Comprehensive Guide to Email Newsletter Best Practices: Insights from a Recent Survey

As a business owner, getting the right information to your audience at the perfect frequency is crucial for maintaining engagement and driving results. The email newsletter best practices in this blog will help you send content that your subscribers actually open, read, and act upon.

To streamline my email marketing strategy, I conducted a survey among my email subscribers and LinkedIn connections in August 2024. This blog post details the surprising insights I gained from the survey and explores how often to send email newsletters for maximum engagement, along with best practices for content.

I plan to conduct more studies like this one in the future, to gather a deeper understanding of email newsletter best practices, and how they change over time.

Before we get into the email newsletter best practices, it’s important to first define what an email newsletter is (and isn’t). An email newsletter is a type of email communication sent by businesses, organizations, or individuals to a list of subscribers who have opted in to receive updates. The content of these newsletters typically includes news, updates, tips, or special offers related to the sender’s industry, products, or services. Unlike promotional emails that are primarily sales-driven, or emails to collect information like surveys, newsletters are usually more content-focused, aiming to inform, educate, and engage subscribers rather than just selling a product or service.

The primary goal of an email newsletter is to maintain regular communication with your audience, keeping them informed about relevant topics and reinforcing the relationship between the sender and the subscriber. Newsletters help in building and maintaining a connection with your audience by providing valuable content that is both informative and engaging. Newsletters show you as the authority and subject matter expert in your space, as a curator of relevant content, and as a conduit to important programs and updates that impact your audience. This regular communication can lead to increased brand loyalty, higher engagement rates, and ultimately, more conversions.

1. Content: The heart of any newsletter is its content. This can include articles, blog posts, news updates, tips, case studies, or any information that is valuable to your audience. The content should be relevant to the interests of your subscribers and provide them with something they can use or benefit from.
2. Design: The design of your newsletter is based on your audience’s preferences. While the design should be visually appealing, easy to read, and aligned with your brand’s aesthetics, you don’t have to go overboard. In a mobile-first world, optimizing your email newsletter design for small screens is the first step in effective design. A simple, text-based email can work in the right industries. A well-designed newsletter can enhance the reader’s experience and make your content more engaging.
3. Call to Action (CTA): A CTA is an invitation for your readers to take a specific action, such as clicking a link to read or learn more, downloading a resource, or making a purchase. Effective newsletters include clear and compelling CTAs that guide the reader towards the desired action.
4. Personalization: Personalization involves tailoring the content of your newsletter to the individual subscriber. This can include addressing the subscriber by name, sending content based on their preferences, or using data from past interactions to make the content more relevant. Most email newsletter software make it incredibly easy to do this.
5. Frequency: The frequency of sending newsletters varies depending on your audience’s preferences and the nature of your content. Some newsletters are sent multiple times a week, while others may be monthly or even quarterly. The key is to find a balance that keeps your audience engaged without overwhelming them. More on this later.

• Content Roundup: This type of newsletter summarizes the best content your brand has produced over a certain period, such as blog posts, articles, videos, or podcasts. It’s a great way to ensure your audience doesn’t miss any valuable content.
• Promotional Newsletters: While not the primary focus, some newsletters include promotional content, such as special offers, discounts, or product launches. These newsletters aim to drive sales while still providing value.
• Event Invitations: If your business hosts events, webinars, or workshops, an email newsletter can be used to invite your subscribers. These newsletters often include details about the event, what attendees can expect, and how to register.
• Educational Newsletters: These newsletters focus on providing educational content, such as tutorials, guides, tips, and industry insights. The goal is to inform and educate your audience on topics relevant to your industry.
• Product Updates: Companies often use newsletters to keep their audience informed about new products, features, or updates. These newsletters help maintain transparency and keep your audience up to date with the latest developments.

• Building Relationships: Regular newsletters help build and maintain relationships with your audience by keeping them informed and engaged with your brand. It also provides a deeper relationship than social media.
• Driving Traffic: Newsletters can drive traffic to your website by including links to your blog, products, or other relevant content.
• Boosting Engagement: By providing valuable content regularly, newsletters can increase engagement with your audience, leading to higher open and click-through rates.
• Generating Leads: Well-crafted newsletters can capture the interest of potential customers and guide them down the sales funnel, ultimately leading to more conversions.
• Maintaining Brand Awareness: Regularly appearing in your subscribers’ inboxes helps keep your brand top of mind, increasing the likelihood that they will think of you when they need your product or service.An email newsletter is a versatile and powerful tool that can help you maintain a connection with your audience, provide them with valuable content, and ultimately drive business results. When done correctly, it can be a cornerstone of your email marketing strategy, fostering loyalty and engagement among your subscribers.

Email frequency is a critical factor in email marketing success. Too many emails can overwhelm your audience, leading to unsubscribes or, worse, your emails being marked as spam. On the other hand, too few emails can cause your audience to forget about your brand, leading to lower engagement.

