Some time ago, Patsi Krakoff published 10 “new rules” for successful eNewsletters. While the rules aren’t necessarily new, they are important if you want to build authentic, lasting relationships with your audience. People reading your articles, purchasing your products and procuring your services want the experience to be valuable in some way. Sometimes, that value is identified by price. More often, it is measured by the authenticity of the story you tell, the perception of the experience you provide and your ability to respond to the general and specific needs of your audience.
Here are 7 additional tips in line with modern audience expectations
- Express your appreciation. Let your audience know that you appreciate their time and interest in your offerings – and let them know that regularly.
- Be generous. Your subscribers are generally your loyal customers. Invest in them by providing generous offers, helpful information and resources which are relevant to them.
- Lend an ear. Listen to what your audience has to say by using polls and short surveys. Rather than assuming what they find valuable, ask them every now and then. You might be surprised at what they have to say.
- Open a dialog. Don’t publish a brochure. Brochures are boring. Create a conversation by allowing your audience to react in some way to your message. Encourage readers to write a letter to the editor or join a discussion on your website or blog.
- Get interactive. Use multimedia references when appropriate to give dimension to your message. We all love listening to and watching stuff.
- Give options. Let your recipients determine what is relevant to them by providing options in your offerings where possible. Be as flexible as possible with message frequency, content and timing. Segment your lists accordingly and target with relevance.
- Be responsive. Walk the walk when it comes to opt-out requests, order fulfillment and support. Don’t drop the ball after you click “Send”.
Do you have any more to add?
Great tip Edward. The list is the cornerstone of effective email marketing and keeping it well maintained and updated is definitely a top priority.
Thanks!
Another suggestion for effective newsletters is kep an up-to-date mailing list. To do so you may want to ask in each newsletter for the receiver to encourage her friends to always update their email addresses to the editor.
Ed Hunt