How to Set Up an Email Newsletter for
Your Web Site
An email newsletter can provide you with a unique opportunity to educate potential customers and clients about your services and products through an educational and relevant newsletter.
While it is possible to send out your newsletter through your current email software, such as Microsoft Outlook or Outlook Express, this solution should only be used for very small lists (under 25 names). Trying to keep track of those who sign up each day, as well as those who would like to be removed from your list, can quickly prove to be overwhelming. A more effective solution is through a hosted application that does all of the hard work for you.
A few of the more popular mailing list vendors include Topica (www.topica.com), Constant Contact (www.constantcontact.com) and Campaign Monitor (www.campaignmonitor.com). Prices range from $10.00 – $49.95 per month, depending on the size and frequency of your mailing list. These services are easy to set up, and give you the option of importing an existing list of customer email addresses into the software or starting from scratch with a new list.
The basic requirement after signing up for the service is to add a sign up field to your web site to start capturing email addresses. The addresses are then stored in your account database to be used for each of your mailing list campaigns.
A few things to think about before starting your email newsletter:
1. Who is your target audience?
Will your newsletter be for a specific target market? If your website
caters to more than one target market, it may be a good idea to provide
multiple newsletters.
2. How often will you be sending out your newsletter?
Newsletters can provide a valuable resource to your customers and clients
when sent out on a regular basis. A weekly newsletter may prove to be
a bit much to start with, perhaps a monthly or quarterly approach would
be an easier way to begin.
3. Where will the content for your newsletter come from?
Will you be writing all of the newsletter content yourself, or will
you be using an outside vendor to generate your content? One possibility
is to ask permission from other writers to use their articles in your
newsletter, or provide links to relevant topics.
4. How will you promote your newsletter?
How will potential customers find out about your newsletter? Make sure
to promote your newsletter on all of your marketing materials to help
build your subscriber list.
5. Where will you put the sign up form on your website?
You should place your sign up section in a prominent position on your
web site, such as on your home page. A good place is usually “above the fold”,
which means that a customer does not have to scroll down the page to
see the form.
A newsletter is an excellent way for your company to keep in touch with clients and potential customers on a regular basis. By taking advantage of popular mailing list software, you can save yourself time to focus on the most important part of your newsletter, the content.
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Founder and principal of jajopa Web Design, James Palmer specializes in designing professional web sites that help companies generate more business. Some of James' clients include The Philadelphia Gas Works, Asher & Company, Ltd, and the Philadelphia Sport, Travel & Outdoor Show. Learn more about jajopa Web Design at www.jajopa.com.