Rick Henkin

The manner in which your newsletter is formatted has a direct impact on your reader's opinion of you and your services. If it's unprofessional, filled with typos and grammatical mistakes, the impression is that you don't care, so why should they? We're not talking about content at this point, nor are we speaking about email promotions, that are either acted upon or trashed. We're talking about having a newsletter that your audience looks forward to receiving, and hopefully forwarding on to others.

• "To" line
  


• "From" line
  


• "Subject" line
  


• Plain Text or HTML
  


• Header
  


• Body
  


• Footer
  


• Unsubscribe

In Part 1 of this 2-part article we'll take a look at the following:



"To Line"


The "To" field should be personalized with your subscriber's name, not just their email address. It's very important to be as personable as you can within the confines of a one-way conversation. When you email a friend, isn't it usually addressed to their name?

Remember, you're also trying to build a relationship with your audience. If, instead of personalizing, you send out a bulk email addressed to "ABC Group" it's much more likely that it will either hit the ISP's spam filter or the reader's own spam filter.



"From Line"


Never use an ambiguous or meaningless "From" field that makes it hard for the reader to identify who sent it. It's more likely to end up in the trash. You're asking for their time and attention. They probably have dozens of other messages in their inbox. Make it easy for them and identify yourself.

If your content is valuable, they'll begin to look forward to your newsletter and open it when they see your name, company name, or newsletter name in the "From" field. Once you've established what you'll put in the "From" field, don't deviate. Keep it the same for all your newsletter emails.



"Subject Line"


The topic of "Subject Lines" has been already covered in another article, "Email Subject Lines."With respect to newsletters, your subject line should tell your reader exactly what to expect in the newsletter. Don't waste the space on dates or issue numbers. Give them a reason to open it. I prefer personalizing the subject line. Your newsletter subject lines should be consistent in their look.



Plain Text or HTML?


You have 3 choices as to how to format your message, each with its own pros and cons:

1. Plain Text

• Pros- simple, easy, can be read by everyone. Some feel it appears more personal because that's the way an email to a friend would probably look. It's also quick to download, because the file isn't bloated with images.
  
  Your message arrives looking as you intended, with the possible exception of a font style that the reader doesn't have (you should be using either Verdana or Arial as studies have shown they are the easiest to read online). Plain text messages are more likely to pass spam filters.

• Cons- limits creativity in design. You can't use images, colors, different font styles or create a company logo. Doesn't allow for tracking of open rates (how many of your recipients actually opened your newsletter).
  
  You can't use clickable hyperlinks, all urls have to be spelled out so the reader can copy and paste as in http://www.increaseonlineprofits.com. Because people scan email, it's not likely that your call to action will stand out. Can be perceived as boring and uninteresting.

• Pros- enhances creativity in design. You can use color, graphics, different font styles, tables, show company logos and even use animation. It's much more attractive which encourages readership. Hyperlinks are clickable which can take the reader to your website, signup page, other webpages or downloads.
  
  Allows you to track your open rate and your click-through rate (how many of your recipients clicked on a link in your message). Easier to scan. Surveys show that HTML emails have more readers than plain text emails.
  


• Cons- can appear impersonal, much like newsletters received offline (however it can be personalized). Takes longer to download because file size is larger due to graphics and tables. More likely to be scrutinized by spam filters.
  
  Different browsers might not show the email as intended, while some email software may not be able to display HTML at all. Some companies may block HTML emails for fear of possible attached viruses. Sometimes, readers will turn images off, so your message appears as lines of code.

• Pros- if you send your message in the format that your customer prefers, it's more likely to be opened, increasing your readership. In the plain text-based version, you can include the important points and place a non-clickable url directing them to a web page that contains the HTML version of the newsletter.
  The best choice is to send both versions together using a process called "multi-part MIME." When the email client (the email software being used by your reader) receives the message, it accepts the HTML version if it can, otherwise it defaults to the plain text version. Most email services like AWeber or GetResponse offer this option.
  
  
• Cons- more work for you. You have to write your email twice and type in the full url for each link. In my opinion, it's definitely worth the effort to have more of your emails opened.

Plain Text Version of IOP Insider News

HTML Version of IOP Insider News

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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 ·  E-Newsletters - The Basics

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