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Writing an Effective Email newsletters

Overview

Email newsletters are an effective internal communication tool that allows brands to market their products, services, and relevant information directly to their target audience. They help businesses and organizations to engage and inform customers, increase a brand's image, showcase industry expertise, gain top of mind awareness, and convert sales. Each year the amount of money spent on email marketing increases by 10%. It’s also been discovered that 90% of consumers stated that they prefer to receive updates from an e-newsletter. This demonstrates how prominent e-newsletters have become a communication tool in recent years.

Where to Start

E-newsletters often vary in style, size, and frequency but they should always provide a specific type of content to a specific target audience. The goal during this stage is to determine the style and content of your e-newsletter that will best educate your audience and inspire action. Consider these questions before planning your e-newsletter. What is my organization's content? Who is my audience? Is this content valuable and engaging to the audience?

 

Common Styles

Organization e-newsletters are intended to inform the

target audience by providing updates or announcements,

feature stories, tips, and industry news. This style is generally

used by nonprofits, ministries, schools etc.

 

Organization e-newsletter: Red Cross

 

Blog Style e-newsletters are intended to educate the target

audience with relevant industry news, and drive traffic to your

website. This style is normally used by larger corporations,

small businesses, news outlets etc.

 

Consumer e-Newsletters are intended to build relationships with customers or subscribers by informing them of new product launches, tips for using their services, and industry news. This style is generally used by retail businesses, sole proprietors, entrepreneurs etc.

 

                      Blog Style E-newsletter: CNN “5 Things”                                              Consumer E-newsletter: Apple Product Launch

 

 Tips For Planning

 

Content: In an effective e-newsletter, it’s important to balance your content and include more information than promotion. Keep in mind that the text should be concise. And always include a call to action that is big enough to tap with your finger. Design: The ideal layout is one with a simple and easy flow of information. Avoid overcrowding the page. Your design should also be visually appealing and tie into your brand’s graphic identity. Always include a header, let your logo decide the color scheme, use standard fonts, organize with subheaders, and use visual images or graphics. Be sure to use a “mobile responsive” email template and test that it works before sending. If you are unsure of how to do this, the following websites offer free and paid services: https://mailchimp.com/ ,https://www.constantcontact.com/, https://www.sendinblue.com/

 

Frequency: Determine if you will distribute weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or quarterly. Set this expectation from the start and distribute consistently. Research has found that the highest click-to-open rates occur early in the work week (Monday or Tuesday) from 10 AM to 1 PM.

 

Best Practices

 

Effective e-newsletters must have a clear and enticing subject line. Inform your subscribers of what they should expect to read and compel them to open the email in roughly 4-7 words. Also, do not waste the preheader. Take advantage of this prime location and use the first sentence of your email to capture the reader’s attention. A few ways to enhance this are—personalizing emails (use their name) or including a relevant location.

 

Effective Example

 

 

 

 

 

In-effective Example

 

 

It’s also effective to offer benefits or exclusive offers. This motivates your subscribers to open and interact with your e-newsletter as well as increasing their interest towards future emails from your brand. 19% of consumers read every e-newsletter received to view any “potential offers”. Adding links to your social media and website can result in gaining more subscribers and an increase in brand awareness. Lastly, always include an unsubscribe button that is a simple one-click option. This is required by law.

 

 

 

Uber Eats Consumer E-newsletter

● Exclusive offer (promo code)

● Call to action (order now button)

● Unsubscribe button

● Social/Website links

 

 

 

 

Track, Test, and Optimize

In order to deliver an effective e-newsletter, it’s important to monitor and record your email metrics to assess target audience preferences. For instance, a short and simple subject line might be more effective than a detailed one. Try changing components such as preheaders, call to action, use of images/video, design/layout, and email frequency (day and time the email is sent). It is common and effective to adapt most components of your e-newsletter until your email open rates and click-through rates have reached optimization.

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