E-Newsletters - The Basics
Karl Kasca
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Electronic newsletters sent via emails are a great way to reach your people and attract them to your website, blog, or podcast. In fact, Email Newsletters are the backbone of e-Marketing and communications (even with all of the buzz about Social Media).

According to eMarketer, an April 2008 survey showed that:
"Two-thirds of adult respondents said they preferred e-mail for communicating with businesses. Just as many--and this is the important part--said they expected to still prefer e-mail five years from now."
- Note: By contrast, Websites are only preferred by one-third of adult Internet users for communication.

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Over time, as people get accustomed to you and your valuable information that you impart to them they will feel more inclined to visit your site and buy from you. This can build from small purchases at first to much larger ones later, e.g., from buying your ebook, to your book, to CDs/DVDs, to your in-person Seminars. Don't you feel this way when you make purchases? - You'd probably want to try buying less expensive items first before plunking down your money for "the whole enchilada" .

Periodic and Regular

By having a free eNewsletter and sending it out periodically you and your site will stay in the minds of your potential customers. This will also help establish you as an expert in your field.

Set a period for sending out your email newsletters and stick to it:
  • Monthly, or


  • Weekly, or


  • Daily


  • Don't miss sending out your email newsletters.


  • Be consistent!


    • Consistency builds trust and familiarity.


    • People will expect your emails and look forward to them.


      • As long as you are sharing good information/content they want to receive.


  • Schedule sending out emails if you are traveling:


    • Whether using your contact manager (e.g., Outlook) or an online email marketing service (see below).


Frequency: How frequently should you send your e-newsletters?



  

While it might look like Monthly eNewsletters are indicated from the chart above, a recent membership site owners conference indicated that internet marketers are trending towards daily email messages or videos (in some cases). You may wish to start with Weekly emails and consider Daily emails sometime in the future if your subscribers are open to this. Note: You may need to analyze "your people" (their demographics*) to assess how frequently they want to be emailed.
*More on this in another article.

Format: What format should emails be sent in - HTML or Plain Text?

Answer: Send your eNewsletters in both formats: HTML and Plain Text.
- Reason: Online email marketing services "sense" which type of email the recipient has and will deliver the appropriate format to each recipient.

Although this is a heated controversy, we'd recommend deferring to the answer above (unless you're sending out your email newsletters via your regular email account, which we wouldn't* recommend).

* We wouldn't recommend using your regular email account for eNewsletters because it:
  • Only goes out in the one format you choose: HTML, Plain Text, or RTF (Rich Text).


  • Limited in the number of messages it can send at one time.


  • May flag you as a spammer if you send too many messages at once.


  • Can be difficult to set up for large personalized ("Hi Jane") emailings


    • E.g., For Outlook you may need to use MS-Word Mail-Merge along with an Excel Spreadsheet.


  • Doesn't have any analytics to analyze the number/percentages of messages delivered, bounced, opened, clicked on for your email campaigns.


FYI (for your information), internet marketers are trending towards sending faux Plain Text messages: Rich Text or HTML messages that look like plain text (other than some simple formatting like bold and hyperlinks).
- Hint: You can send these emails via your online email marketing service.

Online Email Marketing Services

Which online email marketing service should you use?

There are many to choose from, but here are some guidelines to consider:

Various Techniques and Advice for Choosing An Email Marketing Service
http://timsviralspiral.com/fresh/news/email-marketing/various-techniques-and-advice-for-choosing-an-email-marketing-service

According to Top Ten Reviews, iContact is a solid 1st in Features, Ease of Use, Email Campaign Creation, and Help/Support:
Top Ten Reviews: 2009 Email Marketing Services Product Comparisons
http://email-marketing-service-review.toptenreviews.com/index.html

AOTA* Resource & Member Directory June 2008
http://www.aotalliance.org/resources/authentication/2008%20AOTA%20Authentication%20-%20Member%20Directory%206-08.pdf
* Authentication & Online Trust Alliance
- See pp 2-4: "Interactive Marketing & Email Service Providers"

We use aWeber and can highly recommend them.
- One of their main benefits is their high deliverability rate and many internet marketers use them for this reason.

Templates:

Online email marketing services usually provide some templates for HTML email messages which have nicely formatted graphic pages you can insert the text of your email into. Upside: Nice look which you choose or re-format to be similar to your website or blog. Downside: Larger size, due to the graphics. Some graphic/color combinations may be difficult to read by some with visual disabilities.

You may wish to check the templates available for the online email services you are considering using.
- However, if you're considering sending simple faux plain text emails, then templates are not a prime consideration.

Opt-In, Double Opt-In, Opt-Out and Unsubscribe

When you input your Name and Email address in a sign-up box to subscribe to an eNewsletter, you're usually sent an automated follow-up email (by "Autoresponder"). The follow-up email message will ask you to "Confirm" your free subscription by clicking on a link in the message. This link usually* takes you to a webpage which "Thanks" you for subscribing.
* Over 50% of the time according to eMarketer.

