Newsletters are dead, long live the Newsletter

I’ve received a few newsletters recently that I’ve enjoyed reading – not full of advertising copy or stories about how great the companies behind them are but filled with entertaining and interesting articles and stories connected with what they do.

Like DHL’s explanation of how they transported a live Gorilla halfway round the world to be returned to the wild. Or Chiltern Railway’s recommendation for keeping kids entertained on long journeys.

Both of these stories piqued my interest. They were both newsworth and interesting. I remember thinking how refreshing it was to receive something that had been written with my interests in mind rather than being “talked at”, (which is often how I feel when I receive marketing literature).

It’s a sad fact but of the millions of newsletters published by businesses everyday, very few serve any useful purpose.

Okay, so given that fact why do one?

The important role newsletters play in marketing

Newsletters can play an important role in marketing, if they are executed properly and contain the right content. They can be effective in enhancing your business’s profile and branding and are particularly useful in terms of lead nurturing, building customer loyalty and reinforcing marketing messaging.

Printed newsletters are not as popular as they once were but eShots and eNewsletters are a simple and inexpensive way of communicating with mailing lists. A newsletter can be one of your best marketing tools and it gives you control over what’s written about you.

So, what does it mean to do a newsletter properly?

The art of newsletter writing

First of all, a newsletter should be ‘newsworthy’ and give readers content and information (expert opinion) they can’t get anywhere else. Regurgitating material from third-party websites is never a good idea. No matter how fresh, second-hand news is never as authentic as your own, first-hand, original material.

I make sure all newsletter content I produce for clients is fresh and relevant.

When asking yourself: what is newsworthy? Think of it from the reader’s perspective. What may be news to you may not be to them. Don’t think about what you want to ‘say’ to them, think about what they want to ‘read’ about. It could be something like how what you’re doing (or your products and services) can help your customers solve pressing business or lifestyle issues. Or you could talk about how new research is changing popular opinion in an area in which your business operates. It could even be your expert view on a current topic that is attracting interest and media attention or an entertaining and informative story (such as DHL’s) about something your business has recently done.

As a journalist, I’m practiced at coming up with and developing great story ideas and writing engaging copy.

To keep everything legal and compliant, and as part of a marketing service for clients, I subscribe to one of the world’s best and most trusted electronic newsletter distribution and mailing list management systems so you can rest assured you won’t be violating any GDPR or spam laws.

Get in touch for an informal chat about your newsletter writing requirements or sign up to my newsletter, crammed full of useful information I don’t share anywhere else (use the subscribe form below).