Online marketing takes many shapes and forms but e-newsletters are one of its most effective tools. Creating one, though, can be challenging especially for inexperienced managers because making a newsletter is both an art and an inexact science.
If you are in need of a little guidance in this endeavor, I have prepared a step-by-step guide for your business on how to create e-newsletters, as follows:
Build an audience for your e-newsletter
One of the best ways of doing this is by inviting customers to register to receive regular updates from your company. You need to ask for basic information, especially the name and email addresses, of customers. Another method for creating your audience base is to buy the names and contact information from a company that specializes in compiling a list of customers. Whichever method you decide to use, you should enter the information in a database that can be accessed by your company’s official email account. This will be used every time your company sends out an email blast. Just remember, a business with an e-newsletter but without a mailing list means nothing.
Design the e-newsletter
People are visual creatures, and so the official appearance of the e-newsletter is of utmost importance in ensuring that it stands out in the cluttered environment of the Internet. Thus, your company should ensure that the e-newsletter is bright, uncluttered, and professional. The layout should be ergonomic. The design should also create an instantly recognizable brand for your e-newsletter by using a consistent layout, set of fonts, and colors.
Plan the e-newsletter contents
When designing the e-newsletter, you also must plan the kinds of content or articles that it will contain. Will it be a simple list with links? Will it mainly feature captioned photos? Will it look like a traditional product brochure? Will it have full-length articles? Also plan where you will get these contents, whether created by a dedicated writer or amalgamated from other online sources.
It is also important to be clear about the tone of the e-newsletter. While it always needs to be professional, its tone can vary depending on the kind of target markets? Will it sound like an authority? Will it sound like a friend? The tone must match the visual design of the e-newsletter.
Regularly send out email blasts to your mailing list
Make sending out company updates to your mailing list a regular ritual. The regularity will ensure that your engagement with your potential customers is constant and that your company will stay in their consciousness. If your e-newsletter contains a product listing, regular email blasts also keep costumers interested in buying.
Managing email blasts can be tedious work if done manually. A good tip is to group everyone in the mailing manually and send out the e-newsletters simultaneously. If you are running a bigger business that do not have the manpower or time to do this manually, you can utilize softwares downloaded from the Internet.