Everything I Did Wrong With My Newsletter (And Why It's Still My #1 Moneymaker)

At this point, I’m about ready to call myself a newsletter evangelist.

Or maybe a Newsletter Ninja.

The Newsletter Nailer?

I don’t know. But here’s what I do know: some days I write what I think is an incredibly well-crafted Instagram post and depending on what the algorithm feels like doing that day, it may or may not get seen by the right people. I put together a value-packed LinkedIn post and sometimes it just straight up flops. Like “95 views in the feed” flops.

But every time I send out an email newsletter, I collect some coins. (And that’s why we’re in business, right? Otherwise, it’s a hobby.)

But it wasn’t always like this. I made sooo many mistakes in the process of growing my list — some of which I’m still undoing. So if you’re feeling like you’ve tried and failed too many times with email marketing, pull up a chair, friend. I’m about to make you feel way better — and embarrass myself at the same time.

I used a weird “marketing” voice.

When I started moving my subscribers from “people who signed up because they like me” to “people I can provide solutions for” I suddenly thought my regular voice — the one people know to be authentically me — didn’t sound official enough.

So I started using buzzwords to sound more profesh. More legit.

What I forgot is that everyone hates being talked to like they’re a target audience. People want to be talked to like…people.

I didn’t send a welcome email.

My email list started as a replacement for my blog about pop culture. Those were the people on my list. So it didn’t really occur to me that when someone new subscribes — especially someone who might hire me — they should be enthusiastically welcomed in! And given a little “what you can expect” kinda intro.

Did you know that first email you send has about 4 times the open rate of a regular email? And about 3 times as many transactions!

And here’s another true confession: I still don’t have a welcome sequence for my subscribers. Sshhh, don’t tell anyone. One of the services I offer is creating welcome sequences, nurture sequences, and sales sequences! But you know what they say about the shoemaker’s son: NO SHOES. (Hey, I’m workin’ on it!)

For now, my subscribers get a single, automated welcome. That email has a 74% open rate so definitely believe the hype about the importance of that first email.

I didn’t segment my list.

“Segment? What?”

Uh, exactly.

I didn’t understand the value of segmentation. I didn’t get that you could divide (segment) your list into collections of people who are alike in at least one way. Maybe they all clicked on the link for an offer. Or they all joined your list by way of a freebie you offered.

So I wrote to everyone, all the time. That’s not a winning strategy when you’re trying to get people to pay you money. Your reader needs to know you can solve their specific problem with messaging directed toward how you solve that problem. And yes, you can do that for everyone — just not all at the same time.

I valued cleverness over clarity.

My first subject lines were sooo cringe.

I really wanted people to know I was clever and fun (it’s kinda my brand) so I crafted subject lines that may have been clever but were in no way tied to what was inside the newsletter.

The subject line is by far the biggest factor in determining whether or not someone opens your email. So if you ask a question in the subject line, you gotta answer it in the body copy. If you promise a “how to” your readers better know how to by the end of your email.

I will admit: there are still times when I throw a weird curveball subject line at people but I use it sparingly. Like a little pinch of Lawry’s. But my salt and pepper is clear, inviting subject lines.

I didn’t personalize.

Here’s the thing: I think it’s kind of corny when my name is inserted into an email. Because it’s so obviously a computer-generated kind of intimacy.

But guess what? It WORKS. There’s so much data about how much people like to be addressed by name, even if they know you didn’t sit and write this one email specifically to them. So I may not love it, but my open rate increased when I started using first names in subject lines from time to time (“real quick, Erin…”) and sprinkled them into my body copy pretty much every time.

In concluzies

Pretty much any mistake you could make growing, nurturing or selling to your list, I made. I’m still making them! I do have a business to run.

But newsletters work. They really help you grow the “know, like, trust” factor that we all need in order to forge relationships with our clients and customers so that they want to buy from us.

PS Sign up for my newsletter (scroll to the bottom of this page) and every couple weeks, I’ll pop in and rock your inbox 🤘(Ok, just kidding. Totally not my style.) I send out tips on clarifying your goals, building your brand, and writing better — basically things that I promise will not waste your time. And you can unsubscribe anytime so…