Newsletters are a fantastic way to stay in touch with your connections, as well as past & potential clients. They are a tool that we can use regularly, however, maximising the tool, encouraging engagement, and building rapport are some of the key reasons for using newsletters as a business owner (in my opinion!). So, how can you increase your subscribers and retain them? Here are some ways to do that.
Start with an easy way to “sign up” for your updates
The first and most important thing, is you need to give those people who want to receive your updates, the opportunity to receive them! A sign-up form on your website, the link to the form on your socials, and letting people know your newsletter exists in your regular content.
If you use LinkedIn regularly, you can even set up a newsletter right on your profile or business page, that automatically sends to your connections/followers – a fantastic way to get more people to engage with you!
I have found that, while pop ups can be annoying when used incorrectly, a pop-up form for people to sign up to your newsletter with a free downloadable guide can be an excellent way to get more subscribers. Systems like Mailerlite have these included for free and are easy to integrate into WordPress websites, as well as others with embed codes.
Give Value Over Upselling
If you are using a newsletter already, you need to consider using it for value, over and above the upsell. We are building credibility with our subscribers, rather than trying to get them to buy as soon as they sign up!
While these systems should be used to do this, having regular contact with your subscribers that delivers value, support & updates is the best way to increase relationships and engagement.
Read the newsletters you receive and consider which ones hold your attention best – and don’t convince you to want to unsubscribe as soon as they land in your inbox.
You can reuse your blogs, and social media, or share news in your industry to repurpose content without having to come up with fresh content each time you send a newsletter.
Top Tip: Repurpose your newsletter as an article in the future, pull out the tips and advice and make each of these value-based social media posts, or even convert it into a bigger downloadable guide!
You can then include upsells to services, discounts, or upcoming events within the content, but it feels a part of the bigger picture, rather than a sales pitch.
Commit to regular updates
Consistency is king in all marketing, so make sure you can regularly send your newsletters on a specific schedule. The beauty of the tools that are available for newsletters, even LinkedIn’s newsletter system, is that you can schedule in advance. Mailchimp, sadly, only has the scheduling option for paid accounts, which is honestly why I have moved away from the tool to Mailerlite or similar systems for my sole trader clients, however, for larger businesses that can utilise the system, it is a great tool.
If you can commit to 1 newsletter every six weeks, or 1 every 2 weeks, making sure it is consistent, will give your subscribers a regularity to their expectations, and subconsciously builds that trust with them too.
One of my clients has an Excel spreadsheet with all of the topics filled in for a year in advance, helping prompt her to write content, blogs, and the newsletter more easily – I highly recommend it!
Monitor Your Numbers
You should commit to your newsletter timings for at least 3 months before you change your strategy will ensure you know what is and isn’t working. Things to analyse include:
- Days of the week you send your newsletter – do more people open your emails on a Monday at 4pm, Friday at 8:15am, or Sunday at 10:45am? Consider your target audience and when they will be more likely to read an email and aren’t overwhelmed by school runs, emails from work, or their family time.
- Subject lines – do personalised subjects or more generic subjects work best? Perhaps subjects with questions prompt a higher open rate, making it feel more personal? In my experience, I have found subjects that read like they are just to 1 person is a great solution for open rates, for example “Can you join me next week?” or “I’ve just read this, thought you may like it”.
- Length of your newsletter – you don’t want to overwhelm your readers, but you still want to deliver value. Some of my clients’ readers love a longer newsletter as they only receive it once a month and it is packed with advice & tools; whereas another client that sends a weekly newsletter gives the value and then directs them to more via a YouTube video to watch.
These are just a few ways to maximise your newsletter to build trust with your readers, I’d love to know how you use your newsletter system as a business owner or if this has inspired you to get started.