Skimming a new site that launched today – Association Jam – which basically is a niche Digg-style website for associations and non-profits (a brilliant idea from the folks at Wild Apricot!) – I found a favourited post discussing three trends that beg for shorter emails.
While the post is geared towards non-profits, the points raised really are transferrable across almost every industry.
In this age of information overload, microblogging (i.e Twitter) and other social media tools, email newsletters need to be freshened up. Gone are the days of creating long-winded newsletters with all the articles and information right there in the body.
Newsletters should be short and provide clear direction for what action you want people to take. They should also provide options; while you can segment your audience and send targeted newsletters to certain groups (clients vs. prospects, etc.), it doesn’t mean everyone is still interested in the same articles or information.
Writing your newsletter topics like Twitter posts or Facebook statuses – giving a description in small chunks with a link to view more for those interested – is a way to not overwhelm your audience.
As Kivi pointed out in her post, “everyone has a desire to achieve inbox 0 these days,” so the less overwhelming you can make an email, the better. The easier it is for people to click through on a link and then take some sort of action (like bookmarking or sharing the story) brings your newsletter in the social media age and provides valuable insight.
If you’re tracking your newsletters, links, word of mouth mentions (using alerts and searches and so on) you’ll be able to see how far and wide some of your newsletter articles go. This will help you get a better sense of what kinds of articles you should be including in your newsletter and ultimately make your newsletter even more attuned to your subscribers.
Rebecca Atkinson (Muller) is a freelance web marketing/analytics consultant with more than seven years of direct experience helping businesses create and implement online marketing and communications strategies. Her clients come from all industries including finance, technology and not-for-profit. She specializes in helping her clients determine how to improve their advertising programs, focusing on visitor behaviour – beyond the inital click-through. Full bio available