SPA Girls Podcast – EP33 – Getting Your Newsletter Started

towelWelcome to another episode of the infamous SPA Girls Podcast, where we break down the journey to self publishing one step at a time. This week we talked about newsletters – what they are, why you should have one, and how to go about getting one sorted. Setting up an email newsletter is often quoted as being the number one top priority for a self published author – it gives a direct line between you and your readers, which can be invaluable.

We’ve tried to keep it simple so there’s not too much in the way of overwhelming information, and we also made sure that we explained all the terminology that you might come across along the way. Any questions, remember you can always contact us via email, on our Facebook page or via the website!

You need to have an e-mail newsletter! So everyone will tell you, including us.

Why do I need a newsletter?

It is the only way that you can consistently reach your fans directly, no matter if you are traditionally or self-published. It should be your go to, before any other form of social media, including Facebook and twitter.

Social media comes and goes, but your website and your newsletter are, and will always be, the most important tools, after writing, that you have. They are yours and no-one can take them from you.

It’s a well known fact, that e-mail newsletters have a higher return than any ads you may run.

 

How do I get my list?

To begin you will need to sign up to a provider like ’Mad meme, Mailchimp or A Webber. These are the main ones that we know of, but there are many of them. (The alternative is doing it all manually with a spreadsheet. Do this if you have all the time in the world and enjoy pain!)

The above sites can be used for free up to 2000 subscribers (Mailchimp, definitely – not sure of the others) until you need to pay. Because it’s free, you can start with one and move on to another if you don’t like it or find it too hard to use.

You should also have an e-mail dedicated to this. Since Gmail may put your newsletter in spam or in the promotions tab ensure that you have your own email eg Suzybrown@suzybrown.com. If the subscriber uses Gmail, then you could add to your opt in a note to: ‘Find me in your promotions tab or check your spam folder.’

Note: different providers may use different names for your fans eg. Mail Chimp – Your List, Mad Meme – the Audience

 

How do subscribers get on my list?

Your provider will give you the ability to load a Signup form that you create.

Once they subscribe they will get an e-mail to confirm this.

You might want a double opt-in so that anyone serious about being on the list will confirm and those that don’t probably weren’t as interested.

Auto responders will make life easier once you get a few subscribers but you won’t be able to use this until you pay. Auto responders go out at designated intervals and are generated from previously written text by you, thanking them for signing up and offering incentives to stay like free excerpts and videos etc.

 

Who should I target for my Newsletter?

Use the collection of people that have subscribed to your list. They are genuinely interested in you as an author and your products. Never manufacture your list with e-mails you haven’t received permission to use. It’s not worth being unsubscribed from, or worse, them complaining to the provider.

Quality subscribers eg. hot (knows your work and likes it) versus cold (potentially found out about you from a free offer – they could become warm with the right approach)

It is better to have 50 real people than 500 that are not there for you.

 

How hard is it to manufacture a newsletter, and how often do I send one?

If you can use word, then you can do this. Each site will offer templates and you can start with something easy. Look to other authors. Sign up to their newsletters and see how they do it.

Suggestions are: Courtney Milan, Barbara Samuel O’Neal, Nalini Singh

We have different views on how often you should send your newsletter. The main thing to remember is that it is a lot of work to begin with and then as you get into the flow it will become much easier. It must be what you can you do, not what you think you must do. If it is too onerous you will tire of it, or put up a bad product.

We do agree that you shouldn’t leave it too long in case subscribers forget who you are. Or too often so that they feel they are being spammed. If you have the right kind of content, you can send more frequently

This is your opportunity to connect so do it sooner rather and later. What is your workload? Monthly is a great place to start, but if you take longer to put out your releases then bi monthly or quarterly might be best. Whatever you decide, make sure what you promise is what you deliver.

 

Content and What should it Look Like?

Check out the people you like and subscribe to them to see what works for them and for you. If it grabs your attention and holds it for the duration of the read, they could be on to something.

Know your content – know your fans – why are they reading your work?

Remember that your subscribers are real people. Treat them as such. Use a casual friendly tone. Don’t be formal and distant.

Don’t just talk about your book – recommend other authors. Share the love and use them as a filler if you don’t have a new release or your own news and your newsletter is due.

Be professional and treat it like any body of work you send out into the world. Edit it properly.

Make it short and sweet, no rambling.

Emulate other successful authors.

Don’t put in too much personal information but make sure you tell them how to contact you. Insert a link to your sign up form which will automatically be set up by your provider, and put it in the back of your books.

Recipes, crafts etc. are winners if they’re applicable to what you write.

Use graphics, text and hyperlinks to your books. Look at your posts – FB and Twitter etc and see which ones have attracted the most attention

Add value and be consistent.

Keep it to one call-to-action and make it very clear that you want them to click on a specific link without hounding them to buy your book.

Send it out to connect in same genre as you write.

 

Subject Line

Make it immediately engaging but not too gimmicky. You should engender curiosity but not use ridiculous punctuation or misleading words that could see people unsubscribing and just as bad, your newsletter gets blocked or put into spam folders.

The words – free/ sales/ giveaway, may trigger spam filters.

You could: Ask a question/ mention ‘My latest release’/ A ‘Contemporary Romance Release’

The better open rates use a subject line that ‘just says what it is’.

 

Testing 1-2-3

How it looks on the screen is not how it looks always in the e-mail, so start with 3 e-mails you own or know, as a test list and send your newsletter there before it goes to your subscribers.

FYI – an open rate over 50% is fantastic. Don’t panic if yours isn’t as there can be all sorts of reasons why that might not be your fault. (see above re reasons why this happens)

 

Unsubscribers

Don’t panic and don’t take unsubscribes personally. Think of it as natural pruning. If someone isn’t interested, then why waste time sending them e-mails?

Is your newsletter interesting and engaging?

Perhaps you’ve used words or punctuation that has driven your newsletter to their spam folder or it’s been blocked.

Maybe they just changed e-mails.

 

Links and ideas for Newsletter tips

Case study from Joanna Penn: http://www.thecreativepenn.com/…/fiction-email-list-subscr…/

http://www.thecreativepenn.com/2013/06/10/email-marketing/

Dan Blank’s site http://wegrowmedia.com/ tips for newsletters

Ray Edwards has a list of top e-mail headers.

Larissa Reynolds – The Reader Army

The Modern Tog

Check out other newsletters – creative Industries often have very interesting and eye-catching newsletters.

Ask your writing community how they do it.

Don’t forget u-tube or any tutorials

It should be fun as you get into the swing of it but, if it never feels right for you then bite the bullet, and get someone else to do it.

Author: SPA Girls

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1 Comment

  1. Regarding section “How do I get my list?” I would like to add that providers you have mentioned are definitely top notch and provide quality service. However, there are email marketing service providers who offer solutions that were created keeping book authors in mind. Which makes it even more convenient for authors. MailerLite (if you interested in more details you should visit their page for authors https://www.mailerlite.com/authors) offer landing page functionality which is really easy to create, lets you acquire new subscribers and send them sample chapters/paragraphs of your book to readers which I believe is really great feature. It offers 1000 subscribers for free, less than MailChimp but if you get more than that, price remains really competitive.

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