Easy Steps To Craft Powerful Email Newsletters (Beginners)
The importance of crafting powerful email newsletters cannot be overstated. Companies send email newsletters to their subscribers to keep them up to date on their newest news, activities, products, or service upgrades.
One of the most distinguishing features of an email newsletter is that it is not intended to produce immediate purchases. Instead, it’s primary goal is to educate individuals about your business, warm them up, and improve the contact base’s quality.
Neil Patel says “Email marketing is still ranked as the most effective marketing channel, beating out social media, SEO, and affiliate marketing.Data shows that most people are on email—and the number increases every year”.
As per research, 81 percent of B2B marketers admit that email newsletters are the most popular method of content marketing.
Hence it’s safe to say that your content marketing approach can be made or broken by newsletters. In fact, email newsletters could help your company in a variety of ways if done correctly.
Crucial Advantage Of Newsletters
A newsletter provides a steady stream of traffic.
The statistics are staggeringly huge in favor of newsletter marketing.
Guess why?
Because 59 percent of millennials check their email on their phone, while 67 percent of Generation Z scans their inbox on their phone.
And here’s what we’re usually unaware of.
Email newsletters can be jam-packed with content that your subscribers will find interesting and useful.
Hence, instead of expecting your subscribers to reach out to you, you can utilize emails to attract their attention to your site.
The trick is simple.
Increase traffic to your website or blog by providing value. Generate interesting content. Create more personalised content, and connect with your audience frequently.
More importantly, you must know your ropes before you barge in. That’s one reason why its good to know some easy tactics of email marketing.
Email Newsletter And Savings
Everybody who’s out to make money must also cut their losses. Right?
Well, this is how email newsletters help save a lot.
In terms of investment, email software is available in a wide range of prices, from free to rather expensive.
As I stated earlier, the return on investment (ROI) outperforms every other marketing channel. This implies that you are already saving money in the long run.
So here’s what you can’t afford to miss.
Email newsletters have the power to increase brand retention, which is an important part of brand loyalty.
How?
For example, you could create a “how-to” series of newsletters around your product.
This would help users better understand your product and how to use it.
And there’s more.
You could also redirect customers to your blog to answer their queries about your company. Or you could give special discounts.
You can even enhance your conversion rates by personalizing email newsletters. This last bit actually increases your email ROI.
Effectiveness Of Newsletters: Measureable?
Every marketing strategy should include criteria that allow you to measure its effectiveness.
And that’s exactly how email newsletters help. You can measure many things through them.
With email newsletters, you can easily track:-
▪Open rates
▪Click rates
▪Unsubscribe rates, and other metrics
And why are these factors important?
These are crucial indicators that indicate how well your newsletters are functioning. Most importantly, this info helps you improve your conversion rates.
So if you have a high unsubscribe rate, here’s the one thing you just need to do.
That is to ensure your newsletters aren’t spammy or irrelevant to your subscribers.
Finally.
You can even create customized and hyper-targeted campaigns.
This is done by using demographic or psychographic data. According to research, segmented and targeted advertisements can increase revenue by up to 760 percent.
Advantage of Email Newsletters Over Third-Party Influences
This may be a lesser-known fact, but third parties can adversely impact your marketing efforts.
Let me explain that a bit.
The problem with marketing on platforms like Facebook and Twitter is that they are owned and controlled by third parties.
This places online marketers at the whims of these platform changes.
For example, these platforms frequently release unannounced algorithm or policy changes. And sometimes suddenly, because of these changes, your entire campaign can get derailed.
Email, on the other hand, is not owned or controlled by any single business platform. It doesn’t depend on any external medium like Facebook or Twitter.
Rather, it’s an open communication mechanism and has a variety of features that easily allow you to send and receive email.
So without the use of third parties, an email newsletter builds a direct link between you and your readers.
Social platforms like Facebook and Twitter don’t interfere with emails because of the range of other organizations involved in email marketing. They simply cannot make a sweeping adverse impact on your campaigns.
And that’s what defines your advantage.
So you only need to spend sincere effort and time expanding your subscriber list. And soon, as a result, you’re able to utilize your list without fear of someone limiting its utility.
