NEWSLETTER – CONTINUING TO THINK ABOUT YOURSELF, DO YOU WANT EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS?
Email newsletters are a great way to connect with your readers. You can let them know what you’ve been blogging about if they can’t consistently follow you or catch all of your blog posts.
Think about these points:
• Getting an email newsletter is easy – Not only are they easy to get but some are free if you’re just starting out, and there are lots of platforms to choose from.
• Newsletters can be in 2 forms – You can make it as personalized as you wish, and you can send it out however often you wish. I’ve seen some newsletters that would make great blog posts! Why not put all of that time and effort into a blog post so everyone can see it instead of just your subscribers? If you don’t have time to compose a newsletter, the best thing to do is set up a RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feed so that when you publish a blog post it auto sends an email notice to your subscribers!
• Make it easy to sign up for your newsletter – Don’t make your readers search all over for the form, make it easily visible on your site!
• Those of you on WordPress (.com not .org) – Is there possibly a better solution than what that platform offers? The emails from WordPress that deliver your posts to your subscribers, in my opinion, isn’t really a newsletter! Do you have any control over it? Sure, it’s RSS but their constant and aggravating emails to subscribe/confirm follow are too much! Same as with using them for your comments, very aggravating for readers who subscribe to get your replies to the comments they leave for you! WordPress (.com) is not a one stop shop. Having a blog requires work on your part to make sure your readers have a pleasant experience.
• If you do send out an email newsletter, be sure to display your mailing address, usually in the footer of the email. Some so-called blogging experts will tell you that isn’t required and playing dumb or acting like you weren’t aware is not an excuse if you are fined thousands of dollars! No legal advice here but I personally would rather be safe than not. For your own protection, look up the CAN-SPAM Act in the United States. For other countries, check the local regulations. As for the address, if you don’t want to reveal your home address, get a post office box or a box at a commercial mailing outlet such as a UPS store.
Do you have a newsletter?
Previously posted:
PART 2: POP-UPS, ADS, OPTIMIZATION, ETC
PART 3: COMMENTS AND CONVERSATIONS
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