Though it was invented way back in 1971, email is far from dead. With over 4 billion active users — yes, that’s a B — email remains the most popular way for brands, businesses and creators to reach their audience.

No wonder: Email newsletters are quick to set up, cheap to distribute, and you’ll never have to worry about gatekeepers or fickle social algorithms again. Plus, email newsletters are a simple money-making business model. Even with a relatively small following of enthusiastic subscribers, you can earn enough to support an independent business.

Email newsletters are one of the most effective ways to stay in the attention of your customers. At least when it’s done right. The problem, however, is that so many businesses don’t know what to put in their newsletter.

More often than not, businesses don’t know why they should send out newsletters. They’ll say they have to do it because everyone else is doing it, or because they want to stay “top of mind” but don’t have a strategy. Then the responsibility is “given” to someone who probably doesn’t want it, leading to bland, lifeless email outbursts that add no value to your subscribers or your business.

This may be the case for 90% of companies, but it doesn’t have to be the case for yours. With the right plan and set of goals in mind, you can turn your newsletter into an efficient marketing channel for your business, and we’ll show you how.

What is an Email Newsletter?
It’s no secret that email marketing is a very effective way to promote your business. But successful email marketing depends on your ability to build and grow an email list of engaged subscribers.

One of the best ways to achieve this is by sending regular email newsletters to your subscribers.

A newsletter is a periodically sent email that informs your audience about the latest news, tips, or updates related to your products or services. But what exactly is an email newsletter for? How can they help your business grow? And what should you include in yours?

What is a Newsletter for?
Newsletters are one of the most powerful digital marketing tools available to you because they allow you to communicate directly with your prospects and customers in a personalized way, delivering valuable content and relevant promotions directly to their inboxes.

Newsletters are better suited to educating and entertaining your subscribers than selling anything. Receiving a newsletter should make you feel like you’re getting an update from an interesting and helpful friend rather than a hard sell from a pushy salesperson.

That’s not to say you should use newsletters just to stay in touch with your subscribers.

Ideally, your newsletter will motivate your readers to take action, such as:
~ Read your latest blog post
~ Sign up for an upcoming event
~ Check out a new case study
~ Enter a prize draw or giveaway
~ Buy something from your online store

The post What is an Email Newsletter? first appeared on YTVIEWS.IN.

If your newsletters are great, chances are your subscribers will respond to your offers. At least you can avoid being on an email blacklist.

Learn from brands with great newsletters to boost your email marketing campaigns. Ascent shares eight amazing email newsletters you can learn from. According to Econsultancy.com’s survey, “Email continues to lead the way when it comes to delivering marketing results, with 73% of client-side marketers rating the channel as excellent, versus 72% for SEO and 67% for paid search in second and third place.

This data shows how effective email marketing strategies can be in growing a business. To help you create great email newsletters, we’ve compiled a list of powerful and carefully crafted email examples to inspire you.

Learn how to improve the quality of your email newsletters with these examples.

Here are 8 best Email Newsletter Examples for your Email Marketing Campaigns:
~ Jins
~ Away
~ Casper Labs
~ Ben & Jerry’s
~ Cook Smarts
~ Stylist Live LUXE
~ Unsplash
~ Moz

8 great Newsletter Examples that will inspire you: Get inspired by these amazing examples of email marketing from different brands.

1. JINS: The JINS email newsletter includes an easy-to-follow guide to help its audience choose the right prescription glasses. The company also provides links to relevant pages throughout the newsletter to give its subscribers quick access to important information, as well as a live chat link to style experts.

By connecting to relevant platforms or channels where your brand is present, you strengthen your integrated marketing strategy because your subscribers can interact with you across multiple channels.

2. Away: Away is an online store that designs, manufactures and sells luggage and other travel items such as backpacks and totes. In this newsletter, the brand highlights several product colours by compiling user-generated content from their social media pages.

This newsletter layout is perfect for showcasing your products and encouraging your community to engage with you. The email includes multiple call-to-action (CTA) buttons so Away subscribers can purchase the products they want without going through multiple pages.

Away also includes a recommendation option in the email to increase brand visibility.

3. Casper Labs: In one of its emails, Casper Labs reveals the science behind its product through storytelling in a problem-solving framework. The company uses simple graphics to make its content easier to understand and provide its readers with a better experience when consuming its content.

Instead of using sales-boosting phrases for its CTA button, Casper Labs invites its readers to “Learn More.” Use the Casper Labs approach to creating engaging newsletters without appearing too promotional.

