What Makes a Good Newsletter

by | May 13, 2021 | Connecting with Your Customers

What Makes a Good Newsletter?

Savvy business owners want to know what makes a good newsletter. The answer is simple: one that connects with your audience. Easy, right? Yes… in theory. In practice, it gets a little tricky. This post goes over a few tips to create a newsletter that connects well.

How to Engage My Audience

Here are two valuable ways to engage your newsletter audience:

number 2

Speak Their Language

I don’t mean their actual language. I mean communicate the same way they do. Use their slang. Adopt their grammar. That makes it easier for them to understand and relate with you.
A lightbulb for the tip from Compelling Ventures on Website Design Reading your customer’s testimonials is a great way to understand their language.
number 2

Make It Worth Their Time

Time is finite. So make sure that your customers are getting something back when they give you their time. I don’t necessarily mean “give them a free deal every time you send something” — but, they do need to walk away feeling richer. That could be the happy glow they have after reading a funny line or two. That could be the insight they’ve gained from your tips and tricks. Whatever it is, make sure it’s valuable to them. Don’t know exactly what they want? Ask ‘em! Everyone has a list of wants. Odds are good that your audience will be happy to tell you exactly how you can help them.
A lightbulb for the tip from Compelling Ventures on Website Design Survey Monkey lets you send free surveys out to folks. But, sometimes a direct email or a social media post works best.

The Nuts and Bolts: How to Design Newsletter

The reality is that there are two major components in design: Details and Testing.

Mind the details!

There are 4 details that can be easy to overlook.

 

    1. Your subject line. This should leave a question in your audience’s mind or be eye-catching in and of itself.
    1. TYOPs! Don’t do what I just did. Use Grammarly or one of the many spell checker tools to make sure you aren’t sending a newsletter out with a typo.
    1. Format for mobile. Think about the last time you read through a newsletter you liked. Was it on your computer? I’d bet not. You were probably like me and curled up on the couch, cellphone in hand. Start designing for a smaller screen.
    1. Timing. Make sure your email doesn’t get lost in the shuffle of a thousand other messages by sending it when it will pop into the top of your audience’s inbox. Many CRMs (like MailChimp) can help you figure out this timing.

test, Test, TEST!

This is so important I said it 3 times. Keep playing with different formats, styles, words, pictures. Adjust everything until you find a piece that works… then go from there.

Many CRMs will give you the option for A/B testing. Do it! You can get so much great info from these.

So! What Makes a Good Newsletter?

Following these tips will help you. Ultimately, it’s important to remember that your audience chose to get your newsletter. They want to hear from you.

So be real with them. Open up honestly. Vulnerability and authenticity are words that get thrown around a lot… but, find your truth in those words and offer it to your audience.

People respond to that.

And remember! Even if they don’t open it every day, there is value in the fact that your name appears in their inbox on a regular basis. It reinforces your brand and keeps you fresh in their memory.

When you’ve tried out some of these tips — I’d love to hear about it! Please drop me a line.

Ari Scheller

Ari Scheller

CEO/Founder/Designer

An avid advocate (say that three times fast!) for the sustainable evolution of the travel industry. Ari believes that travel has the power to transform lives. Supporting like-minded businesses is at the heart of everything Ari does.

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