7 Tips for Creating Email Newsletters that Get Opened and Convert to Customers

Email newsletters are a great way to speak to your targeted audience. I’ve written my fair share of emails for clients over the years, so here are some tips I find helpful.

There’s gold in the list. Money is in your list. You HAVE to send out emails consistently. You’ve probably heard it all before. But the truth is… that’s all correct. Email isn’t going anywhere, folks! As a matter of fact, according to Radicati’s 2016 Email Statistics report, 3 billion people will be using email by 2020. I wasn’t a math major, but isn’t that just about 50% of the humans on earth? That means it’s time to put more time into your email newsletters. 

Pay Attention to Your Subject Line

The subject line is arguably the most important part of the entire email. If it’s not enticing or interesting enough for someone to click on and open, there’s no point to the rest of the email. There isn’t one set solution for subject lines, either. It really depends on the audience your email is going out to

For this part I like to go into my inbox, and also promotions and social folders on my Gmail. I scroll through and take a look to see what subject lines and preheaders really grab my attention. How long are they? Do they include emojis? (And yes, my faves typically do.) How specific is the information? Do all the lines flow together nicely and does that matter? Or, am I okay with just having the first line of the copy be the preheader (aka the line under the subject line)? Think about what makes you personally open an email, and try to replicate it.  

Have a Catchy Headline or Snappy Intro

This depends on the style of your email, but a lot of times having a nice eye-catching headline at the top of your email can be very efficient. It could even be in the header image on your email. If you are launching a program or course you probably have branding to go along with it (and if you don’t, you should), and that would include the name of what you’re selling and maybe even a little tagline. Scannability is one of the key factors in creating a successful email, and having a clear headline that sums up what the person is about to read is a great way to start things off.

If your email is more of a typical letter format, that opening line is still crucial. It should be overflowing with your personality, and also give the reader a little hint at the awesomeness that’s about to come their way in this email. You want to hook them with the first line. Let them know you understand their pain points and are here to help.

Scannable Formatting and Conversational Body Copy

Conversational copy, especially for online business, is essential. You are selling yourself here more than the product or service you are offering. Here’s where you get to break all the grammar rules and just have fun with it. Write like you talk! If you use curse words– have at it. If you like “slang” words like ya’ll or OMG, no one is stopping you from including those in your emails. Incomplete sentences? Why not?

You also want to break up your email into easy-to-digest sections that people can scan.

• Don’t have more than a couple of sentences per paragraph
• Break it up with bullet points
• Use bold or italic text to make certain sections of text stand out.

(If you want to see a great example of this, I suggest signing up for Jenna Kutcher’s emails. I love how personal they are, that they don’t beat around the bush, and that even though she sends them frequently I’m never annoyed.)

How Often Should You Send Out These Emails?

There are a lot of opinions when it comes to how often you send off emails, and you really have to test it out to see what works best for your tribe. When I sign up for an email list, it’s VERY rare I get mad seeing that person’s name in my inbox 2-3 times per week. If you feel like doing one really comprehensive email per month and your audience digs it, that works too. You just want to be consistent with the quality and quantity of emails you are sending out. A.k.a don’t just drop off the face of the planet for a couple months and then be upset when no one opens your email when you magically reappear. Beyoncé is irreplaceable, but you might not be.

Including Photos and Artwork

As I mentioned before, especially in online business, you are your brand. I even believe that businesses that are not selling a coaching or mentoring program online do better when they associate a human face to their brand. Get yourself in there, girl! A header that includes your photo can be a nice touch, and a couple pics or graphics throughout can look nice too. Disclaimer: there’s always an exception to the rule, right? Some people, typically who already have a good size following, can send out simple, text-only emails to their fans and get a great response. Again it’s best to test it out. When you’re first building, start with emails that include some photos and then throw in a text-only one to see how it works out.

Keep an Eye on Analytics and Adjust Accordingly (A True Story)

I was working on a client’s email campaign for a few months when all of a sudden the open rates crashed. At one time the open rates were in the 30th percentile and they dropped all the way down to the 15th percentile. We had to take a hard look at what was going on, especially in regards to the subject lines.

What we found was that in this person’s case (it was in the beauty industry) the more specific we got in the subject line, the more likely people were to open it. “Join us at XYZ Conference on DATE” piqued peoples’ interest and got them to open to email while “See this Season’s new Colors” did not. One was very specific and one was very general.

Depending on your email platform you might be able to see and track what sections of the emails get clicked on too. If video gets clicked on a lot for some emails, move the video content to near the top of the email. If you notice that CTAs are being clicked more when they are in the body of the text rather than a prominent button below the text, try more of that. It’s all about changing it up when you see that something’s not working, and not reinventing the wheel if something is working great.

For online businesses, having a solid email strategy can help your business so much. It’s a key part to your overall content marketing strategy and can not only help you launch programs but is a great way to stay top-of-mind to your clients and show them that you are a thought leader and expert in your field.

Get Help Making Your Email Newsletters Work Better for Your Brand

Learn more about my services and packages on my site, and contact me if you’re ready to get some help creating the kinds of emails that will resonate with your dream client and help grow your biz!