Why the hell do you have a newsletter?

Good question! How many of you have a company or organization newsletter? How many send it out regularly? Does it contain useful information or is it a sales letter?

Lets start with the basics. Why do you have a newsletter? To inform your clients right! Inform them about what? The newsletter should keep them up to date on latest trends in your industry or new services or products you may have. Inform them as to how your product can save them time/money or simply make their lives easier. Don't have it sound like a TV commercial.

How often do you send it out? Do you send it our regularly? I work with a lot of clients on "trying" to get their newsletters published periodically each month. Sometimes it like pulling teeth! The most common answer is "Don't have time to work on it!" Think about it for a second. Whom is the newsletter for? You or your readers (clients and prospects). Stop making the process about you and make it about your clients! After all aren't you suppose to make their lives easier? So put the focus back on the client/prospect and get going.

The last point I would like to make is... Is your newsletter mailing list growing? If not why? If it works and you spend the time and effort putting it together why not work towards a wider distribution? The mailing list should be constantly growing or it becomes stagnant. We will cover how to keep it growing at a later date....

Richard M.J. Jarosz
Publisher of the
Jersey Shore Community Information Bulletin