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Starting an email newsletter: practical tips to help you to avoid common pitfalls
Just Add Content (JAC) is an email newsletter distribution service provided by Appletree that creates customised newsletter templates with a range of additional writing services, and businesses can have JAC’s dedicated newsletter writers produce monthly newsletter content.
In part two of our interview with founder Chantal Cornelius, we asked what advice she gives to businesses planning to start a newsletter, and some practical tips to help you to avoid common pitfalls.
Jonathan Fink (Momentum): What advice would you give to businesses considering launching a newsletter?
Chantal Cornelius (Appletree): It’s one of the most cost-effective means of keeping in touch with prospective clients and current customers, and so many businesses are missing out. With a newsletter a company can reach thousands of people each month. It can’t call thousands of people a month by telephone without huge expense.
It does depend on the business though: if the company sells products, newsletters may not be as effective for them, but if they provide advice, consultancy, training or technical help it’s a great way to keep in touch with current clients and prospects, keeping them informed and educated about how to use the company’s service.
Jonathan Fink (Momentum): What do you consider to be the most important benefit of a regular newsletter?
Chantal Cornelius (Appletree): Newsletters keep you in the mind of customers or prospects who may not need you right now. But if you don’t keep in contact, they forget about you. This applies to both clients and prospects; prospects may take time to convert into clients, and keeping in touch with clients is always a good way to remind them of what you do, and inform them of any other services that they may want.
Jonathan Fink (Momentum): What tends to be the biggest obstacle for a business when they are starting newsletters?
Chantal Cornelius (Appletree): It’s always the content production. Most email newsletter services only do the technical side, but that isn’t the block that prevents the newsletter from going out to people.
Jonathan Fink (Momentum): There seems to be a lot of debate about how regular a newsletter should be. What’s your opinion on this?
Chantal Cornelius (Appletree): At least monthly, and no more than 1000 words. 700-800 words is even better. If a company sends out a newsletter on a fortnightly basis it needs to be kept very short, for example with three top tips. Any more than that and it’s bombarding the recipients with too much information and becoming invasive. Some people want to send out once a day, but that is annoying, most recipients don’t have the time to read a daily newsletter and will unsubscribe rather than feel pressured to keep up.
Jonathan Fink (Momentum): What kinds of expectations do people have when they decide to start up a newsletter, and are these appropriate?
Chantal Cornelius (Appletree): Most people start using our service because they want a way to keep in touch with clients and prospects, and this is a good expectation.
Something that people need to think about in advance is how they are going to measure success. If the mailing list is growing and the phone is ringing more often and they’re feeling less pressure to keep in touch, I see that as a great response.
If a business is hosting an event and wants to get lots of bookings through the newsletter, this is an unrealistic expectation; a newsletter alone is not enough. Usually the numbers are inappropriate; they want 12 places filled by one newsletter. One newsletter does not constitute enough marketing; the newsletter has got to be part of a marketing mix.
Jonathan Fink (Momentum): What are the three most important things that should be in a newsletter?
Chantal Cornelius (Appletree): The first is a personalised opening like “Dear John” for example. A newsletter needs to have an introduction that looks like it’s coming from a real person, with a personal touch
The second is that it has to contain something really useful – something that the recipient can read, take away and use or an article to get people thinking, like “Why spend money on Christmas cards?” ‘How to’ articles go down really well, such as “how to choose a web developer”.
The third is extra resources; if you can point the reader to external resources that are linked to what you’re writing about, they provide something that saves interested readers time, and shows that you aren’t afraid to offer advice. I advise clients to never be afraid to point people to competitors; it effectively says “we’re really good at what we do, so are these guys, take your pick!” They usually choose you as the one who gave them the information, and appreciate that you’re open. It develops loyalty.
I should add that if you put in a link that points to another site, make sure it opens in new window so people can return to your newsletter afterwards.
Jonathan Fink (Momentum): Are there any things that absolutely should not be put in a newsletter?
Chantal Cornelius (Appletree): Any of the spam filter words I mentioned before!
It goes without saying that content should always be positive. There are a few things that people often put in newsletters that are entirely inappropriate. What you did at the weekend, or how many puppies your dog has had. That’s too personal! That’s what a blog is for. Keep your newsletters focused on business. I’m not saying there should be nothing personal; the best newsletters have some personality so the readers get to know you, but they don’t need it on a monthly basis. No reference to the weather too, that immediately puts it out of date.
In part three of the interview, Chantal explains why the strategy behind newsletters is so important.