Email Newsletters And Other Marketing Channels.
This goes without saying; when you have newsletters, it’s a lot easier to promote your brand.
You can increase your followers on these channels by including your blog links, and social media links in the newsletter.You can even:-
1. Include icons for easy sharing in your emails.
2. Organize a media platforms contest and promote it via email and your blog.
3. Target specific audiences who are really interested in what you have to offer on social media.
4. Encourage your social media contacts to join your email list.
5. Offer unique discounts or organize giveaways on social media. Just make sure your newsletter subscribers are up to date.
Email Newsletters And Personal Touch
With email newsletters, you can adjust according to each consumer segment.
You can study their preferences, and modify content to meet their needs. But for that, you must first know your audience well for good email marketing.
This increases the likelihood of your newsletters being received well, and read.
For example, through email, you can approach those clients who have abandoned their carts in previous transactions. You can offer them discounts, and once again persuade them to complete the transaction.
And this is really important. Guess why?
Because this way you show your clients that you care. And you develop long-term relationships by really striving to satisfy your clients’ expectations.
Structure Of An Email Newsletter
It’s critical to give your newsletter a structure if you want it to succeed.
That’s why you’d notice that most emails have a set format.
There’s a predictable layout and dimension to the newsletter. That way subscribers know what to anticipate.
But there’s a catch.
You can easily fall into the “aggressive salesman trap“.
So instead of sounding like a pushy salesperson, an email newsletter should feel like an update from an interesting, helpful friend.
Email has an ability many channels don’t: creating valuable, personal touches – at scale.”
David Newman
That isn’t to claim that these newsletters are just for keeping in touch.
Rather, they can be used to entice clients to take some action. Simple actions like purchasing something, or reading your most recent blog post are good enough.
So here are some characteristics of a good newsletter structure.
Newsletter Aspect And Measurements
Newsletters can be either short or long. Never both.
As a result, you must decide the size and dimensions of your newsletter.
Usually, a set width eliminates horizontal scrolling and provides a smoother experience.
So I recommend that you start your email formatting with a set width, rather than a fluid/liquid style. If you’re not sure what the distinction is, this article should help.
A stable dimension will also prevent those annoying horizontal scroll bars from appearing (if you don’t use the entire screen width).
So here’s the simple solution.
Format your email to be roughly 550 to 600 pixels wide.
And then, place the most crucial information in the top 300 to 500 pixels.
In most desktop email applications, this is the size of an average “preview pane.”
Theme Of The Newsletter
The code that defines the structure and content of an email is known as an email theme. It allows you to include additional features like images and links in your emails.
This also allows you to better style the email to reflect your company’s or personal design.
I think its distinguishing feature is its reusability.
So what kind of theme should you settle for?
I would say, select a standardized theme.
And see that it suits your company’s branding and color scheme.
The main thing to remember is that it should be attention-grabbing. But do it without sacrificing the readability of the newsletter.
I would go further and suggest that you create a newsletter template that promotes brand recall.
Something more. Always keep your design style uupermost in mind.
Plan For A Great Header
The header is the first thing your readers see, and it’s where you should place your key message.
The header is also where you introduce yourself to the reader, and quickly present a visual identity. That could be bold or subtle.
The header also emphasizes the “from” field, ensuring that the reader knows who sent the email.
Always remember, communication headers that are visually appealing set the stage for your email.
So make sure you create a beautiful and straightforward email header. There should be no cluttered information or difficult-to-read print in the header.
Also, see that the header is unique to your brand.
For all of their newsletters, most organizations use a consistent header that focuses on the brand logo.
Content Of The Newsletter
An email newsletter isn’t complete without content.
What should you put in it, though?
Well, you don’t have to start from scratch and generate a bunch of new content. Instead you can reuse your existing content, and thereby enhance its reach.
Besides, having an engaging newsletter content gives you an edge over your competition.
It motivates your readers to open your emails more frequently.
There’s another secret that many people miss out.
“Having a goal“.
Make sure every email newsletter you send out, achieves a goal. Even a simple goal like keeping your readers up to date on a weekly or monthly basis.
But that’s not all.
