5 Criteria for Creating a Compelling E-Newsletter
An effective, inexpensive way to promote your book is to develop an electronic newsletter or magazine (called an e-newsletter or an e-zine).
There are over 400,000 electronic newsletters, and the good ones include a balance of helpful information and book promotion. A compelling e-zine meets five criteria: It has substance, personality, regularity, authority, and integrity.
1. Substance
Your e-zine should not be just an advertisement for your book or business, but a helpful resource. It must contain content that benefits the reader; otherwise, the delete button is just too easy to press.
Many e-zines include guest columns from other authors to increase the content, value, and click-through rate (the number of times readers click links within your e-zine to pages on your Web site).
Think about the type of content your readers will value, and be consistent with your content.
2. Personality
Your e-zine must have a style and personality that communicates who you are and what you stand for. If it is boring and monotone, you’ll lose subscribers. Inject some humor and light-heartedness into your newsletter.
3. Regularity
Set up a schedule and stick to it. Whether you send your e-zine out weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or quarterly, send it the same time every month so your readers come to expect it.
4. Authority
Be an authority people can count on. When you allow other authors in your e-zine, you imply that you are endorsing that author. People read your e-zine because they believe in you, and they will automatically believe in whomever you allow in your ranks. Be someone people can believe in.
5. Integrity
Some e-zines offer good information for the first few issues and then stoop to promoting some money-making scheme or affiliate program. A true resource for your readers will offer needed and wanted information and will not just be a sales pitch.
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