Why You Should Add Newsletters to Your Content Strategy
Marketers, whether your company has a small or massive following, they deserve impactful content. You accept this truth. That’s why you innovate and adapt your methods. Because keeping customers happy is part of your job description.
Now—what’s so great about newsletters? Let us count the ways.
1. Newsletters Send Compelling Content Directly to the Source
Third-party cookies are disappearing. Like Myspace, pretty soon we’ll talk about them as tech ghosts of a bygone era. In their wake, businesses must rely on firsthand data to attract and retain customers.
As part of this strategy, newsletters let you create masterful content and send it to an inbox or mailbox. No middleman needed.
More importantly, newsletters let you to inform, entertain, and help your audience, without resorting to a hard sell. Because you have plenty of opportunities to plug new products or promote sales, but you need something to strengthen connections in the meantime.
When you consistently deliver relevant, valuable information to your network, you build recognition and trust.
And…for anyone who loves a good statistic, check these out (spoiler: 81% of marketers say they use newsletters more than any other content).
2. Newsletters = Low Risk + High Reward
Newsletters work best when sent to people who have already expressed a level of interest in your products or services. Whether someone visited your website recently or has been a devoted customer for years, use your mailing list as a guide, and recipients will be more receptive to marketing efforts.
Combine this benefit with the relatively low cost of distributing an email-based newsletter, and you have a delightful return on investment of over $40 for every $1 spent.
Not too shabby.
3. Newsletters are Customizable
Effective marketing involves high-level personalization, and each year technology makes it easier for marketers to speak to people as individuals.
Like any digital communication, you can send newsletters that appeal specifically to your audience, as a whole or in segments. Consider these tips for hitting your desired target:
- Use Their Names: The first rule of familiar communication needs no further explanation.
- Use Segment Lists: You can divide email lists into smaller groups for carefully curated campaigns. The criteria used will depend on several factors, but many companies divide segments by geography, interest in certain products, position in customer lifecycle, time and type of previous purchase, and participation in events…you get the idea.
- Use Triggers: Maybe a few newsletters focus on how to maximize your products/services. You can send them out when someone makes a purchase or shows a particular interest. Either way, trigger-based marketing has proven especially useful in the fight to keep things personal.
4. Print or Digital? Newsletters Let You Do Both!
The sharpest minds in marketing recommend using a mix of print and digital to appeal to customers at every touchpoint. So, while a digital newsletter can be sent more frequently and focus on product how-tos, tips and tricks, or recent trends, a print newsletter might run seasonally and give more detailed insights into how your business solves customers’ problems.
Bottom line—done right, newsletters offer a flexible way to reach out.
Tips for Nailing Your Next Newsletter
A few best practices to keep in mind:
- Keep most of the content (at least 75%) editorial and not promotional.
- Leverage automation so you don’t have to manage a calendar.
- Mix things up with themed issues (seasonal, educational, FAQ).
- Complement copy with cool designs and images.
- Aim for clean, attractive, easy to scan templates.
- Optimize for mobile devices.
If you enjoyed these tips, find more marketing insights at the Xpressdocs blog.