How to make your newsletter work for you

If you are small charity or a not for profit providing an essential service, you may wonder if you have enough news for a newsletter. 

We think you'll probably be surprised about how much news you do have to share with stakeholders and that they will want to read about it. One of our preferred methods for maintaining regular contact is to send out a well-written and designed newsletter. Here's why:  

• You can ‘reward’ your clients with privileged information eg. advance notice about a new service, special offers, access to early bird tickets etc.
• They allow you to demonstrate your skills as an expert, and
• It’s an effective and economical way to stay on your customer’s radar so that when they need a new 'x' or are asked by a friend if they know anybody who does 'y' - you will be the first person that springs to mind.

How to make your newsletter a success

• Make sure the people on your mailing list have opted in to receive your newsletter
• Decide how frequently you want to send out your newsletter - it is better to send out a quality publication once a quarter than an ill-thought out publication once a month
• Choose how you wish to send out your newsletter - Mailchimp is free and straightforward to use and provides good analytics. It also allows you to segment your audience so you can send out tailored newsletters
• Plan your content 
• Ensure the emphasis of your content is on informing and sharing rather than selling
• Encourage readers to interact with you by inviting feedback or asking for their opinion
• Write short and snappy content
• Finally, before sending, preview it on a mobile device and check your spelling! 

Next steps

If you are stuck for ideas or other work gets in the way of you sending out a regular newsletter, you can resolve the problem with our newsletter packages.