Newsletters are an important way of talking to the people but with more than 293 billion emails sent every day, how can you make sure yours stands out?
People in your database have already signed up to receive communications from you, accepting that you may email them from time to time. However, the unsubscribe button is just one click away, and it’s extremely difficult to get those people back. That’s why relevant, interesting and engaging content is essential to keep them interested and stop them from unsubscribing.
Here is our recommendation on keeping those subscribers subscribed and those emails opened.
1) Keep content relevant
Your audience wants to receive content that is relevant for what they signed up for. If you are a food brand and you send out a newsletter that focuses on furniture, chances are it won’t be well received. Think about balancing your newsletter content to be 90% educational, and 10% promotional. Chances are, your subscribers don’t want to hear about your products or services 100% of the time. Keep content relevant, focusing on and around your specialty. If there is a link, then great, but make sure that link is highlighted.
2) Make sure the content is interesting
Boring content that announces no news, and contains very little substance is a sure-fire way to decrease your subscriber count. Most of us receive enough emails everyday that we don’t want more rubbish filling our inbox. It’s better to send no email than a newsletter filled with rubbish.
3) Use a combination of punchy text, images and even video content
Thousands of words slapped in a newsletter simply aren’t going to be read. Cut text down to an absolute minimum and separate it out in easy to digest chunks. When possible use images and video content to keep it fresh, and keep people reading. Videos remain the most widely consumed kind of content on the internet. Embedded videos in your newsletter are proven to yield higher open rates.
4) Give your newsletter a clickable title
There are clever tactics you can incorporate to increase your chances of getting recipients to open the newsletter. Rather than a very run-of-the-mill title that says exactly what’s in the email, try and make it fun, engaging and interesting. There is a difference between ‘clickbait’ and a genuine title that people will want to click on, but you can use clever tactics to encourage people to open it. For example, make sure your title is between 6-10 words. This is considered the sweet spot for email subjects. Also, try not to use the word “newsletter” in your subject. Stats show this actually decreases your open rate by as much as 19%! Try to avoid spammy words, all caps or special characters too.
5) Use the newsletter to break news and give your subscribers benefits
If you are releasing some new news, send it to your subscribers first. Make them feel special for agreeing to sign up to the newsletters. You can even offer them discounts or give them first pick on things upcoming as a thank-you for being subscribed.
Remember: it’s better to send nothing to your subscribers that a poorly constructed block of text that doesn’t actually say anything.
If you need help writing your newsletters, get in contact at: info@actionpr.co.uk