Keep your design and copy simple if you don’t want your newsletter to be cluttered. And be deliberate about the visual content you add to the text.
Generally,a good text-to-image ratio to follow is 6:4.
If you really want to attract your subscribers’ attention, get going with your image selection. But be careful not to go overboard with that.
Because if you send an image-only newsletter, it’ll possibly be discarded as spam.
In a similar fashion, here’s another thing to remember.
When designing the body of your newsletter, allow enough white space. Reading becomes much more pleasurable and striking as a result of the contrast.
Call-To-Action
A call-to-action (CTA) is a powerful tool for encouraging your users to take the next action step. This is usually a button placed at a prominent place on a website.
And it directs you to initiate some immediate action that’s productive.
For example, the CTA can tell the reader to do things like “subscribe”, “join up”, “buy now”, “learn more” and similar actions.
Likewise, CTAs inside newsletters,, direct your subscribers to take some action.
And the objective of those actions should be:-
▪To make a purchase.
▪Contact you.
▪Schedule an appointment.
▪Sign up for something.
▪Learn more etc.
Now, make no mistake about this – creating and placing a CTA is almost a fine art.
So here’s how it works.
In order to inspire action, you employ powerful verbs. You use active voice, and immediacy in your call to action (CTA).
And you finally place that CTA button (or link) at a prominent spot in your text.
Here’s the important part though.
Ensure that each CTA button or link is prominently displayed. That way it’s simpler to direct the subscriber’s attention to the CTA.
All said and done, you must follow specific insider CTA hacks before using them in your newsletter.
And here’s a trick from experts.
Say your newsletter is designed in an inverse triangle shape. In this case you should place the CTA such that it sticks out towards the bottom. With such an alignment a CTA imparts your newsletter greater meaning .
Most importantly, it lets readers know what they should do next.
Newsletter Footer
Footers or email signatures are a must-have for any well-designed newsletter. And they should be positioned toward the end of the document.
Usually, footers include all key information that your readers would require.
So here’s the deal.
Finish with a footer that includes links to your social media profiles, corporate information, and an unsubscribe link. This enables your subscribers to connect with you and keep in touch with you.
But that’s not all.
The footer is also a perfect spot to display your brand and marketing resources. So don’t miss out on the chance to advertise your ongoing specials.
But another very crucial link to insert in your footer is your Privacy Statement.
And you know the reason for that. Right?
Well, the facts again. Anti-Spam filters recognize such links and regard them favorably, boosting your servers’ reputation.
Heading Or Subject Line
An email heading or subject line can be written in a variety of ways.
It could be short and concise, personalized, keyword-specific, and much more.
Choose the option that best reflects your brand’s personality. Tune into the preferences of your target audience. And then get to work.
Here are some common themes of subject lines:
1. Urgency theme.
2.Short and sweet theme.
3.Scarcity theme
4.Personal.
5.How-to theme.
6.Clever/catchy theme.
7.Statistics
8.Sneak peek theme.
9.Controversial theme.
10. Trending topic.
In fact, creating that header or title can be an interesting activity.
But there’s a catch.
The word newsletter in the heading can be very damaging to your campaign.
Here’s why.
According to statistics, when the word “newsletter” appears in the subject line, email engagement rates drop by about 19 percent .
Hence the simple advice is to remove the word “newsletter” from the title.
Remember, The subject line of your newsletter determines whether or not someone opens it.
So what’s my point?
Create a subject line that reflects the newsletter’s value offer. A subject line that is brief, relevant, and entertaining will almost always inspire people to open it.
Related Posts
◾Don’t Start Email Marketing Until You Know These Best And Easy Tactics.
◾Easy Ways To Connect With Your Audience Using Email Marketing.
Conclusion
One of the most valuable assets you have in your email list. Hence it’s critical that you send out the finest possible emails to your customers.
You can use email campaigns to guide your readers toward constructive action. That’s possible only after you understand the true purpose of a newsletter. The foremost purpose is to present readers with useful content that fulfills their needs.
The goal of an email newsletter is to keep your subscribers up to date about your products, and services.
And all this while, the email newsletter should feel more like a friendly update from a good friend than a sales pitch from a pushy salesman.