Using email newsletters to reach your clients is a valuable tool. Whether you’re communicating to internal clients or external clients, newsletters give you an opportunity to explore new initiatives, discuss important issues or reach out and engage your audience. I write newsletters for both corporate and consumer-driven clients, and today I’m going to tell you about why and how newsletters can be an important tool in your online marketing repertoire.
Using Newsletters to Communicate with Internal Customers
Six Sigma, one of the most successful business management programs out there and utilized by many Fortune 500 clients, talks about both internal and external customers. In order to run a successful business, you must evaluate the needs of all of your customers, and develop processes to manage both internal and external customers. One of the keys to successfully managing your internal customers is communication. This is where a newsletter can be vital for handling your relationships with internal customers.
Many companies utilize the corporate newsletter to communicate with employees, or between divisions. However, the news in a corporate newsletter is often out-of-date and interesting only to the people who are featured. Many corporations have a hard time connecting with employees on a one-on-one basis, and creating relevant content. This is where an experienced writer can come in and help. By creating engaging content, you can solicit reactions from employees and get feedback about new programs and initiatives. An experienced writer can also help you find the right way to present an idea to minimize fuss and maximize constructive conversation.
Using Newsletters to Communicate with External Customers
Finding new channels to reach your external customers is a major part of your marketing focus. Not only must you find exciting ways to tempt your clients, but you must also find ways to interact with them. Newsletters are one valuable feature you can use to communicate with your potential and existing clients.
The key to creating engaging, effective newspapers is to provide valuable content. Don’t just write a sales pitch to your clients. Outline a problem or challenge that your clients might face. Then, tell them how your product or service solves that problem. Alternately, you can simply provide valuable content to your clients that keeps you in the forefront of their minds and simultaneously establishes you as an expert in your field. That way, when your external client does need your product or services, you’ll be at the front of their minds.
The Effectiveness of Using Email Newsletters to Reach Your Clients
Three things make print newsletters an ineffective medium to reach your clients: it’s cost-prohibitive, it’s not timely, and people don’t read as much print media as they used to read. Email newsletters cut down on all of those factors, and make it easy for clients to browse your content.
The only cost you have with email newsletters is the time spent writing the newsletters (or the cost of hiring the writer) and a potential cost if you use a paid broadcast email tool. It drastically reduces the cost versus printing paper copies of a newsletter and the cost of postage to mail them – a cost savings which make email newsletters an even more attractive medium through which to reach your clients.
Using email newsletters to contact your clients also enables you to present more timely content. You can plan a newsletter for a specific holiday or time of year, or you can jot off a quick email newsletter if an important piece of news or industry development occurs. You won’t be sending out updates weeks or months after they happen, as is often the case with print newsletters.
Finally, sending out email newsletters makes it easier for customers to ‘get’ and review your content. Many people simply throw paper mail away these days if it’s not a bill, a check or a hand-written letter from a friend. Right off the bat, you miss out on your opportunity to reach those customers. Email, on the other hand, is something that most people check every day, and spend a few minutes reviewing every morning or evening. With an email newsletter, you’ve got a real chance of getting in front of your customers – if only for a few seconds – and that gives you an opportunity to capture their attention and convince them to read your newsletter.
Don’t let this valuable marketing tool slip through your fingers. It’s inexpensive, and highly effective – especially compared to paper media. Email newsletters give you an opportunity to stay in regular touch with your customers – both internal and external – and initiate valuable communications. This translates directly to improved relations and higher conversions, at a very affordable cost. Using email newsletters, you can effectively target your audience and deliver a high-quality message, and the affordable rate paired with the increased conversion ratio means that email newsletters provide an excellent Return on Investment, or ROI, for your marketing dollars.
