How many newsletters are you looking forward to receiving? Ten, five, three, one or zero? Let’s talk about your newsletter. Are your subscribers in a hurry to receive it? Or is it just one more email in your inbox (or spam folder)? Once you have implemented the advice given in this article, you will see that in the long run, your subscribers will appreciate receiving your messages (and why not use your products or services)…
Let’s be clear, the idea is not to “manipulate” people! On the contrary, what you will learn in this article will show you how to communicate better with the people who have decided to follow you. Because basically, we must not forget that a subscriber is a person who has trusted you enough to trust you with their email. She has knowingly chosen to hear from you. So please don’t take the opportunity to bombard her with promotional emails… A little respect anyway!
Ready to put your newsletter on steroids? So…
New Article: 5 French Email Marketing Software
If we at Webmarketing & co’m love Mailchimp, some are put off by the completely English interface. And it must be admitted, unfortunately not everyone is comfortable with the language of Shakespeare. That is why we have selected 5 email services and software with an interface entirely in French. Enough to boost your email marketing strategy without the need for Google Translate at your fingertips.
To discover here: 5 email marketing software in French.
Put yourself 5 minutes in the place of your subscribers
This is the base. Imagine that you need to know more about a particular area. Where do you go to find information? What is the reference resource? Logically, you probably thought of all this when you designed your website. You must do everything possible to differentiate yourself from what is already done in your sector.
In short, you have worked on your positioning. So why do others like you with your newsletter? Like all marketing tools, you should use them to show your uniqueness. It is not Seth Godin who will say otherwise.
Submitting all 4 articles published on your blog each month is frankly uninteresting (especially if your subscribers visit your blog regularly). We must go further. When showing empathy, you should have a good idea of what your subscribers are looking for. When you know, I advise you to prepare an email sequence that any new subscriber will receive.
Your first email should surprise them
Generally, when you subscribe to a newsletter, you receive the first messages like all other subscribers. In my opinion, you are missing a golden opportunity to get to know the people who have decided to follow you better. Once a subscriber has confirmed their wish to hear from you (via the confirmation message), send them a special welcome email.
In fact, instead of just sharing corporate platitudes, opt for a more personal message. Depending on the size of the structure you work on, write an email like this:
Topic : Welcome to [newsletter] (This is what we can do for you)
Content : Good morning [prénom si vous l’avez],
I am [votre nom]the [fondateur, président, directeur marketing] from [entreprise/blog] and thanks for subscribing to the newsletter.
In the next few days I will be sending you messages whose purpose will be to help you [bénéfice principal + d’autres bénéfices éventuellement].
To give you an idea of what you could receive, here’s what [nom d’un abonné satisfait]a long time subscriber:
[insérer témoignage de l’abonné (réel, cela va de soi !)]
I hope that in a few weeks you can say the same 🙂
Before I leave you, I’d like us to get to know each other.
Can you tell me what you are facing right now? Who knows, maybe I can help you find a solution.
In any case, I am at your disposal to exchange.
Good for you
[votre nom]
[fondateur, président, directeur marketing] from [entreprise/blog]
Admit that you have never received this type of email after subscribing to a newsletter 😉
Of course, you should reply to your subscriber when they reply to you. In the worst case, you can slightly modify the email by removing the last sentence and adding a PS like “Unfortunately I can’t reply to all emails, but please make sure your message is read” (and read these emails! ).
If there’s one thing you need to remember, it’s to include people in your emails. Don’t be the cold-blooded marketing manager who “sends” a broadcast to subscribers. Instead, be the trusted person who will be there to give you good information. Also, customize the sample message to fit your situation. This will work whether you’re starting a new newsletter or relaunching an existing newsletter.
In the latter case, simply change the subject of the message to something like “What will change in this newsletter”. Your goal should be to pleasantly surprise your subscribers. You must tell yourselves: this is the first time I have received such a message from a newsletter.
Keep up the momentum and build a bond.
Once you’ve made a good impression, you’ll need to continue communicating with your subscribers. Surely the news of your company will not bring them anything concrete. In most cases, such emails will be deleted as soon as they are opened.
The first message was different, you must continue with the following ones.
What to talk about in this case? It’s very simple.
Since you have read the responses of your subscribers regarding their problems, all you have to do is write about these topics. If you already talked about a requested topic, take the opportunity to present them with an article from your blog (it can also be a YouTube video, a Slideshare presentation or any other type of content).
You can write an email like this:
Topic : How to Manage [sujet épineux]a concrete example
Content : Good morning [prénom si vous l’avez],
Every time someone signs up for the newsletter [entreprise/blog]I ask them what their biggest problem is right now.
Subscribers have sent me a lot of messages about [sujet épineux]. That’s why I took some time to tell you about it in this message.
[donner des pistes à explorer en fournissant un contenu pertinent]
In a few days, I’ll send you a message on [sujet épineux 2]because this is another point that should not be taken lightly.
Good for you
[votre nom]
[fondateur, président, directeur marketing] from [entreprise/blog]
He doesn’t eat bread, but I guarantee that this email will have its effect 🙂
Above all, don’t promote your products or services right away. Your subscriber knows who you are, if he thinks you can help him he will let you know. In the limit, you can try to close the sale if the subscriber replies to this email for more information. Of course, this email is just an example.
You can also select a certain topic, in order to provide relevant information to your subscribers. In this case, remember to comment on each of the posts you propose saying why they are important.
Always think long term
Once you’ve sent a number of quality emails to your subscribers, you can promote your products or services. However, be careful not to harass them. Your subscribers may well understand that you were trying to sell, but that’s not what they’re there for in the first place.
Remember that you have access to their inbox. Be sure to keep this privilege. Selling is good. Retaining the attention and trust of your subscribers is better! When the time is right, they will know how to reward you.
As Gary Vaynerchuk says: “Give, give, give and then ask. »
Segment and play with relevance
If you have a large number of subscribers, not everyone has signed up for your newsletter for the same reasons. Some email services like ActiveCampaign have a “tagging” feature to help you segment your subscribers. If someone subscribes to an SEO-related post on your blog, you can automatically apply an SEO tag to them to send them SEO-related content in the future.
By doing so, you avoid annoying subscribers who are not interested in a certain topic.
Another cool thing to do with this type of tool would be to modify your first email by asking your new subscribers to choose to click on one of the three links that corresponds to their situation. For example, the links can correspond to beginner, intermediate and expert. You can have a label applied automatically based on the link that was clicked. Your segments can thus be built little by little without any intervention on your part. This will allow you to send even more relevant content to your subscribers. Not bad, right?
conclusion
Maintaining a newsletter is something that takes time if you want to do it right (like a blog, in fact). However, if you decide to embark on this adventure, you will create a real relationship with your subscribers. And that is a great competitive advantage. If someone prefers you, it is not your competitor that they will go shopping for.
And you, do you have a newsletter? Do you intend to make it more lively after reading this article?