In addition to search engine optimization, social media networking and other inbound marketing techniques, small businesses can use email to great effect. Of course, this requires that the aforementioned tactics have been properly used to collect the appropriate contact information from customers, but once this has been accomplished, an email newsletter is perfect to keep consumers updated and in the fold.
A newsletter needs to have all the right elements to retain customer interest and transmit the right type of news and information to foster a curious, intrigued audience. This type of media is also helpful for spreading the word about promotions, sales and events. However, the most important part of any newsletter should be its usefulness to customers. If they are not pleased to receive it, they can easily file it under spam and forget about it. Here are some of the key components that should find their way into any such transmission.
Company news must have an actual impact on customers. It is well and good to share that a certain associate has been with an organization for an extended length of time or that a member of the staff has retired. These are pieces of information best left to blog posts and other types of media. Email newsletters need to be useful, and such information, while interesting, does not provide value to customers.
On the other hand, updates about sales or opportunities to receive promotional products are entirely appropriate for an extended email newsletter.
Stories or details about customers are always welcome in these types of messages. In addition to the fact that a valued customer will hope to hear about themselves, newsletters that extol the virtues of a beloved client or describe a positive interaction with a consumer indicate that a company is focused on the public and not its own internal workings. Such topics will ensure that a newsletter is about the recipient instead of the sender.
Valuable information that is unrelated to the company that is sending a newsletter can also be very useful and intriguing for customers. Local businesses in particular would do well to share stories about other companies, convey important news about local legislation or take a lighthearted angle and describe some fun or pleasant occurrence that happened in town or around the neighborhood.
As always, company communiques should include a call to action. Whether this means that customers are asked to visit a website, take a survey, stop by for a discount or simply keep an organization in mind, a call to action is an essential part of any marketing strategy.