6 Tips For Your eNewsletter Campaigns

eNewsletters are an easier and cheaper alternative to print for keeping people in the loop about the latest happenings at the organization. Just because this technology is convenient, however, doesn't mean it's free of potential pitfalls.

People hate unwanted online communications just as much as telemarketers, and anti-SPAM rules have made sending eNewsletters to your supporters into an art form. If you don’t do it correctly you could find yourself in trouble and blocked.

Kivi Leroux Miller, president of NonprofitMarketingGuide.com, wrote in the book "Nonprofit Management 101" that there are a multitude of ways to ensure your organization gets its message across through eNewsletters while also remaining in compliance. She wrote that you should begin by following these six dos and don'ts:

• DO use an email service provider. You can’t do bulk email from your desktop for a variety of reasons, including the potential you’ll be labeled as a spammer.
• DO let your readers talk back. If someone replies to your eNewsletter, make sure it goes to an email box that someone is monitoring.
• DO master the art of subject line writing. The “From” field and the “Subject” line determine whether your email gets opened or deleted. Ensure what’s in the “from” field is recognizable to the reader and what’s in the subject line is interesting, intriguing, or otherwise compelling to your readers.
• DO master the art of headline writing. People naturally skim email, starting with headlines and subheads, so you want to grab their attention.
• DON’T send attachments, including PDFs of your print newsletter.
• DON’T rent or sell your e-mail list, and let your subscribers know that’s the case.