Fresh from sending our own CC:UK email newsletter, it’s no secret that we work with clients on theirs. A lot.

The biggest question we’re asked? “What is best practice?”

Our usual answer: “It depends.” (Classic consultant’s answer, I know. Sorry.)
We say that, because it really does depend on what the organisation is trying to achieve.

Most of us who do work for Collective Content came from an online publishing world that went through a stage of demanding more, more, more. (Still does, in many ways.)

More eyeballs, more visits, more pages per visit, more minutes on the site, more minutes per visit – you get the idea.

But more isn’t always the right goal. Sometimes less is, well, more money.
In B2B or certain high-end consumer areas you need to think carefully about quality engagement and how that leads not just to a click or lead but to a sale.

Reaching your audience optimally means working out the right time, the right format and the right content.

Over the next few weeks we’ll be discussing a couple of newsletters that break some of the rules you’ve heard about.

If you want clicks, possibly to the detriment of sales or engaging with your most interesting or wealthy clients, then go ahead with the link-fest you see in some newsletters.

Newsletters remain one of the best ways to connect. People have invited you in to their inbox. They can get deep into your message in a way that other media still often can’t manage.

Don’t screw it up.

Stay tuned over the next few weeks for some best practice from orgs that are doing it their own ways and doing it well.
–
Follow us on Twitter – @ColContent