Let’s keep this simple, just like your email newsletter should be.
Curate an email list and bring the right eyes to your content. Give people content access in exchange for their email. Think checklists, special guides, spreadsheets or templates. Or, add a pop-up form on your website. You could also host a webinar. This is one of the most popular ways of enticing people to share their information.
Also, establish your goals so you don’t waste time. Are you looking for new leads? to retain customers? or send people at a particular point in the purchasing journey to your salespeople? Lastly, set clear expectations for your newsletter. Include who is emailing, what will be sent, and how often in the sign-up page. This prevents spam flags and unsubscribes.
Pick short creative subject lines.
Choose one theme.
Establish a primary CTA (call to action).
Keep the whitespace!
Most email marketers will tell you keep the content 90% educational and 10% promotional. Leave the boring product updates and shameless self-promotion for press releases and obligatory blog posts. A clear theme is also crucial. For example, we send out a Top Stories newsletter showcasing standout publications Stories on social.
A newsletter will naturally have multiple CTA’s. However, not all are the same. Make your primary CTA obvious. The others are “if you have time” options. Don’t overwhelm people–whitespace is your friend especially in mobile. You want people clicking on their intended link. Also, make unsubscribe easy. The days of trapping people into your email list is over. Your transparency is greatly appreciated by customers.
Are people clicking? What do they click on? Where are people opting out? If you are keeping your content exclusive, and not blindly emailing people you should find patterns. Email services like Iterable, MailChimp, and YesWare are all options for designing, implementing, and tracking your publication’s newsletter.
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How to Create an Email Newsletter People Actually Read