Email newsletters provide an effective way for marketers to engage with prospects and customers in a meaningful way. Find out how to create a great email newsletter that performs.

The Marketer’s Guide to Creating Great Email Newsletters

the-marketers-guide-to-creating-great-email-newsletters

[[p]]With so much content online, it can be a challenge for brands to get seen by consumers. This means companies are struggling to attract and engage customers leading to lost revenue and a high churn rate.&nbsp;&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]So what&rsquo;s the solution? Email newsletters provide an effective way for marketers to engage with prospects and customers in a meaningful way.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]While [[a href="https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/blog/the-ultimate-email-marketing-guide-for-beginners" target="_blank"]]email marketing[[/a]] can be used to deliver on short-term goals such as boosting conversions or driving revenue, newsletters can focus on long-term goals such as building brand awareness, customer nurturing and cultivating loyal customers.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]So how can you make your newsletter stand out?&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]In this blog, we will explore:[[/p]]

[[ul]]
	[[li]]What is newsletter marketing?[[/li]]
	[[li]]What makes a good newsletter?[[/li]]
	[[li]]What are the different types of newsletters (plus great examples)?[[/li]]
	[[li]]10 steps to creating a good newsletter[[/li]]
	[[li]]What are the best newsletter platforms?[[/li]]
	[[li]]4 examples of great newsletters[[/li]]
	[[li]]When should you send a newsletter?[[/li]]
	[[li]]How to measure the effectiveness of your newsletter marketing[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]]When planning your email communications, it&rsquo;s essential to be clear on the difference between a newsletter and other email comms.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]A newsletter is typically a regular, scheduled update that provides valuable, broad content to your audience that&rsquo;s less sales-driven and more focused on engagement and providing useful information.[[/p]]

[[p]]While other email communications (like product announcements, sales emails, event invitations, and PR updates) are more targeted, time-sensitive, and usually focused on driving specific actions (i.e. conversion).[[/p]]

[[p]]You should also consider who is responsible for the newsletter and that they liaise with key departments such as sales, [[a href="https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/blog/what-is-digital-pr" target="_blank"]]PR[[/a]], or product to feed in content, updates, or key messages.[[/p]]

[[p]]Newsletters can be tailored to tap into a subscriber&rsquo;s interests or used to create touchpoints that keep an audience engaged over time helping to build relationships and guide customers along the buyer journey.[[/p]]

[[p]]Popular and effective content formats to use in email newsletters are tips, industry news, product round-ups, listicles or expert advice.&nbsp;&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]This format can be a powerful way to nurture leads, build brand loyalty, and drive conversions by delivering value directly to an inbox.&nbsp;&nbsp;[[/p]]

71% of B2B marketers use an email newsletter as part of their content marketing strategy and 37% say it’s one of their most effective marketing channels

[[p]]It&rsquo;s important to follow some key steps to ensure you&rsquo;re creating the best email newsletter you can for your audience. Here are 10 simple steps to follow to get the most from your newsletters.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Start by figuring out why you want to send the email newsletter. Is it to drive traffic, re-engage lapsed subscribers, nurture leads, or build brand authority?[[/p]]

[[p]]It&rsquo;s important to segment your lists if possible and tailor your content to match your audience&rsquo;s needs, interests, and stage in the customer journey. For example, you can group people together who have made a similar past purchase or downloaded an ebook via a social media lead. Use your [[a href="https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/blog/the-beginners-guide-to-defining-buyer-personas" target="_blank"]]defined buyer personas[[/a]] to help with this step if necessary.&nbsp;&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Select a newsletter format that supports your goal. For example is your newsletter promotional, events focused, curated content, thought leadership, or a product or service update?[[/p]]

[[p]]Include well researched and high-quality content in every newsletter. This could be expert insights, new blog content, or exclusive resources. Keep it relevant and focused.[[/p]]

[[p]]A good subject line can determine whether a person opens your email or sends it to trash. So take time to create subject lines that grab attention, are clear, and relevant. Curiosity and urgency can help here. Check out these [[a href="https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/blog/email-marketing-tips-examples" target="_blank"]]email marketing tips and examples[[/a]] for further insights.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Ensure your newsletter is readable and [[a href="https://my.digitalmarketinginstitute.com/blog/digital-accessibility-for-marketers-part-3-email-social-content_seo" target="_blank"]]accessible[[/a]] by using a clean layout with clear headings, short paragraphs, visual hierarchy, and mobile-friendly formatting. You can also break up text with images, icons or buttons.[[/p]]

[[p]]You always want someone to take an action with your newsletter, even if it&rsquo;s simply to click through to a new piece of content. So include a clear and engaging CTA to guide the reader toward the next step. You can also use tracking links like UTMs so you can track people that convert through the newsletter.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Create a newsletter that looks like it&rsquo;s tailored to every individual by including the recipient&rsquo;s name in the subject line or first line, or recommend content based on behavior.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Use [[a href="https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/resources/toolkits/a-b-testing-tool" target="_blank"]]A/B testing[[/a]] to see what works with your lists. You can test subject lines, CTAs, and send times. Make sure to test one thing at a time to know what variation worked. Then analyze open rates, click-through rates, and unsubscribe rates to learn what resonates.[[/p]]

