Without a doubt the best emails develop customer relationships by providing relevant content in a timely manner.

Campaigns that are triggered by recipient actions such as nurture, onboarding and basket abandons are going to generate some of the best returns because they are so well timed. Ones that respond to web behaviour and include relevant content will naturally be highest converting.

But if you are a marketing manager in a smaller or medium sized enterprise, or you only have a modest sized list and need manage multiple marketing channels then a newsletter can still provide an effective return on investment if done correctly.

A few tips to make the most of your newsletter:

• Send to opted in recipients, this will ensure you meet legal requirements but also improve engagement levels.
• Improve the timeliness by taking advantage of features such as ‘send time optimisation’ where available in your email service provider. This is where the email is sent to each recipient based on the time they opened their last emails from you.  
  • If this isn’t an option consider doing a resend to non openers a few days later at a different time of day with a different subject line.  This may get a different group when they are online and more receptive or the subject may trigger a better response.
• Try to find time to split test elements sending to a smaller groups in advance.  Good elements to test include your subject line and your calls to action.
• Look at easy segmentation options to increase relevance. This may be male vs female or prospects vs customers or based on the source of the email.  You don’t have to spend hours to increase relevance, changing your opening line may be enough to change the perspective of the reader (or avoid sending great offers to existing clients of those products!)
• Send regularly so people don’t forget you – but make sure you have something relevant or people won’t bother reading the next one
• Use a template to make the email build quick and easy and a content plan to minimise thought time

There are a large number of statistics available proving email is still a viable channel but there is also a large focus on automation. If you have the time and the budget – then this absolutely should be a part of your strategy but don’t use lack of time to do this as a reason not to send anything at all.

As a B2B company a newsletter is a great way to remind people of your expertise.  Your goal may be to demonstrate thought leadership, and an entire blog post in one email can be useful for recipients looking to stay informed on their commute.

As an avid Cath Kidston fan, I only need to see sale in the subject line to find a way to my nearest store. I don’t even need to open the email for it to be effective so there are ways to make emails relevant for all!

Use your newsletter wisely, think about the goal of the email itself – consider your content and subject line carefully. Always make it about your recipients – not you!  To really maximise the email channel though, do look at triggered communications and how these can be used to nurture, respond to and on board recipients.

If you’d like any assistance planning an email strategy – call me on 01707 258 959 for a chat or to book a planning workshop.