How to Start a B2B Marketing Newsletter
by: Lisa Zwikl, CSO, SmartAcre
Considering starting a marketing newsletter to promote yourself, your business, or products?
Here are two easy steps to get started:
Ok, maybe not?that?simple, but I am sharing from experience after just sending my first "newsletter" to over 4,000 contacts.
These two simple steps are where most businesses get paralyzed by perfection and never start. I personally follow so many smart marketers on LinkedIn. I read their content everywhere they share it. I share their ideas! I think they are brilliant.
But here’s the thing. Part of the reason why they are brilliant is because they are sharing their ideas. They are putting themselves out there again and again.
If you have something worth saying, say it. Start there.
Then hit send. It can be hard, but this step is so important because if you don’t try, you will never know what resonates. You won’t get to see what people say in their replies. You won’t see what they click. Even if you fail, you will learn.
Developing a Newsletter Strategy
If you are still reading, I’d like to tell you more about my overall strategy. Like every good strategy, it started with goals and objectives. Building awareness for SmartAcre and generating new clients.
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Before putting content out in a long-form style newsletter, I started getting my voice out on LinkedIn. This was important to me for a few reasons:
For example, one thing I learned from my LinkedIn content is that?every time I include a gif?it performs better (silly but true). This became a tactic I tested and will test again in a newsletter format.
The second key part of my strategy was finding my tone and creating personalized content. When you hear "B2B Newsletter" you might think of a round-up of content, sharing links back to a blog or case studies. B2B marketing doesn't have to be boring. You can find and curate thought-leaders within your organization. You can tell a unique story. My strategy was focused around being myself and sharing my thoughts. Naturally that led to a few links back to our website and our partners' content.
Next, I did make sure it was decent. I shared it with my most trusted critics to make sure it didn’t suck. They helped me fix a few things, making it slightly easier to hit send.
Now, I’m looking at the data. Seeing who clicked and what they looked at. Connecting with people who opened on LinkedIn. Continuing the conversation with those who replied. And cleaning up our HubSpot database after the latest bounces and unsubscribes.
Lastly, see what I’m doing here? Producing content takes time. As part of a content strategy, it is important to consider how you can repurpose thought leadership across different channels, like LinkedIn or a blog.
I don't mean to oversimplify a marketing tactic. Good marketing does require thought, energy, and time. I do hope to inspire others to get started, because sometimes that is the hardest part.
Want more content like this?
Another objective of this newsletter and all email campaigns sent from SmartAcre is to show vs. tell. Check out our insights and fill out our pop-up call-to-action if you want in on our email list, or contact us. I’ll share real-time insights from my experience of what is working and what isn’t.