[[p]]Be consistent with your newsletter by sticking to a regular schedule. That can be weekly, every fortnight or monthly depending on your audience and the content available but the key is engagement, so don&rsquo;t leave it too long between sends.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]There are a lot of platforms out there to create, organize and send your newsletters. In fact, there may be too many to choose from![[/p]]

[[p]]That&rsquo;s why we&rsquo;ve chosen some of the best newsletter platforms, broken into needs, budget and technical ability.&nbsp;&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Mailchimp is suitable for beginners and small businesses to manage email, newsletters, social, website, and SMS.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]&nbsp;Key features:[[/p]]

[[ul]]
	[[li]]Easy to use drag-and-drop editor[[/li]]
	[[li]]Basic themes available for design[[/li]]
	[[li]]Strong automation and analytics[[/li]]
	[[li]]Wide integration options[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]]Free plan available up to 500 contacts and 1,000 sends/month.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Substack is suitable for writers, journalists, and solo creators as you can publish free and paid content across a variety of formats: newsletters, podcasts, and video. You can also build a community on Substack through regular posting and engaging using comments, notes, and Chat.[[/p]]

[[p]]Key features:[[/p]]

[[ul]]
	[[li]]Extremely easy to use[[/li]]
	[[li]]Built-in monetization (subscriptions)[[/li]]
	[[li]]Blog + newsletter in one[[/li]]
	[[li]]Limited customization but great for simplicity[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]]Substack is free to use for people who want to publish content without charging for subscriptions.[[/p]]

[[p]]HubSpot is best for enterprise and B2B marketing teams and has an in-built newsletter builder to create newsletters that engage an audience.[[/p]]

[[p]]Key features:[[/p]]

[[ul]]
	[[li]]Full marketing suite (CRM, forms, automation, etc.)[[/li]]
	[[li]]Deep personalization and workflows[[/li]]
	[[li]]Integrated dashboards[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]]You can send 2,000 emails monthly with a free account.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Formerly known as ConvertKit, Kit is suitable for creators, bloggers, and sellers.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Key features:[[/p]]

[[ul]]
	[[li]]Clean interface and strong segmentation[[/li]]
	[[li]]Visual automation builder[[/li]]
	[[li]]Great for lead magnets and landing pages[[/li]]
	[[li]]Focused on audience growth tools[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]]Free plan for up to 10,000 subscribers, unlimited emails, and core features.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Beehiiv is suitable for newsletter-first businesses and media brands.[[/p]]

[[p]]Key features:&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[ul]]
	[[li]]Monetization tools (paid subscriptions, ad network)[[/li]]
	[[li]]Fast growth and creator-focused[[/li]]
	[[li]]Clean writing and publishing experience[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]]There&rsquo;s a free plan for up to 2,500 subscribers with a number of features available.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]][[strong]]Top tip: [[/strong]]Bulk senders of emails (5,000+) need to be aware of new regulations put in place by [[a href="https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/blog/google-yahoo-email-changes-what-do-they-mean-for-marketers" target="_blank"]]Yahoo and Google[[/a]] to cut down on spam.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Whether you&rsquo;re starting out or looking to improve your newsletter, it&rsquo;s always useful to learn from great examples.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]There are loads of successful newsletters out there, but here are four of the ones that we like.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Travel guide book and travel company, [[a href="https://www.lonelyplanet.com/" target="_blank"]]the Lonely Planet[[/a]] have been around since 1973 and are the go-to for many regular travellers or those interested in countries and travel.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]The company sends out a weekly newsletter that covers thousands of destinations with content written by experts that give cultural context alongside practical information.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]As you can see from the example above, they use enough body text to provide information, but not enough to overwhelm and the very specific call-to-action prompts the reader to click-through to learn more.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]][[a href="https://cookieandkate.com/" target="_blank"]]Cookie + Kate[[/a]] is a food blog dedicated to helping people create healthy and delicious vegetarian food. Kate is the human food blogger and Cookie is her canine companion!&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]This example above uses imagery to draw you in using a simple and emotive headline with fear of missing out (FOMO), a sub-heading, and a CTA that simply encourages people to &lsquo;Get the recipe&rsquo;.[[/p]]

[[p]][[a href="https://thehyphen.substack.com/" target="_blank"]]The Hyphen[[/a]] is a Substack newsletter from bestselling author Emma Gannon with more than 70,000 subscribers. The name &lsquo;hyphens&rsquo; symbolises that messy bit in the middle or the &ldquo;in-between&rdquo; bits of life, the hyphens that knit together all the different sides of ourselves.[[/p]]

