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Greetings:
This is the first edition of our e-newsletter for clients, friends and colleagues. We know that today's economic environment is challenging. Now is the time to ensure that your marketing communications plans are up-to-date and as effective as possible. We hope our feature article on getting the best results from your e-newsletter is helpful.
We welcome your feedback. And if you don't want to receive future editions, please opt out below. We promise to send no more than 8 e-mail newsletters per year.
Sincerely,
Lynn Nelson + the rest of the LIN PR Team
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Avoid 10 most common mistakes in creating e-newsletters
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We could be accused of being a bit cocky in doing a piece of this nature in our first e-newsletter. Like most good PR people, we welcome conflict, so feel free to disagree with our self-imposed rules. They come not from any academic research but from reading and deleting hundreds of e-missives over the last few months.
1. Publishing too often. Resist the temptation to send an e-newsletter when you don't have anything to say that will benefit your reader. Once a month or once a quarter keeps you top of mind without being overly annoying. Frequency really depends on whether you have events to announce or other timely topics that require more regular communications.
2. Making your e-newsletter too long. Most of us are trying to get through our in-boxes as fast as possible. If we're connected to an e-newsletter author in a meaningful way, we'll spend a minute or three at most clicking on headlines that are most relevant to us. Most readers don't have more than a few minutes to check-in while they're at their desks.
3. Creating content that is all about you - not all about what your reader is interested in. I see this mistake played out over and over again: An e-newsletter arrives with several announcements about how great the author is and what the author is doing, not what the author has to offer that the reader is interested in.
4. Sharing content that has nothing to do with your business - realtors are famous for this trick. They send articles on anything but how to buy or sell a house. Share your expertise. Don't just send stuff to keep your name out there. The best piece I've seen by a realtor told me the sold prices of houses in my area - info. I can use.
5. Boring subject lines. Who wants to open an e-newsletter that says "Fall Newsletter"? This is a wasted opportunity. Pick the most interesting and relevant aspect of your newsletter and highlight it in your subject line.
6. Using generic graphics. Burnish your brand by ensuring that your newsletter is graphically distinct.Today's off-the-shelf software makes it easy to create an e-newsletter, but it takes a design pro to make it graphically distinct and consistent with your brand.
7. Copy is boring, poorly written and full of jargon. Your copy should be as compelling as your design - don't trust the writing to a junior member of your organization. Communications to clients should reflect the level of care and quality assurance that is typical of your organization's customer service. Anything but excellent may hurt your reputation more than it helps.
8. Using e-mail as your only mode of communication. People like to get their communication in a variety of ways. Some enjoy meetings; others want phone calls; others like printed pieces they receive in the mail. Your communications should be varied, so that everyone's preferred method is satisfied.
9. Letting your mailing list get out of control. 100 names of people who appreciate getting your e-missives is worth far more than 1,000 names of people who don't even really know who you are. It's good form to ask people for permission to send them your e-newsletter, and given today's great technology, there's no reason to not give them an easy way to opt out.
10. Forgetting to have fun. People like to be entertained. While certain forms of humor (political for example) can be dangerous, many of us take ourselves far too seriously, and in today's economic climate people really enjoy a laugh or a creative approach to an otherwise boring topic.
Bottom Line: If you follow these 10 simple rules, your e-newsletter is likely to enhance rather than harm your reputation and your relationships with your key customers and associates.
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Meet LIN PR Assistant
Kirsten Lesak-Greenberg
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Kirsten Lesak-Greenberg works closely with Lynn to produce effective, quality public relations materials, to reach target audiences and to work with media to gain desired client results.
She is currently working toward a degree in public relations from the University of Minnesota and is an executive board member in her Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) Chapter.
Outside of school and work, Kirsten enjoys traveling, photography, horseback riding, snowboarding and spending time with friends and family.
As a proud member of the LIN PR team, Kirsten works hard to help clients reach their public relations goals.
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Check out our new Web site
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The LIN PR team does its best to practice what we preach. Our team members contributed to developing our new site: Project management by Lynn Nelson, Design by Bruce Armstrong, Web Strategy by Peter VanDyke, Creative Copy by Susan Bonne, Photos by Tim Francisco and general communications support by Kirsten Lesak-Greenberg. The LIN PR team also recently worked together to create a new site for our client Johnson-McCann, a group insurance broker. "Our goal was to help Johnson-McCann stand out from their competition, emphasize the expertise of the staff and their high level of commitment to customer service," says Lynn. "To highlight the fact that the principals at Johnson-McCann are ahead of the curve on health care trends." Check out Johnson-McCann's new Web site at www.johnsonmccann.com. |
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