Newsletters: What to Do or Not to Do?
Email newsletters are usually kind of boring.
Working in a role close to marketing, I find myself asking the same question every couple of years. What would I do differently if I got a chance to design one. And guess what? I now have the opportunity to design one.
Here's what I think:
- You spend a few seconds skimming an email
- If something catches your eye, you read/click on it
- Sometimes, you're busy and you'll mark the email unread but never really go back to it
- Usually, you won't get hooked and you'll leave the email, never to read it again.
So the key thing is: have something shiny that will catch someone's eye. But for an audience of hundreds/thousands of people.
What is something that catches your eye in a newsletter?
What is something that makes you want to unsubscribe?
What would you suggest that I do? You're right email newsletters are boring, thats why most people prefer RSS. RSS is better than newsletters. An email newsletter is boring if it's a (rehash of a) RSS feed. It starts to become interesting when it is its own kind of writing format (that is a bit different from a blog post). Yes I feel the same! Have you seen any examples that have peaked your interest or worked well? Interesting! I'm unfamiliar with RSS but will look into it.