Email marketing is one of the simplest and most affordable ways to reach your target customers quickly and directly. What’s more, by subscribing to your newsletter, your customers show their interest in your brand. To make sure your newsletter has an impact and delivers a solid ROI (return on investment), Paradoxe Communication recommends preparing properly before you create it!
Step 1: What’s the goal of your newsletter?
A newsletter is an email that needs to be concise and clear. While it’s tempting to share as much information as possible with your customers, remember the basics: most people... don’t read! So be concise and direct, and plan the main goal of your communication. For example, if you’re a clothing business and your summer dresses are on sale, the goal will probably be to showcase those dresses and generate immediate online purchases. If, on the other hand, you’re an accounting firm working on your reputation and wanting to demonstrate your expertise, your newsletter will take a completely different direction. Maybe you’ll focus on sharing a news item or simply reminding people of your brand. Nothing stops you from using the newsletter to share some secondary information, but keep your main goal in mind. Ideally, it should make up at least two-thirds of your content.
Step 2: The content
Once you’ve set your main goal, you need to write your newsletter content. It goes without saying that the quality of your French or English must be flawless, and so must the visual presentation. Remember, your newsletter is an extension of your website, which is an extension of your other marketing tools, which in turn reflect your business. So don’t skimp on visuals. Whether you do it yourself with the tools provided by your email platform or have your agency create a unique design, it should be consistent with the rest of your marketing tools and clean. Once again, remember human nature: at first glance, your reader will pass judgment within seconds based on the look and the first words they see! To get a better conversion rate, focus on these 4 little details:
- A punchy headline
- A clear image
- A concise message
- A prominent call to action
... Everything else is just a bonus. Example for the clothing store: Headline: Flash sale, one day only! Photo: A photo of one of your dresses with its discount. Message: A sentence or two about the sale details. Call to action: Shop now (link to the Sale page on your website). At the bottom of your newsletter, you could include 3 images from different collections and your contact information. Example for the accounting firm: Headline: Claim more money on your taxes. Photo: A photo illustrating the message. Message: A few paragraphs explaining your news. Call to action: I want to save on taxes (link to the contact page). At the bottom of the page, it would be a good idea to suggest other blog topics, for example. Don’t forget to always include your contact information!
Step 3: Where will you send your readers?
To get the best return on investment, you also need to plan where to send your customers and how to measure the data you receive. For example, if you’re announcing an incredible sale, your conversion rate will be higher if you send your buyers to a landing page about that promotion or to the page for the product in question. If you send users to your home page, they’ll have to dig through your website to find the information, and you risk losing the sale. The landing page itself matters. Much like your store window, your newsletter catches people’s eye, but once they’re in the store, you need to make sure customers find what they need! If you opt for a landing page, make sure it matches your website’s look and, of course, links to your site.
Step 4: Measurement
Congratulations, you’ve sent your newsletter, but was it effective? To collect the statistics you want, you need to identify them ahead of time and use the right tools, such as Cyberimpact statistics or Google Analytics. By knowing your initial goals, you’ll be able to analyze your results properly and see whether your campaign was effective. For example, in the case of the big sale, the data will be clear:
- Number of clicks on the link in the email
- Number of transactions
- Sales conversion rate
Other important data to look at after sending:
- Newsletter open rate
- Bounced emails
- Number of unsubscribes
But keep in mind that your newsletter will also contain other very valuable information, and you’ll need to find a way to measure it. Here are a few questions to ask yourself:
- Is my newsletter driving more visits to my website?
- Am I getting more information requests or calls?
- Once on the website, which pages get the most visits? This will also help you anticipate your readers’ interests for your next mailings.
- Is my newsletter increasing store visits?
- When I call my customers after sending a newsletter, do they recognize my business name?
- And so on.
Afterward, you’ll need to check whether you reached your goals and, if not, find out why! Once you’ve gathered all your data, created your visuals and prepared your list of names, you’re ready to build and send your newsletter. Good luck!
About the author
Mother of 3 boys and co-president of Paradoxe Communication, a web, mobile and branding agency. Christelle holds a degree in communications from the Université de Montréal and has worked in the field for over 15 years. Because everyone is an expert in their own field, her mission is to explain our world in plain terms so you can demystify it and reach your business goals!