Stumped on what to put in your small business email newsletter?
One of the simplest ways for small businesses to build and strengthen relationships is with a newsletter. Producing a regular newsletter keeps you in front of your clients’ (and potential clients’) eyes. They may not need or want to do business with you right now, but by regularly sharing news and information, you’ll be top of mind when they do need to do business.
Before we go on…if you’re reading this from a non-profit organization, head on over to this blog for our tips on donor relations newsletters.
Now, what should you put in that small business newsletter and how often should you send it out?
Let’s start with the second question: There’s no definitive answer to how often. As a small business, you definitely don’t want to bombard inboxes more than once a week. We’re partial to once a month (and if you’re on our mailing list, you’ll know that’s the frequency of our newsletters). Monthly is short enough between intervals that your mailing list hasn’t forgotten about you but long enough that they’re not feeling spammed and driven to unsubscribe.
On to the first question: What to put in your newsletter? The content you choose needs to provide value for your audience—it’s not an opportunity to sell, sell, sell. Rather, it’s to share useful information that may help others run their business and even showcase a little bit of your company’s personality. Your newsletter is a chance for those on your mailing list to better get to know your business.
Still stumped on what to write? We’ve got five great content ideas for your next email newsletter.
1) The most recent post (or two) from your blog. This may sound less than creative, but think about it—writing those blogs took effort and you (hopefully) write them on a regular basis. So why not share them on a regular basis? Your blog posts position you as an industry expert—you’re showcasing what you know and sharing your expertise—so why not share that expertise with a wider audience. (And if you’re reading this right now, you may have gotten here from our newsletter. And if you didn’t, why not sign up to get the next one!). If you create video content, then definitely share that as well.
2) Address a common problem. See clients facing the same problem or asking similar questions? Address this with real answers and tangible solutions. Doing so showcases your expertise and increases your readers’ interest. But make sure it’s a relatable problem—obscure problems or content isn’t going to attract eyeballs. And, including your opinions on the problem is fine, as long as those opinions include related facts. No one wants to be told what to think.
3) Staff profiles. Pull back the curtain a little bit and show your readers who is behind the company logo. This works especially well if you include customer-facing staff, like customer service or sales employees.
4) Curated content. Including curated content is a great way to strengthen your newsletter by showing your readers the industry news you’re reading. After all, if you found an article to be an interesting and worthwhile read, then others will too.
5) Case studies or customer spotlight. Did a really great job on your last project? Tell everyone about it. Describe the problem, how you solved it and the end result. If your client was impressed with your work, your readers (who don’t forget are your potential clients) likely will be as well.
And just for the fun of it, here are three signs of GREAT newsletters!
1) Get straight to the point. If you want to attract readers, that opening paragraph has to be killer. If not, no one will be interested in reading on.
2) Don’t be afraid to use humour. There’s nothing wrong with a little laughter. It catches attention and stays with readers long after the rest of the content falls from memory.
3) Know your audience. Knowing how often readers want to see content and what resonates with them is a must. Mailings that are too frequent or seen as irrelevant get ignored…or worse, unsubscribed!