Electronic newsletters (also c
alled ezines) deliver written messages usually relating to a common theme or topic (such as your business niche). There are many benefits you and your business can reap from publishing your own newsletter.
Here are three of the top benefits
1. Keeping in Touch
Your customers and clients are the lifeblood of your business. What better way to stay in touch with your existing customers than through a newsletter? A newsletter allows you to add personal touches to your relationship and celebrate milestones, both your own and your clients’. In addition to furthering your relationship with your clients, a newsletter is also a great way to introduce new products, offer special sales or discounts to your existing client base, and encourage referrals.
2. Enticing New Customers
Unless they have an immediate need or came to you through a powerful referral, most potential visitors to your website won’t buy right away. Often they will shop around and compare, which means you will likely never see them again. However, if you offer free valuable content on your website in exchange for their email to add to your newsletter list, a newsletter offers interested clients the opportunity to learn more about you, your business, and your products and services, and they can also learn more about your interaction with your existing customers. A newsletter can be a very simple strategy to turn a one-time visitor into a lifetime customer.
3. Establishing Your Expertise
No one knows more about your business than you do which makes you an expert. Likely the construction of your own business has further left you with a great deal of expertise in your field. Share your nuggets of knowledge through your newsletter to deepen your relationship with your existing customers and convince potential customers that you are the answer to their problems.
How do you publish an electronic newsletter?
It is easy to start publication of an electronic newsletter. You simply need to decide on a topic or main theme and start writing!
You will need to set up an account with an emailing marketing service which is designed specifically for emailing to a large number of emails. They are available in a wide range of features and costs. Some of the more popular services include MailChimp, ConstantContact, iContact and AWeber. All of these services store an archive of the issues you have created, and provide metrics for tracking opens and click-throughs. You can research to find the tool that best meets your needs and budget.
You’ll want to send a newsletter regularly to your list of contacts. You can also find an audience beyond your own customer base through newsletter directories (Google “newsletter directors”) as well as on discussion boards for people interested in your topic.
Feel free to contact me for more information about email marketing services.
[tweetthis]3 benefits to publishing a newsletter and how to get started[/tweetthis]
Your turn! What other ways does your business benefit from publishing a newsletter? What do you like about the email marketing service you use?
Deidra Miller
Administrative and Marketing Consultant
