(excerpt from 5-Minute Marketing) by Penny Sansevieri
Newsletters seem very 1990s, don’t they? They don’t have the flash of “new media” or the shimmer of a shiny new social media site just waiting to be discovered. What they do have, however, is visibility. In some cases, newsletters have more visibility than you’re getting on all of your social media sites combined.
I speak at a lot of writers events. In the last year, the buzz has really increased around the need for a newsletter. Why? Well, Facebook’s new algorithm change certainly plays into it. But also, with everyone on sites like Pinterest, LinkedIn, and Twitter, it’s really hard to get your audience’s attention.
If used correctly, newsletters can be a great way to get your message out there, offer helpful advice, keep people in your marketing funnel, or simply remind them of who you are. Our newsletter has been a solid way to stay in front of our audience, educate them about their market, and remind them about what we do as a company. Candidly, I would consider getting rid of a lot of things, but never our newsletter. It’s often the single biggest business driver to our company. It’s not easy; it requires work, but the rewards are tremendous.
How to Make Your Newsletter Work for You: Good Newsletters…
Don’t have to be long:
Some authors use their newsletters to check in with their audience with a brief (500-word) update. Your market will dictate how long or short your newsletter should be.
Are consistent, professional, and on point:
If I see sloppy copy or newsletters that haven’t been edited, am I really going to buy from someone who doesn’t have the time to edit their newsletter or make it look nice? I also see newsletters that veer off topic so much that I instantly unsubscribe.
Know your audience:
Whether it’s a newsletter, a blog post, or a tweet, ask yourself, “Who cares?” If you can identify the person as your reader and the content as important enough to get the reader to care, then you have a good topic. Remember, it’s not about you. In fact, when it comes to creating great content and newsletters that rock, you don’t matter at all. Speak to your readers’ pain, their needs, and their hot buttons. Most importantly, know exactly who they are before you start cranking out newsletter copy.
Address one person:
I don’t know about you, but writing “hello everyone” seems very impersonal and kind of spammy. Personalize your email. Remember, not everyone enters their name into your email list when they sign up. If they don’t, you want to avoid emails addressed to a specific person, because they look a bit odd to the recipient.
Give them someone to write to:
When it comes to the “from” line in your email, make sure it has your name, not your company name or book title. Make sure your readers know who to contact and invite them to share their opinions, feedback, or ideas for future newsletters.
Appeal to the “skimmers:”
Most people skim email these days, so appeal to them. Use short paragraphs, bullet points, and strong headlines. That way your reader can glance through the newsletter without having to sift through endless copy to get to the heart of the message.
Have a great subject line:
This is probably the most important part of any newsletter. It needs to grab the reader’s attention. If you know what your audience wants, the subject line shouldn’t be hard. Again, it must speak to the needs of your reader. Of all the things going on in their lives, as it relates to whatever you are selling, what’s their biggest need right now? Answer that and you have a perfect subject line.
Don’t have a newsletter? Here are some quick ways to start one and gain followers:
Make sure your newsletter sign-up is on the home page and every page of your website. Typically, the left-hand side is preferred since it’s considered the “power side” of your website.
Give a great offer to get folks to sign up. Keep your readers in mind and offer something they want. If you’re a fiction author, you can give exclusive content from your book, a gift card (hold a monthly drawing for one gift card), or some other valuable content your readers want.
Have a mail system to manage your newsletter, like MailChimp or Constant Contact. Both are free for up to 1,000 subscribers, so you can test before you enroll in a paid service.
Create an auto-responder. An auto-responder is a great way to stay in touch with your readers/consumers and remind them of who you are. An auto-responder might go out weekly or monthly, or it might just be a one-time “gift” you send readers for signing up. Our auto-responder is our 52 Ways to Sell More Books, which is separated into 52 segments and delivered twice monthly into our readers’ inboxes.
Other newsletters:
It’s important to know what other folks are doing with their newsletters. This will help you learn what you like, what you don’t like, and what might work for your market. Also, you want to really understand your space and other experts who share your arena.
Colors vs. text:
I’m still a big fan of text-based newsletters. I know folks will say color works best, but I still think color newsletters can be harder to read on phones and often wind up in spam filters. A lot of people read your newsletter on their iPad or phone, so keep it simple.
Frequency and consistency:
How often you deliver your newsletter will generally depend on your consumer, but a good rule of thumb is once a month at a minimum and once a week at a maximum. I do not recommend sending too many announcements and newsletters; it’s a lot of content to create, so keep that in mind. If you build a loyal following, you can often create special blasts with more frequency and not lose readers. But remember we’re all inundated with emails. Many times, less is more. Be consistent. Pick a day and time that works for you and always deliver on that date and time.
Promote or not?
I’m not a fan of a newsletter that’s all heavy promotion. You know the ones I mean. They scream, “Look how fabulous I am,” and they contain a lot of sales copy and special offers. Ideally you want to strike a balance. Clearly you send the newsletter to promote yourself and you want your readers to know what you do; what your message, book, or product is; and how they can get it. You can, and should, talk about this in every issue, but a healthy balance is 95% information and 5% sales. You’ll build customer loyalty much faster this way.
Having a solid base and a consistent way to communicate with your audience can really help to optimize and increase your bottom line. A newsletter might seem like a lot of work, but in the end if it’s done right, it will pay off in some pretty amazing ways.
Penny Sansevieri, CEO and founder of Author Marketing Experts, Inc. (AME) and Adjunct Professor at NYU, is a best-selling author and internationally recognized book-marketing and media-relations expert. Her company is one of the leaders in the publishing industry and has developed some of the most cutting-edge book-marketing campaigns.