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Neither Diary Entry Nor Sales Pitch: Writing an E-Letter Your Right People Want to Read

by Abby Kerr

in Uncategorized

About this column

Doesn’t it feel like there’s some kind of magic in a great e-letter*?

*Credit is due to Kate Swoboda of Your Courageous Life and The Coaching Blueprint, who is the first person I noticed online (some years back) referring to her e-newsletter as an ‘e-letter,’ which sounds much more elegant and approachable, doesn’t it?

Abby KerrThe truth is, I’ve started writing this particular article three different times from three totally different angles, with the intention to tell you more about The E-Letter Atelier, my latest online course. Each time I would begin, I’d try to write my way into why an e-newsletter is an important asset to your business.

But you know why it’s important. You’ve wandered around these online entrepreneurial parts a bit, you’ve gotten the lay of the land. You know that you “should” have an e-newsletter, an ever-growing list of people who have ‘opted-in’ [industry parlance] to hear from you in their inbox.

You know that ideally, you should be “sharing valuable content” with your “list” 80% of the time, and 20% of the time, you should be making them an offer: buy my e-book, sign up for my new coaching program, check out this affiliate offer.

You’re subscribed to several other business’s e-newsletters and you’ve seen other people do their newsletters both well and badly. You’ve unsubscribed from more lists than you are currently subscribed to. You’ve gotten more choosy about what you’ll allow into your inbox.

And yet, knowing all this, seeing all this, doesn’t necessarily make it easier for you to see the possibilities for your own e-letter.

At least not a possibility that feels wholly worth it — from a time investment standpoint and from the perspective of your Right People, the people you feel drawn to serve.

You may have started and stopped your e-letter at some point in the past, or perhaps you have one but only get to it intermittently.

And yet you still have a desire to have a really great e-letter, one that serves your business, inspires your Right People, and feels worth it to you. You want it to be a working asset or nothing at all. I get that. Because: me, too.

Here’s what I typically hear from The Voice Bureau’s clients when it comes to concepting and creating a great, ongoing e-newsletter:

  • “What I want to write is neither a diary entry not a straight sales pitch, but something in between. What does THAT look like?”
  • “I want to be consistent and I’d rather not send anything at all, ever, than be inconsistent.”
  • “What the hell do I write? Why is this so hard?”
  • “I love it when other business owners curate links from around the web for their e-letters, but I’m not sure if this is the right choice for my business. How do I know?”
  • “I’m so afraid of offending my readers by sending them more email that I just freeze and do nothing.”

And so back to my angle for this writing this article today.

I think what we REALLY want and need to talk about, when it comes to our e-letter, is how to make this little piece of email feel like an experience, not just a piece of digital detritus.

Delivering an experience to someone’s inbox doesn’t have to mean that it’s long. It doesn’t have to mean that it’s heavily designed. (Heck, my own Insider Stuff e-letters are just line of type with a logo header and a photo I took.) And it doesn’t have to mean that you open a vein and leave your blood on the screen. Nope. None of those.

Let’s have a conversation about approaching your e-letter with two goals in mind:

1) To make it feel worth it to you, as a creator and as a business owner, and

2) To make it a worthwhile, looked-forward-to read for your Right People.

I believe that the magic in a great e-letter is found at the intersection of these two possibilities. Let’s talk about it.

And let’s do it voice-to-voice, why don’t we?

Sign up BELOW to join in on a complimentary call, Writing an E-Letter Your Right People Want to Read, or to receive the recording. If you’re there live, you’re welcome to ask questions, or just to listen in quietly. There’s no special offer attached to this call, it’s just part of spreading the word about The E-Letter Atelier, and giving everyone (whether you become an Atelier member or not) something to think about and work toward in their business.

CALL DATE: Thursday, May 22nd, 2014

TIME: 8 AM PST/11 AM EST — here’s a world time zone converter so you can see what time it’ll be for you

SIGN UP BELOW TO RECEIVE CALL-IN DETAILS . . .

{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }

Misty May 19, 2014 at 9:13 am

Please sign me up for the call.

Thanks!

Misty

Reply

Abby Kerr May 19, 2014 at 2:01 pm

Hi, Misty —

I’m unable to sign you up; does the sign-up form above not work for you?

— Abby

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