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Creating online newsletters may be old hat for a marketing professional, but for a business owner like you, the task may be a daunting one. However, with the proper research and planning, you will be able to create perfect online newsletters just like the pros, as long as you know your customer segment. If you are interested in learning how to create the best online newsletters for your business, look no further. Here are some useful tips to ensure a fabulous, effective end product.
The Rule Of 90/10
What is the rule of ninety/ten you ask? Simple, this rule indicates that ninety percent of the content contained within your online newsletters should be informational, educational or social. The other ten percent? That is the space you should utilize for promotion. That may seem counter-intuitive. The whole reason a business creates online newsletters is to market their products and services. However, it is important to not underestimate your customers’ intelligence. They are well-aware that these newsletters are just trying to sell them products. However, when you include less advertising and more interesting content, they will be more likely to actually click through to your page when they find something they like. Keeping your online newsletters enjoyable with less focus on the marketing aspect will have much better results than you would expect. Remember this, and your online newsletters will look like they were done by a marketing professional.
Identify A Purpose
If you are going to design an enewsletter for your business, you are going to want to have a specific purpose for these marketing emails. This is the most effective use of e-newsletters as advertising for small business. Oftentimes, newsletters are too cluttered with a bunch of different topics and purposes. Instead, keep your newsletters to one common theme in order to get the best reactions about them from recipients. Determining a single purpose for your business newsletters will help you to maintain focus and give customers what they want.
Utilize Free Tools For Creating Online Newsletters
You probably are not aware, but there are a whole slew of websites out there that are specifically designed to help you create the perfect online newsletters for your business. Many of these sites are free, so give those a try first before you spend any money. On these websites you will be able to add images and animations, customize fonts and formats and even share your finished product to Facebook, Craigslist, Twitter, Pinterest and more with one click. Certain sites will also have an added feature for automatic mobile optimization of the online newsletters you create. All of these features can be available to you for free. So make sure to do a quick Google search before you shell out money for Microsoft Publisher or similar. If you want to create online newsletters that look like they were done by a big-time marketing executive, make sure to check out the free tools available to you online.
“Scanability” Is Absolutely Vital
This is perhaps the most important lesson to learn when it comes to creating beautiful, engaging online newsletters. The emails you create, whether they are about a mortgage checklist or how to sell an idea, should have optimal “scanability.” What exactly does that mean? This made up word simple means that readers of your newsletter should be able to scan through the email quickly, without getting bogged down by a lot of words and information. Think of the marketing emails that you receive. If you see a lot of text in the email, are you more or less likely to read it? There is your answer. Create online newsletters that are heavy on the graphics and animations and light on the small print wordy content. You may also choose to give your newsletter some pops of color, to draw readers’ eyes to the information that you consider most important. As long as you are not creating online newsletters that look more like a teenager’s emotional blog post, you are doing a great job.
These three simple tips will help you take your online newsletters to the next level. Make sure to remember the rule of 90/10, to ensure maximum enjoyment of your newsletter. To guarantee that your readers’ will not immediately relegate your hard work to their trash folder, make sure that the content is easy for readers to scan through and still glean the information you wish to convey. Do not forget to make use of the free tools available online. This will make your job much, much easier. Remember these tips, and your online newsletters will look like they were created by a whole team of marketing professionals. If you have any other advice you think fellow entrepreneurs would appreciate, leave it in the comments below.
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