At enCOMPASS Agency, we hear from a number of clients who know that they should be using email marketing more strategically, but are unsure of how to do so. One of the tried-and-true options is to create and send a regular email newsletter, establishing a direct conversation with your target audience, keeping them updated and engaged with your business. Indeed, a consistent email newsletter can accomplish several things: It allows you to foster relationships, share your most recent blog or video content, and promote your latest sales and offers.

Of course, an effective email newsletter strategy requires hard work and commitment. To reap the benefits of an email newsletter, you’ll need to be thoughtful in how you approach it. In building your email newsletter strategy, here are a few methods and approaches to consider.

How to Build an Email Newsletter Strategy

1) Create a welcome campaign.

Remember that one of the main reasons to develop an email newsletter strategy is so that you can cultivate relationships with your audience members. Begin this relationship on a friendly, cordial note by ensuring that each new subscriber receives a welcome email, or a series of welcome emails. These initial emails should convey your gratitude to the subscriber and also offer a preview of what they can expect from future emails.

2) Offer some options for customization.

An effective email newsletter strategy will be personalized… and that requires you to do a lot more than just mention the subscriber’s name in your salutation.

A better way to personalize your emails is to provide the subscriber with some clear options about how frequently they wish to receive your newsletter, which topics interest them, and even what time they prefer receiving emails. Many email marketing platforms allow you these levels of customization.

3) Establish trust with each subscriber.

While email newsletters can be an effective channel for promoting your products and services, you’ll want to start by developing some trust. There are a number of ways to do so:

• Ensure that you always use polite, respectful language in your emails.
• Respect the preferences of each subscriber.
• Utilize a clear, convenient way for people to unsubscribe as needed.
• Deliver the value you promised in your email newsletter.

Once you have established some trust and credibility, you will have earned the right to work on some product and service promotions.

4) Use the right language.

Each email newsletter will need some clear copywriting. A few general tips for guaranteeing your language is on-point:

• Make sure the language is appropriate to the audience. If you’re dealing with real estate professionals, for instance, you can feel free to use industry jargon, or to talk about concepts like escrow. If you’re targeting a more general consumer audience, you may want to tone down the technical language.
• Use language that is consistent with your brand identity. Laid-back, informal language may work well for some companies, but could be inappropriate for, say, a divorce law firm.
• Also be sure you avoid words that could trigger spam filters. Be wary of using “salesy” terms like free, flash-deal, etc.

5) Develop a consistent schedule.

One of the most common questions about email newsletters: How often do they need to go out? It can vary from business to business, but as a rule of thumb, we tend to recommend a single monthly newsletter along with an “in case you missed it” reminder to start.

It’s often most effective to choose a set date to send your newsletter… for example, you might send it on the first Friday of each month. This can help build a sense of expectation for each new bulletin.

It’s crucial to avoid long gaps between emails. If your subscribers no longer recognize your business name when it shows up in their inbox, that’s a problem.

6) Offer some commentary.

Your email newsletter can be a great place to share links to sales or to new content, whether that’s a company blog post or a YouTube video. However, to really generate engagement (and to give your newsletter value), we also recommend adding some short commentary about industry trends. Don’t be afraid to court a little controversy, providing your expert opinion on issues that are pertinent to your field. Also invite readers to weigh in with their opinions; send them to a social media post or a comment section where they can interact with you more directly.

Get the Most Out of Your Email Newsletters

With the right strategy, the right tools, and the right marketing partners, you can enact an email newsletter campaign that results in strong relationships between you and your customers. We’d love to talk with you further about your own email newsletter needs. Feel free to contact the enCOMPASS team any time you’d like to talk.