassure your clients, who will then be more inclined to give you their email addresses.
Take care with content
You find out what interests your clients by looking at which articles have been clicked most often in your newsletter.
Your partners work in the same sector as you and therefore possess articles and content that can be used in your newsletter. Contact them! In exchange, you can talk about their companies in your newsletter. In turn, they will talk about you in their newsletters. It’s a good way of increasing your visibility.
Take time to write the texts introducing your articles so that clients want to continue to read your newsletter. Show the advantages the clients will gain by reading the content.
The titles of your articles must attract the attention of your subscribers – formulate them in such a way as to encourage your clients to find out more. Write the most fascinating and innovative idea in your title to create interest.
Layout
Your clients do not necessarily have the time to read your entire newsletter. Create a list of contents so that they can select the articles that interest them.
Links to your store
The newsletter has turned out to be an effective way of creating traffic on your site. At the end of each introduction to an article, put a link to your site where the client can read the full article.