When you’re looking at a new way to beef up your marketing strategy and want something a little more personal you could do far worse than considering a curated email.
But what is a curated email and how do you go about getting one? What makes them stand out and apart from direct email marketing campaigns? We explore eight ways on how and when to use curated emails to boost your personal brand.
A curated email is simply one that contains a lot of information that is tailored just for your audience. It is more personal than an email and can offer a variety of content areas from information about your company to offers and promotional discounts. Creating one is a lot of work but well worth the effort.
1. Choose Your Lists
First you need to know who you’re sending to on your list. If you don’t already have a list of subscribers then start by using your CMS software to collate emails or simply get your professional contacts list ready to go as a mailout.
You might have several versions for returning customers or customers who have visited your website without taking action previously. Either way the content will be tailored exactly for them.
Sonia Ferguson, an email strategist at Studentwritingservices, said: “Next to the topic, your emailing list is the most important aspect of your curated email newsletter. If you’re targeting the right people at the right time your mailout is going to have a significant impact.
2. Don’t Be Mediocre
Great content is the key to a great newsletter. What’s going to make your brand stand out from all the rest is the way you tell your story? Don’t let boring copy bring your newsletter down, by the same token keep your news full of news. Fresh, exciting and with something the customer can respond to, a call to action is how your newsletter is going to work.
If you aren’t a natural writer, you might employ the services of a freelance copywriter to make your content really shine.
3. Accurate And Attractive Email Copy
If you’re going to send it out, make it accurate. There’s nothing worse than receiving an email that’s full of spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. If you don’t have someone with proof reading skills in your office, then consider running your content through these online tools:
- Academ Advisor: a useful email formatting guide
- Revieweal and Boomessays: two tools for email copywriting and editing
- Essayroo: used to generate catchy subject lines
- Ukwritings and Grammarix: powerful grammar checkers and helpful tips
4. Choosing The Right Topic
Get this element right and you’ll be able to build up an audience that genuinely takes the time to read through your mailout and will have a loyalty to your brand that comes about from regular communication and a quality product.
Brand manager Damian Higgins at Topcanadianwriters said: “You want your audience to believe they are receiving something free that brings them added value. In your newsletter you should let your customers have some of the inside tricks to your trade. Offer them the latest news in your industry and how to find out more.”
5. Getting The Right Look
You’ll need to choose a look that reflects your brand identity and tells your story. There are a lot of these templates and software available so choose carefully and use the same one consistently so you’ll be quickly recognised.
When it comes to images, make sure that pictures you are using both relevant and of high quality. There are a number of free options for downloading images but if you want consistently high standards, then it might be well worth signing up to a digital stockroom.
Avoid using personal photos; especially ones with family members in, they might not appreciate the exposure.
6. Finding The Right Tone
Like your blog is different to the rest of the content on your web, your newsletter tone will be different from the rest of your marketing tools.
The newsletter assumes that readers want to know about the brand. There’s less of a sales drive and more an information theme taking place, though the ultimate goal is often a call to action, such as to visit the website or take up a promotion behaviour.
As such create a friendly but knowledgeable tone that speaks to your reader as an equal, like a colleague rather than a friend.
7. Make It Unique
When your readers get your email newsletter they should know instantly that this has come from your brand. Not just because of the look, the tone or oven the content but rather because all these things have combined to create a unique newsletter.
Every time you send an updated newsletter it should be this style, unique to you and received each and every time.
8. Make Sure Your Newsletter Looks The Same Across Platforms
How your email looks in Chrome might not be the same as it does in Outlook. Make sure that you send a test email to all the platforms to make sure that all the content has translated well across each platform.
For whatever reason you choose to start producing your newsletter, make sure that you are following a few simple guidelines to give your brand the edge and shine a light on your website.
Make sure your content is unique, engaging, friendly and authoritative. Give it a life of its own and a personality that reflects completely your own style.
Choose the template that highlights your products, your key features and allows you to add in promotional buttons and calls to action.
Before you send out your newsletter, make sure it is thoroughly proof read, all the links are tested and every promotion takes you to the correct content on your page.
Once you’ve got all the preparation done you’re all ready to hit send and launch the next stage of your effective marketing campaign.