Email That People Can’t Wait To Get
My dad is an old farmer from the dust on the bottom of his work boots to the grime on the
brim of his John Deere hat. He loves to make things grow and then see the fruits of his
labor at harvest. Every week he excitedly waits by his mailbox to receive a large
newsletter? He waits for a publication called "The Fence Post". The Fence Post writes
about everything a farmer would care about and then gives them even more to consider.
My father devours it, relishes the time he has to read it, and then reads it again. I think it
is safe to say that the people behind the Fence Post have captured my dad. How about
you? Have you captured your readers? Do they look forward to your newsletter and
anticipate receiving it. Now, I realize that some information can be hard to make
interesting, but there are steps we can take that will greatly increase our ability to grab our
particular audience. I would like to see you capture your audience and create content that
they will look forward to. Here are some steps you can take to better create newsletters
that people can't wait to get.
Step 1: Strive to Know Your Audience- This may seem obvious, but in our busy lives,
we can forget what it feels like to walk in the shoes of the people we serve and do
business with. If we are going to send email newsletters that our audience is excited to
open; we must understand their hopes, dreams, and challenges. We must find ways to
communicate with them and determine their current situations and frustrations. I receive
calls and emails from many of you which assist me in knowing what to write about. In this
newsletter I included a short 10 question survey to gain more information. In fact if you
wouldn't mind taking my survey; it would help me help you. So, when we write content that
speaks to our audience’s interests, the value of the content rises along with the
excitement of getting our email newsletters.
Step 2: Make a List- Once we have determined some of our audiences dreams and
challenges, we can now make a ongoing list. The list can be simple; like the following one
of people who like to garden.
Possible hopes/dreams:
Possible challenges:
Step 3: Use the List to Create Content that Empowers and Inspires- When we
create helpful content based on our audience’s interests, people get hungry for more. We
inspire them by giving them new ideas that helps them dream more. For example, with our
gardening audience, we could send content like: 10 great new plants for your area; plants
kids love to grow; easy fountain ideas; and six great recipes from the garden. If we want to
empower people, we need to send content that helps them address the challenges they
have. Again in the gardening audience, we could send content like: plants that keep
bugs away; tips to help install a watering system; plants that deer won’t eat; 5 ways to
control weeds; and the best fertilizer for your grass. These ideas help solve problems and
empower our audience with new ideas on how to solve their problems.
Everyone’s newsletter gains a reputation. Creating newsletters that people anticipate
requires intentional effort, but the pay off of building a growing audience that talk about
our email around the water cooler carries with it significant influence and profit. In my next
newsletter, I will give you time saving ideas on how to provide this inspiring and
empowering content. In the future, I will show you how your newsletter’s reputation can
deliver revenue through sponsorships. In the meantime, use these steps to create email
newsletters that people can’t wait to get.
My dad is an old farmer from the dust on the bottom of his work boots to the grime on the
brim of his John Deere hat. He loves to make things grow and then see the fruits of his
labor at harvest. Every week he excitedly waits by his mailbox to receive a large
newsletter? He waits for a publication called "The Fence Post". The Fence Post writes
about everything a farmer would care about and then gives them even more to consider.
My father devours it, relishes the time he has to read it, and then reads it again. I think it
is safe to say that the people behind the Fence Post have captured my dad. How about
you? Have you captured your readers? Do they look forward to your newsletter and
anticipate receiving it. Now, I realize that some information can be hard to make
interesting, but there are steps we can take that will greatly increase our ability to grab our
particular audience. I would like to see you capture your audience and create content that
they will look forward to. Here are some steps you can take to better create newsletters
that people can't wait to get.
Step 1: Strive to Know Your Audience- This may seem obvious, but in our busy lives,
we can forget what it feels like to walk in the shoes of the people we serve and do
business with. If we are going to send email newsletters that our audience is excited to
open; we must understand their hopes, dreams, and challenges. We must find ways to
communicate with them and determine their current situations and frustrations. I receive
calls and emails from many of you which assist me in knowing what to write about. In this
newsletter I included a short 10 question survey to gain more information. In fact if you
wouldn't mind taking my survey; it would help me help you. So, when we write content that
speaks to our audience’s interests, the value of the content rises along with the
excitement of getting our email newsletters.
Step 2: Make a List- Once we have determined some of our audiences dreams and
challenges, we can now make a ongoing list. The list can be simple; like the following one
of people who like to garden.
Possible hopes/dreams:
- Gardening with my kids or grandchildren
- Beautiful vegetables
- Thick grass
- Productive fruit trees,
- Landscaping
- Water fountains
- Sculpted hedges
- Great tomatoes
Possible challenges:
- Bugs
- Birds
- Weeds
- Time
- Soil preparation
- Watering
- Watering systems
- Fertilizing
Step 3: Use the List to Create Content that Empowers and Inspires- When we
create helpful content based on our audience’s interests, people get hungry for more. We
inspire them by giving them new ideas that helps them dream more. For example, with our
gardening audience, we could send content like: 10 great new plants for your area; plants
kids love to grow; easy fountain ideas; and six great recipes from the garden. If we want to
empower people, we need to send content that helps them address the challenges they
have. Again in the gardening audience, we could send content like: plants that keep
bugs away; tips to help install a watering system; plants that deer won’t eat; 5 ways to
control weeds; and the best fertilizer for your grass. These ideas help solve problems and
empower our audience with new ideas on how to solve their problems.
Everyone’s newsletter gains a reputation. Creating newsletters that people anticipate
requires intentional effort, but the pay off of building a growing audience that talk about
our email around the water cooler carries with it significant influence and profit. In my next
newsletter, I will give you time saving ideas on how to provide this inspiring and
empowering content. In the future, I will show you how your newsletter’s reputation can
deliver revenue through sponsorships. In the meantime, use these steps to create email
newsletters that people can’t wait to get.
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