The purpose of a newsletter is to provide information pertaining to a product or service to a targeted audience. Newsletters, done effectively, can also create a company’s credibility and build an organization’s identity.
The first thing a company should concern themselves with is determining the audience of their newsletter. The audience is anyone who would benefit from the information the newsletter contains. For example gearing your newsletter toward the people who are interested in purchasing your product sends the message that you value their commitment to the company and to your products.
You will also want to include sending the newsletter to your employees and mentioning them in it as well. This is noteworthy because you want to send the message, not only to your employees, but to your customers that you value your employees as well and the work that they do. A listing of names and titles of managers in your organization is one way to give your newsletter a personal touch. Identifying employees of the month or giving special recognition to a team of employees can also be advantageous.
Compiling a mailing list to use for your newsletter is not as easy as it sounds. Think about using information from business cards, customer informational records, trade show attendance, or membership lists. You might even consider purchasing a mailing list from a company that specializes in this area and understands who your target audience would be.
Exploring catalogs that are specifically geared towards newsletters is a way to get ideas in creating your own design. You will want to search newsletter publications that match your company’s style.
Generating a newsletter can be time consuming and costly. You will need to determine if your newsletters will be generated using in-house employees and their skills, or if you will hire an outside agency to design, create, publish, and mail your newsletters. You will also need to consider if your newsletters will be sent via email or regular mail. These are questions whose answers will determine the cost, length, and publishing frequency of your newsletters.
Newsletters, at the very least, should be published quarterly so that your customers see a constant source of information and updates to your company or product line.
Because you want your customers to look forward to your newsletter’s arrival, your newsletter’s headline should immediately draw the reader’s attention. Careful consideration on how you want it to appear should be given. Your headline represents the contents of the story and draws the reader in. Examples of headlines that help draw a reader in are; Memberships Exceed Last Year’s Goals, Product Removes Years of Aging, Company Wins Real Estate Award, and New Product Saves You Time and Money!
Sometimes a headline can be developed after the story is written. When an idea develops for your headline during writing, just make sure that both the headline and the story are consistent.
Being consistent with the use of fonts and colors is also important. It allows your customers to immediately recognize who the newsletter is from. Your newsletter needs to be well balanced among fonts, colors, and the use of illustrations. Too many or too few illustrations could be problematic in that the reader is either looking for more or is turned off by having to few. You will need to consider presentation and readability as well. Ask yourself; Is there too much white space? Are there too many colors or not enough color? Are there too many different fonts? Is there too much information or too many topics being discussed? Does the newsletter remind customers about your products or services?
There are many things to consider when writing your newsletter, but the most important is recognizing and being respectful of your audience. You must also allow your budget a little bit of freedom, and promote your products and services in such a way that it is not only pleasing to the eye, but interesting as well.
The post The Purpose of a Newsletter appeared first on Big Financial BLOG.
source http://blog.bigfinancial.co.uk/the-purpose-of-a-newsletter/
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