4. Ben & Jerry’s: Ben & Jerry’s ChunkMail is fun and educational. It includes useful and fun information like milkshake recipes, never-before-seen facts about the company, and even tips on how to avoid freezer burn. As the newsletter has no promotional character, the company’s readers are not encouraged to be extra vigilant for fear of being sold. They might even be excited to try Ben & Jerry’s milkshake recipe, which means they have to buy their ice cream.

5. Cook Smarts: Cook Smarts sends weekly meal plans to its subscribers. The newsletter contains delicious photos of the meals. (Talk about letting the products speak for themselves.)

Plus, the Cook Smarts email is full of tips and links to helpful resources. With the value of their newsletter, their audience will surely appreciate Cook Smarts’ efforts and inspire them to support the company. The best part is the free email templates available online which you can use to create awesome newsletters like Cook Smarts.

Canva’s professional-looking email newsletter templates are perfect for the job.

6. Stylist Live LUXE: Stylist magazine’s Stylist Live LUXE newsletter uses a tone, design and layout reminiscent of fashion magazines. The email stays true to the brand image and highlights important information by placing it at the centre with eye-catching complementary colours.

Be creative with colour, but make sure your visual design doesn’t detract from your content.

7. Unsplash: Unsplash is a free image-sharing platform. Photographers share their work with media companies, marketers, and anyone looking for royalty-free images. The platform’s weekly newsletter uses a simple format with a single call to action.

Use simple backgrounds and minimal design elements to make your CTA stand out. Simple layouts also mean you can spend less time designing your newsletters and more time on other aspects of your email marketing efforts, including managing your email list.

8. Moz: If linking to external articles adds tremendous value to your newsletters, do so. While it’s ideal to create your version of the content and post it to your website, there are scenarios where this isn’t possible, especially when we’re talking about case studies.

By linking to other websites, you show your subscribers that you want to help them solve their problems. Contact the website or publisher you featured to let them know you linked to their post. This strategy is perfect for building meaningful relationships with other publishers in your industry.

The post 8 Best Email Newsletter Examples first appeared on YTVIEWS.IN.

What should be in a Newsletter?

For example, your newsletter can contain anything:
~ Summary of weekly contents
~ In-depth guides or ebooks
~ Recent interviews with industry experts
~ Case studies and testimonials
~ News about upcoming sales, promotions and offers

That said, you should approach each newsletter with the express intention of providing immediate value to your audience. You’ll outbid your welcome quickly if it looks like you’re just emailing your subscribers.

Remember, the entire purpose of a newsletter is to keep subscribers connected, engaged, and informed about news from your company or industry. But it’s unlikely that all of your subscribers will have the same needs and interests, so consider sending different types of updates to different segments of your subscriber list.

For example, a full-time working parent may want a very short email, while a retiree may have more time to read a longer message. Personalizing your newsletters in this way ensures that your readers only receive the information most relevant to them, which in turn improves your engagement and conversion rates.

When it comes to specific elements to include in your newsletter, a catchy subject line and a strong call to action (CTA) are key. You should also make sure your posts follow a clear and consistent format and always give your readers the option to easily unsubscribe if they wish.

How long should a Newsletter last?
Some research suggests that the ideal length for a newsletter is around 20 lines of text or 200 words at most. But in reality, there is no magic number that guarantees a high CTR.

The truth is just patience and through testing, you can find out which length works best for your specific audience. But this is good news! Any marketer looking for a golden ticket based on what’s called an optimal word count is out of luck, which means less competition for those of us willing to spend time and get the job done.

The appropriate length of your newsletter depends on the preferences of your subscribers, which, as mentioned, can vary from segment to segment. You don’t have to send the same newsletter format to everyone.

However, the right length also depends on the specific content of your newsletter and the actions you are asking your readers to take. For example, if you’re encouraging subscribers to register for an event, they probably need enough information to decide if it’s right for them.

So your newsletter email can contain multiple sections, including biographies of featured speakers or artists, information about the purpose of the event, venue details, and more. In the meantime, a newsletter email inviting readers to check out your latest blog series can probably do with minimal text.

Ultimately, the best way to determine your ideal newsletter length and optimize your email campaigns for other important metrics is to perform email A/B testing.

Conclusion: Understanding the effectiveness of email newsletters is essential if you want to grow your business. They are an invaluable tool for growing your email list, converting subscribers into customers, and building trust and loyalty with your audience.

Now that you know what newsletters are and how they can help your business, it’s time to get to work and incorporate them into your marketing strategy.

The post How and What should a Newsletter be like? first appeared on YTVIEWS.IN.