Somehow, those deadlines keep rolling around like clockwork! If there is one issue that every electronic newsletter publisher will face, it’s the never-ending struggle to gather and write useful, relevant, engaging content.

Every successful e-newsletter publisher understands how vital it is to produce unique content regularly. The key to attracting new clients and developing lasting relationships with existing customers via your e-newsletter, is to deliver high-value, actionable “know how” and information that serves your audience.

E-newsletters are an exceptionally cost-effective, efficient way to transfer knowledge, both to prospective and existing customers. It is through this knowledge transfer that prospective clients learn about your company, your capabilities, and how you can help them. These communications build trust and establish a foundation for a future business relationship.

Likewise, sharing ideas, strategies, and best practices helps existing customers get more value out of the products and services they have already purchased; shows them how they can add on products and services; enhances your support level, and protects your products and services from becoming exchangeable commodities in their eyes.

Recycle Existing Information

Consistently writing outstanding content is hard work, but it isn’t the exclusive domain of professional writers. Why? Because the primary requirement for good content is that it represents value to the reader. Substance is far more important than form.

Simply taking information you already have and putting it into context adds value to your audience. For example, if your e-newsletter includes an article on practical techniques for performing oil analysis on manufacturing equipment, you could add a checklist of items that your technicians use when they perform this function. Or, you could include an article about an upcoming oil analysis training class with an excerpt from your training manual.

In these cases, you don’t write content from scratch. You simply gather information that previously couldn’t be found in a single place, add a meaningful context, and deliver it to your audience.

To find these gems, ask yourself, “What would be useful, pertinent, and entertaining to my audience?” Look around your company and uncover those valuable nuggets of knowledge that have already been created, and that your market needs and values.

For example, if you publish a technical tips and tricks e-newsletter for software developers, have a product manager or lead technical support representative contribute heavily to the article. If you are publishing an industry trends and analysis article for the financial services marketplace, find an in-house expert or maybe even a compliance person to develop and review content.

It’s definitely a bonus to have a professional writer spice up your e-newsletter, but the majority of the content must come from experts within your business.

Balance Promotion & Education

The most successful e-newsletter publishers are adept at balancing the promotional material they include with the amount of educational material they offer. E-newsletters work best over an extended period of time and require that your audience keep listening and interacting. Include too many sales promotions and advertisements, and your audience will unsubscribe in droves.

You will find that by focusing on the content side of your e-newsletter and improving it issue to issue, you will attract and retain clients without overt promotional material.

Jump-start Your Creativity

The following list offers different categories or sources of content for your business e-newsletter. Hopefully, this list will jump-start your creativity and spur you to publish better, more content-rich e-newsletters.

1. Product Know-How
– Technical question contests
– Frequently asked questions and solutions
– Recurring issues that you could proactively address
– Product tips and best practices
– Descriptions of ways to optimize the use of products and services for different customer situations
– Selected sections from your training & support materials
– Product updates & fixes
– Detailed product support information
– New downloads

2. Industry Know-How
– Legislative or regulatory changes that affect your products/services or stakeholders
– Industry trends or insights
– Industry opportunities
– Reports on needs or unsolved problems in the marketplace

3. Spotlight Articles
– Feature articles about successful stakeholders and the things they are doing in their businesses that your audience would value
– Press highlights about your customers, partners, employees, etc.

4. Feedback
– Excerpts from discussion databases, Weblogs, and online forums that you host
– Testimonials, comments, suggestions, or constructive criticism from stakeholders
– Survey responses

5. Training & Educational Opportunities
– Conferences, seminars, or other events that might interest your audience
– Webinars or product training classes
– Books and useful industry reports
– Interesting articles and websites

For e-newsletters to employees, partners, shareholders, and others who require more intimate knowledge about your business, some additional ideas about content you might include are:

1. New products and services
– Benefits, features, and functions
– Product collateral
– Pricing information
– Sales/call scripts
– Ideas for repositioning old products
– Special events or sales
– Changes in product status, price, availability, or delivery times
– Product training opportunities

2. Company calendar information
– Trade show, conference, and event information
– Registration deadlines and appropriate forms

3. Sales and Forecasting Information
– Percentages and units sold compared to objectives
– Sales areas that need to be improved

4. Competitive Intelligence
– Information or knowledge about competitive companies, products, or services
– Opportunities within your industry that your company can leverage
– Purchasing trends

5. New Corporate Policies and Procedures
– Benefits information
– Travel and expense reporting procedures
– Promotions and new hires

6. Sales Strategies and Techniques
– Sales tips from prospecting to closing
– Sales and marketing book reviews
– Articles from sales and marketing speakers or consultants
– Winning sales strategies of your top salespeople

7. Motivation
– Spiffs, promotions, or sales incentives
– Opportunities for fun or team building offered by your company
– Recognition for outstanding sales team contributions

8. Company Vision and Objectives
– Company philosophy or mission
– Changes to company philosophy and implications
– Changes in organizational structure — include who, why, how, and when

9. Customer News
– New customers
– Press highlights about your customers
– Unresolved account issues
– Compliments or “wins”

10. Advertising campaigns
– Dates and times of ad campaigns for your company’s products and services
– Collateral for these ad campaigns
– The purpose, rationale, assumptions, and goals of the campaigns

When your corporate e-newsletter addresses topics beyond the scope of your own products and services, you have an opportunity to enter into rich, significant conversations with your marketplace. By offering insightful commentary, actionable knowledge, and entertaining discussion, you can differentiate your business and carve out a defensible industry niche.

E-newsletters promote and encourage communication, collaboration, and productivity and can be a key element in your company’s pursuit of operational excellence.

Todd has been in the IT industry for over ten years. His experience includes support, sales, product management, and marketing. Todd has a B.A. in mathematics from Colorado College and is currently the Director of Communication Products for Gallatin Technologies, Inc. He can be reached at tbrehe@gallatin.com. http://www.gallatin.com

Gallatin develops software applications that help businesses improve how they communicate and collaborate with their clients, partners, and employees.