[[p]]The newsletter focuses on wellbeing, creativity and literature, along with book and podcast recommendations each week through a section called &lsquo;Sunday Scrolls&rsquo;.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]The newsletter is such a success that she charges &pound;6.99/month or &pound;69/year for newsletter access and Gannon recently posted about how she makes a six-figure income on Substack![[/p]]

[[p]]With 17 million subscribers, the New York Times&rsquo;s newsletter &lsquo;Morning Briefing&rsquo; puts all other newsletters to shame!&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Focused on news - the topical, the current, the global and the quirky - the daily newsletter provides a daily digest that&rsquo;s informed by experts from Times experts. Topics covered include politics, science, business, and literature.&nbsp;&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]The newsletter uses whitespace effectively to focus on the imagery and content and sums up the content in the introduction succinctly along with using an image of the staff member to make it more personal.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]The optimum time to send a newsletter depends on a couple of factors: who is your audience and where are they?&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]There are benchmarks that may help in choosing the right days and times. According to research by [[a href="https://www.mailerlite.com/blog/best-time-to-send-email" target="_blank"]]MailerLite[[/a]], Monday is the weekday with the highest average open rate (51.9%), closely followed by Tuesday (51%).&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]In terms of the best time, it does vary by day, particularly when you compare weekdays to weekends.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]But ultimately it&rsquo;s about knowing your audience. Use A/B testing to see what days and times suit within your different segments.[[/p]]

[[p]][[strong]]Top tip:[[/strong]] If you have a global audience then it may be worth scheduling by time zones to make sure you&rsquo;re not sending your newsletter out in the dead of night!&nbsp;&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]There&rsquo;s no point in putting in time and resources into creating a newsletter if you don&rsquo;t know how it&rsquo;s performing.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]That&rsquo;s why it&rsquo;s important to set goals from the outset and tie key performance indicators ([[a href="https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/resources/toolkits/targets-and-kpis-your-essential-toolkit" target="_blank"]]KPIs[[/a]]) or metrics to those goals.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]][[strong]]Engagement Metrics[[/strong]][[/p]]

[[ul]]
	[[li]]
	[[p]][[strong]]Open rate [[/strong]]- The percentage of people who open the email.&nbsp;[[/p]]
	[[/li]]
	[[li]]
	[[p]][[strong]]Click-through rate (CTR)[[/strong]] - The percentage of people who clicked on one or more links.[[/p]]
	[[/li]]
	[[li]]
	[[p]][[strong]]Click-to-open rate (CTOR)[[/strong]] - The percentage of people who clicked on a link.[[/p]]
	[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]][[strong]]Conversion &amp; Goal Metrics[[/strong]][[/p]]

[[ul]]
	[[li]]
	[[p]][[strong]]Conversion rate[[/strong]] - Percentage who completed a desired action (e.g. purchase, sign-up).[[/p]]
	[[/li]]
	[[li]]
	[[p]][[strong]]Revenue per email (RPE)[[/strong]] - Revenue generated / number of emails sent.[[/p]]
	[[/li]]
	[[li]]
	[[p]][[strong]]List growth rate [[/strong]]- The rate at which your subscriber list is growing.[[/p]]
	[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]][[strong]]Negative Indicators[[/strong]][[/p]]

[[ul]]
	[[li]]
	[[p]][[strong]]Bounce rate[[/strong]] - Percentage of emails not successfully delivered.[[/p]]
	[[/li]]
	[[li]]
	[[p]][[strong]]Unsubscribe rate[[/strong]] - Percentage of recipients who opt out.[[/p]]
	[[/li]]
	[[li]]
	[[p]][[strong]]Spam complaint rate[[/strong]] - Number of recipients who marked the email as spam.[[/p]]
	[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]][[strong]]Optimization Metrics[[/strong]][[/p]]

[[ul]]
	[[li]]
	[[p]][[strong]]A/B results[[/strong]] - Comparative performance (e.g., subject line A vs B).[[/p]]
	[[/li]]
	[[li]]
	[[p]][[strong]]Device performance[[/strong]] - Engagement by mobile vs desktop or email client.[[/p]]
	[[/li]]
[[/ul]]

[[p]]As you can see, email newsletters can be a great way to attract, engage, and even re-engage your audience.&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]Use this comprehensive guide to create an email newsletter that helps you stand out from your peers and get your brand noticed.&nbsp;&nbsp;[[/p]]

[[p]]There&rsquo;s no better or faster way to break into the digital industry than with a digital marketing certification. DMI&rsquo;s certified and industry aligned [[a href="https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/students/courses/professional-diploma-in-digital-marketing" target="_blank"]]Professional Diploma in Digital Marketing[[/a]] will teach you the fundamentals of digital marketing, show you how to leverage AI in your marketing activities and simple ways to cultivate soft skills. You&rsquo;ll also explore key channels such as email marketing, social media, SEO, content marketing, and display and video advertising to execute successful marketing campaigns in any industry.[[br /]]
[[br /]]
&nbsp;[[/p]]

The Marketer’s Guide to Creating Great Email Newsletters

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