Mr Soltoff is chief executive of marketing technology firm SendTech and has more than 20 years’ experience in direct marketing.
Profiling three examples of good industry newsletters, Mr Soltoff explains the importance of providing a perfect mix of quality and quantity content so the newsletter becomes a valuable resource for the reader.
Webmaster Tips & Tricks is a twice monthly newsletter published by Bravenet.com and has around 1.1 million subscribers. It aims to provide design and production advice for web designers as well as raising brand awareness for Bravenet.
Mr Soltoff says the newsletter's success is founded on the quality of its content. This inspires confidence in readers and makes them more likely to become customers.
By listening and responding to feedback from readers, the publication also adapts to suit the needs of the customer.
POWEReZINE, published by Tampa Electric in the US, provides information for the local business community. The publication follows three key rules: objective content, which means not selling directly to readers; full contact details for the editorial team; and direct links to stories, rather than to the homepage.
HSI e-Alert covers health-related news and services for around 275,000 subscribers. It has developed a particularly effective style with attention-grabbing headlines such as ‘lose up to five pounds a week with chocolate’ and ‘you could have a heart attack tomorrow’.
He concludes that for any business with a product or service that might lend themselves to interesting content, a newsletter is the perfect way to develop a valuable and productive relationship with customers.
Mr Soltoff has written several articles on related themes for ClickZ.com including a guide to writing powerful subject lines and 20 rules on writing effective business emails.
Sources:
http://www.clickz.com/em_mkt/em_mkt/article.php/2240091
http://www.sendtec.com/
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