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Newsletter Do's & Don'ts

Want to utilize your mailing list to its fullest potential? Let us give you some tips.

 If someone  signed up for your mailing list it is most likely because they like your site

and  want to be  kept informed. Don't let them down.

Keep them coming back with monthly newsletters. We  create clean, eye catching

newsletters. Overwhelming your customers is not what you want to do. Don't put too much

 information in one newsletter. Keep it simple and interesting.
 

Do you have a "What's New" page?  Or do you offer FREE  information, resources,

or patterns? 

information you would like to  give to your customers, it is a good idea to give them a

teaser  (say the first paragraph) and then add a link to your website where they can read

 the rest of the article.

Seven Deadly Newsletter Sins
(and How to Cure Them)
by Claire Cunningham

Newsletters can be great communication tools, but they take work. Here’s a

 quick list of  common problems newsletters run into and how to fix them.

1.  The snooze-letter -- a newsletter so boring it puts readers to sleep.
Cure: Find out what your readers want to know and write about it. Keep the tone

lively.  Don’t know what readers want? Ask!

2.  Audience too broad - a newsletter with a broad audience (customers,

employees and distributors, for example) may meet no one’s needs very

 well or might meet one group’s needs while ignoring the others.
Cure: Different audiences = different information needs = different

newsletters. Your newsletter will be better read if it provides

information that’s relevant to the specific audience.

3.  Too long - Most folks are strapped for time. They won’t

tackle a long newsletter.
Cure: Keep your newsletter short. (1-2 pages an issue )

 4.  I have a friend ~ Everyone has a friend, relative, spouse, or whatever

who knows something about marketing and/or communication. Doesn’t mean

they know anything about newsletters. The results include poor writing,

 poor design, poor targeting, and poor performance.
Cure: Use people with newsletter experience.

5.  Published once in a blue moon – Infrequent publication builds a reputation

for poor follow-through. Probably not a good thing for your business.
Cure: Identify the problem. Is it your procrastination? Hire a pro to drive

the project. Is it a complicated design? Hire a designer to help you

simplify. Keeping your newsletter short will make it easier

to publish more frequently.

6.  Delegatophobia – Fear of delegating has killed quite a few newsletters,

 and many business people suffer from this disease. If you’ve been accused of

 being too “controlling,” you’re probably infected.
Cure: Be honest! Do you REALLY have time to write this newsletter? Do you

 have a writer on staff who can take on this project? If you don’t have

the internal resources, hire a project manager and writer. Then let

them do their jobs.

7.  The disappearing act – One issue followed by…nothing. Maybe that initial

 issue took more effort than expected. Maybe content wasn’t planned

in advance. Whatever the reason, a disappearing act doesn’t say good

things about your company.
Cure: Make the newsletter a top priority. Plan ahead. Stick to your

schedule. Hire help if you need it.



Copyright 2005 Clairvoyant Communications, Inc.
~ About the author ~
Claire Cunningham, president of Clairvoyant Communications, Inc., has 20+ years’ experience

 developing and implementing successful marketing and communications programs.
Sign up for Claire’s monthly newsletter, Communiqué, at
http://www.clairvoyantcommunications.com
Claire can be reached at 763-479-3499
(Fax: 763-479-2809, e-mail: claire@claircomm.com)