Opt-In: In the process above, when you first input your Name/Email address you're "Opting-In" to receive the eNewsletter.
Double Opt-In: When you Confirm your subscription, you're "Double Opting-In".

Opt-Out: If you "Unsubscribe" from an eNewsletter, you're "Opting-Out" from receiving it.
Unsubscribe: Opting-Out from receiving it.

Is a request to unsubscribe the end of the road for your eMarketing with a former subscriber?
- Answer: Not necessarily.

Of course you always want to honor your subscribers wishes, but in some cases when major publications direct Unsubscribers to another web page asking them if they have other preferences, they may opt to still subscribe to another eNewsletter, or receive it a different way (e.g., less frequently, such as: Monthly Summary/Digest vs. weekly, or Weekly Summary/Digest instead of Daily).

Guidelines for Opt-In Pages:

Optimizing Email Opt-in Pages - Lyris Email Labs
http://www.emaillabs.com/email_marketing_articles/opt_in_pages.html

FYI: Most legitimate online email marketing services should have the appropriate Can-Spam requirements built into their system. They should generate, or assist/prompt you in generating, the appropriate Unsubscribe messages/links, etc.

Autoresponders

Many online email marketing services also have autoresponder services (included or separate) which can automate the responses you send to "your people" (the people who desire the information/goods/services your site provides).

Privacy Policy and Message re: Sharing of Email Addresses

It's always a great idea to have a link to your website's privacy policy and a message stating that you will not sell or share eNewsletter subscribers' email addresses with anyone or any company.  

This gives your potential customers an assurance and comfort-level that you won't violate the trust they've placed in you and your company.

Can-Spam Act

- Officially: "CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 (Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing".

Spam is "unsolicited commercial email".

Our recommendations:
  • Be responsible emailers,


  • Don't spam: Provide valuable information/content to those Double Opting-In (wishing to receive it) instead,


  • Comply with the Can-Spam Act (of the US) and/or Email laws/regulations of other countries.


See more information below:

To be compliant with the Can-Spam Act your email messages must:
  • NOT have false or misleading header information


    • Your email's "From," "To," and routing information -- including the originating domain name and email address -- must be accurate and identify the person who initiated the email.


  • NOT have deceptive subject lines.


    • The subject line cannot mislead the recipient about the contents or subject matter of the message.


  • Give recipients an opt-out method.


    • You must provide a return email address or another Internet-based response mechanism that allows a recipient to ask you not to send future email messages to that email address, and you must honor the requests.


    • You may create a "menu" of choices to allow a recipient to opt out of certain types of messages, but you must include the option to end any commercial messages from the sender.


  • Any opt-out mechanism you offer must be able to process opt-out requests for at least 30 days after you send your commercial email.


    • When you receive an opt-out request, the law gives you 10 business days to stop sending email to the requestor's email address.


    • You cannot help another entity send email to that address, or have another entity send email on your behalf to that address.


    • Finally, it's illegal for you to sell or transfer the email addresses of people who choose not to receive your email, even in the form of a mailing list, unless you transfer the addresses so another entity can comply with the law.


  • Requires that commercial email be identified as an advertisement and include the sender's valid physical postal address.


    • Your message must contain clear and conspicuous notice that the message is an advertisement or solicitation and that the recipient can opt out of receiving more commercial email from you.


    • It also must include your valid physical postal address.


Source: FTC (Federal Trade Commission)
  The CAN-SPAM Act: Requirements for Commercial Emailers
  http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/business/ecommerce/bus61.shtm

Spam Laws in Other Countries
http://www.spamlaws.com/world.shtml
- Note: It's illegal to send commercial email to some countries, so be sure to check this first!

Action Steps:

  1. Research and Choose an online email marketing service (with an Autoresponder)


    1. We recommend aWeber and will be using aWeber for our examples.


  2. Commit to how often you'll send out your eNewsletter: Weekly, Monthly, or Daily


    1. We recommend Weekly, but you might consider sending Daily in the future.


      1. Of course you can always survey "your people" as to what they want.


  3. Decide what format you'll use: HTML or plain text.


    1. We recommend using both and having your online email marketing service deliver the appropriate format for each recipient's email preference.


  4. Create an Opt-In Page so your subscribers can Double-Opt-In to your eNewsletter (more on this in another article).


    1. Add a link to your Privacy Policy.


    2. Add a message stating something to the effect that you won't sell or share subscribers' email addresses.


  5. Write an email message with information/value (not spam!) for your subscribers.


  6. Re-commit to Regularly sending out your eNewsletter, without fail!


Video



Sources:

eMarketer: What Is the Future of E-Mail?
MAY 27, 2008
- An old digital format still has plenty of life left.



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ARTICLE DATE: 11/19/08
REVISED DATE:





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 Related Articles
·  Email: Building a Relationship with Your Subscribers
·  Email Subject Lines
·  How to Build an Opt-In Page
·  How to Create a Sign-up Box Using AWeber's Web Form


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