Want to know if your newsletter is actually working?

Want to build a thriving online community for your brand? In the digital age, email marketing continues to stand out as a powerful tool for connecting with your audience, fostering loyalty, and driving conversions.

Feeling stuck creating fresh content for your email newsletters? You're not alone! 

I was recently captivated by Jules Terpak's video essay on TikTok Edits – a trend reshaping how content is consumed and appreciated. This video wasn't just a walkthrough of a social media trend – it was a masterclass in understanding deeper user engagement and content creation for today's fast-paced world. 

Choosing the right email platform for your newsletter is a challenging task. With countless options and extensive lists of features,you might find yourself feeling overwhelmed and frustrated. 

Since most platforms provide similar capabilities, how do you decide which fits your needs best? Well, I’ve compiled a list of 7 email newsletter features to prioritize when selecting the right platform for your goals.

Here's what you should look for:

Imagine you're planning a trip to a new city, and you want to make the most of your visit. You'd probably start by looking for information online, reading travel guides, and asking for recommendations from friends who have been there. As you move closer to your travel date, you might receive emails with personalized tips, hotel deals, and local event updates. This process of guiding you through each stage of your journey is similar to what businesses do when integrating newsletters into their customer journey.

Before we jump into the topic of using curated content for newsletters, let's first acknowledge the importance of this marketing strategy. In today's fast-paced digital world, newsletters have become crucial to any successful marketing campaign. They offer businesses direct communication with their audience, allowing them to build relationships, increase brand awareness, and drive revenue.

Explore seven practical and easy-to-implement advertising formats for newsletters in this breakdown. From newsletter sponsorship to native advertising, learn about different ways to align with a publisher's brand and reach an engaged audience. 

We know firsthand how hard it can be to manage, run, grow, and monetize a newsletter operation. That's why we decided to help other publishers avoid the pitfalls we ran into and get the most out of their newsletters. At Letterhead, we help other publishers master email newsletters, and our tools are trusted by the publishers of over 2,000+ newsletters like Patch, Salon, Tiny News Collective, Techstars, McClatchy, and Snopes.

But let's face it – the environment for publishers is challenging and getting tougher. Ad spending has declined for the last six months and is projected to decrease even further in 2023. And 74% of digital ad spend goes to the big three platform companies. In this climate, first-party data has never been more critical. Publishers need to own their audience directly and control the contact information. Building trust-based, long-term engagement is how publishers get secure revenue and lifetime value. Email is the best channel for this, with a 40:1 ROI as a marketing and engagement channel.

Unfortunately, most publishers are leaving value on the table with their email lists. 90% of publishers say the email channel is vital to the future of their business, but only 22% say their increasing investments are paying off. Publishers have some of the lowest-rated emails according to consumers. It's time to flip the script and get more out of your newsletters. We've put together this comprehensive guide that digs into the key strategies publishers should use to take their operations to the next stage. For now, here's a glimpse into the four strategies to help you do just that: