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Before Publishing a Newsletter, Ask These QuestionsCopyright 2004 Nancy JacksonIn the current world of marketing — especially online marketing — there's a lot of talk about the magic of newsletters. If you listen to the gurus, it sounds like every business should be sending a newsletter, whether printed or electronic, to its customers and prospects on a regular basis. But how can you be sure whether a newsletter is really a good investment or the right decision for your business? Start by asking yourself the following four questions. 1. Do I want to build long-term relationships with my customers? If the structure of your business is simply to serve customers one time and never see them again, an ongoing client newsletter would probably be a waste of time. But if your intent is to develop long-term relationships with the clients you serve, a newsletter can be a perfect vehicle for doing that. Because clients and prospects hear from you regularly through your newsletter, you earn their trust and credibility. They become more familiar with you and your services, and they're usually impressed by your efforts to keep in contact with them. Soon they'll feel like you're more than a service provider; you're a personal acquaintance — so they'll call on you when they need your services. 2. Do I have information or expertise that could be valuable to my customers and prospects? Without information that is valuable to readers, a newsletter is useless. But if you're an expert in your field (and hopefully you are), you probably have lots of information, ideas, resources or advice that could help your clients work better, work smarter, or save money. In fact, if you don't know anything your clients don't know, it's doubtful that they will keep hiring you. The key is to figure out what knowledge or resources you have that could be valuable to your clients, and determine how to deliver that information to them in a way that will be helpful and enlightening — without sharing all your secrets. One way to figure out what kinds of information you could share in a newsletter is to make a list of questions clients frequently ask you. If you have informative answers to those questions, you have information that could be valuable. 3. Do I have the time or resources to produce a newsletter on an ongoing basis? A newsletter is only effective as a marketing tool if it is produced consistently — at least on a quarterly basis, and preferably on a monthly or bi-monthly basis. If you aren't willing to commit time or resources to making your newsletter an ongoing priority, it's probably not worth an attempt. The amount of time needed to produce a newsletter can vary based on the method of delivery (electronic or mail), the length of the newsletter, the frequency of publication, and the amount of work you intend to do in-house. Keep in mind that publishing a newsletter can include several steps, such as: * News gathering and trend-watching. * Research and interviews. * Writing and editing. * Layout and design. * Printing and/or distribution. You may outsource some or all of these tasks to an outside provider (such as The WriteShop), or you may choose to produce the newsletter in-house. The method you choose will determine the amount of time and/or money you'll be investing in your newsletter — but keep in mind that well-produced newsletters usually pay for themselves in long-term relationships that develop into increased sales. 4. Do I know what specific results I want to achieve with a newsletter? As with any marketing program, it's important to set goals for your newsletter before investing any time or money into it. Think about what you would want to accomplish with a newsletter: Do you simply want to build a larger contact database? Do you want it to help generate more leads? Do you want it to increase sales? If you have specific goals in mind before you launch a newsletter, you'll be better able to shape your newsletter to the needed results, and better able to measure your success. Becoming the publisher of your own newsletter can be a significant undertaking. Before you take the plunge, be sure you know what you're getting into — and what you want to get out of it. About the author: Nancy Jackson of The WriteShop helps companies better market their products and services with powerful written communications including newsletters, articles, Web content, brochures and custom publications. Visit www.writeshoponline.comfor more information or to subscribe to her monthly "Marketing Tips" newsletter. Circulated by Article Emporium What's LinkShare, And Do I Need To Use It? Online affiliate marketing is one of the most effective, cheapest and fastest ways to promote merchandise. With millions of people getting access to the Internet everyday, there's a great chance for a merchant to introduce his products and services to a wider market, thereby, maxim... Don't Put All Of Your Eggs Into One Basket By Sandi Moses I vaguely remember a particular story from my childhood. It had something to do with transporting eggs to market. The main character, a little girl who thought she knew more than she really did, put all of the day's eggs into one basket, and when she ... Savvy Internet Marketers' BIG Seminar Secrets Copyright 2004 Willie Crawford You know that your business will probably grow slower than molasses in the Winter unless you joint venture and partner with other online marketers. If you're just launching your own product or service, you really need access to their lists. Y... Should I Start My Own Business? Should I Start My Own Business? By: je Dunn This is probably the most over looked basic question that a person considering starting a business should ask himself or herself. You should sit down and make a list of the advantages having your own business would ... 37 Tips on How to Write a Web Page or Sales Letter That Sells! Copyright 2005 John O'Callaghan Dear Sales and Marketing Executive “You Have Less Than Six Seconds to Capture the Prospect's Attention!” 1. Which headline is best? Is it the one that stresses a problem as in, “Do You Make These Mistakes in English?” or, ... Easiest Way To Build Web Site Traffic Yes, the best and easiest way to build Web site traffic is to write articles. And save A lot of time submitting them. It is through well written articles and keeping your visitor wanting to learn more that you will see more traffic on your Web site. More traffic means more pro... How To Get Paid For Taking Online Surveys Would you like to get paid for surveys? Could you use an extra $300 to $1,000 a month? Did you know you can make good money filling out online surveys sitting at home in your pajamas? Did you know companies in the United States spend over $250 Billion Dollars... Startup Tips For Your First Home Based Business Over the past few years I have helped thousands of people start their own home based businesses. Many of these folks have become quite successful and others, for various reasons, have failed to achieve success. People starting out in their first home based bus... Pay Per Click Advertising Works If You Do It Right The fastest way to get your product or service out to the marketplace is with a pay per click advertising campaign. In a matter of minutes you can be on page one of some of the most popular keywords relating to the theme of your website. A pay per click adverti... Before Publishing a Newsletter, Ask These Questions Copyright 2004 Nancy Jackson In the current world of marketing — especially online marketing — there's a lot of talk about the magic of newsletters. If you listen to the gurus, it sounds like every business should be sending a newsletter, whether printed or electronic, to it... Getting Approved by Adsense in a Jiffy… Copyright 2005 Anik Singal I don't understand why everyone makes Adsense out to sound like some kind of devil. So far, I have a 100% approval rate for my consulting clients. You would think that we spend months developing the site to submit for approval – but to be honest;... How Using A Drop Capital Increased My Ebook Sales By 40% You will often find me with my head in a book, studying the marketing and copywriting experts from the past. It was whilst reading one such book, that I discovered how using a drop capital, can increase readership of advertising. The book was: 'Ogilvy On Advertis... The 7 key elements webmasters don't know about creating an outrageous profitable mini-site. Copyright 2005 Emmanuel Segui Let's be clear. You don't need to be a webmaster to create a money-making website. You don't even need to know how to do programming. However, you MUST be aware of these seven basic and essential elements to setting up an outrageously profitable... The golden road When I first started looking for a home business opportunity, usually after carefully observing the offer I emailed the company or the owner of the website, not just to get more info but to acknowledge there is a real person behind the website who will be there to support and guide... 3 Quick and Easy Steps to Earn Money Online! 3 Quick and Easy Steps to Earn Money Online! -By Mark Williams © Do you own a web site that is continually failing to make you any money? Don't feel alone because 90% of the web sites on the internet are just like yours. So, what if I told you that you coul...
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