In my survey of 46 business owners, the results showed that the majority prefer less frequent emails, challenging the industry norm. Here’s a breakdown of the findings:

1. Monthly Newsletters (43.5%): A significant portion of respondents preferred receiving newsletters monthly. This frequency allows for sufficient time to gather valuable content without overwhelming the reader.
2. Every Other Week (26.1%): This frequency balances regular engagement with the audience without appearing too often in their inbox.
3. Weekly Newsletters (15.2%): A smaller percentage of respondents preferred weekly updates, which suggests that while some appreciate regular communication, it’s not the majority preference.
4. Quarterly Newsletters (13%): A few business owners preferred receiving updates quarterly, perhaps due to a lower need for frequent updates or a preference for more substantial content less often.
5. Never (2.2%): Interestingly, a small group indicated that they never want to receive email newsletters, highlighting the importance of understanding your audience’s preferences before implementing a strategy.

The major takeaway here is that nearly 85% of readers want email newsletters to arrive less than weekly to their inboxes. 

These insights bring forth the assertion that nearly 70% of business owners favor less frequent emails (monthly or every other week). This challenges the gold standard of weekly newsletters often promoted by marketing experts.

I believe that sharing a monthly or every-other-week email newsletter will result in readers keeping your email in their inbox. Over time, your readers will learn that your updates are less frequent, and therefore become something for them to look forward to. They’ll return to your email, opening it more than once, and hopefully consuming your content at a pace that suits them.

By spreading out the email frequency, you give your readers a chance to read your content, instead of them thinking, “Oh, she’ll send another email later this week or next week. I’ll just read that one,” and then archiving or deleting the current one in front of them. While “time in inbox” isn’t a real statistic we can track yet, my hypothesis is that the fewer emails we send in a 30-day period (sending at least one), the longer our emails stay in our readers’ inboxes.

The key takeaway is to tailor your email frequency based on your specific audience’s preferences, as what works for one audience may not work for another. Those who took this survey were all business owners who are notoriously short on time and prefer to consume content at their own pace. The key is to know your audience.

• Survey Your Audience: Just as this survey provided valuable insights, you should regularly survey your audience to understand their preferences. A simple survey like one with only two questions can yield a bounty of insights for you and your business.Surveys help you build your knowledge of what your subscribers prefer. I should note that I don’t count simple surveys as an email newsletter, so I’ll usually send one survey email a month along with my email newsletter.
• Start Small and Scale: If you’re unsure, start with a monthly newsletter and adjust the frequency based on engagement metrics like open rates and click-through rates. You can also always scale back if your metrics begin to indicate that you’re sending too frequently.
• Consider Your Content: The type of content you produce should also influence frequency. High-value, in-depth content might not need to be sent as frequently as lighter, more frequent updates. Knowing your audience also comes into factor for considering what content you send. Some audiences prefer more in-depth insights. Some prefer content they can skim. This is why surveys are so helpful!

Beyond frequency, the content of your newsletter is what truly drives engagement and value for your subscribers. The survey also shed light on the types of content that business owners prefer, which can guide your content creation efforts.

The survey asked participants to choose between various topics and formats they would like to receive in newsletters. Here are the results:

1. Templates and Guides (First Place): 56.5% want these. Downloadable templates and guides were the most appreciated content, as they provide practical value that business owners can directly apply to their work. These resources save time and effort, offering subscribers tools they can use immediately to improve their business operations.
2. Insights into Other Entrepreneurs’ Challenges (Second Place): 47.8%. In very close second place, many respondents wanted to know what other business owners are facing, adding a relatable and insightful layer to the content. Sharing real-world challenges and solutions can help your audience feel connected and supported, fostering a sense of community.

Example: A newsletter could feature a case study of how a small business overcame a particular challenge, such as improving cash flow or increasing customer retention. By sharing these stories, you provide valuable insights while also highlighting the successes of your community.

3. Behind-the-Scenes Content: Surprisingly, only a minority (11 respondents, only 23.9%) were interested in behind-the-scenes updates about what I’m working on, suggesting that while transparency is appreciated, it’s not a top priority for most. I’ll try not to take this personally. Regarding my own content strategy, social media is now where you’ll find most of my behind-the-scenes content (at least for now).

Example: Consider sharing occasional updates on new projects, product development, or team activities. This can humanize your brand and give your audience a glimpse into the people behind the business.

4. Exclusive Video Content vs. Longer Written Content: Both content types garnered equal interest at 28.3% each, showing no clear preference for one over the other. This suggests that a mix of formats might be the best approach to satisfy different audience preferences. If we add these together, though, it totals 26 votes – which would tie for first place. This shows there is still an interest in explainer and how-to content.

Example: Alternate between sending exclusive video content, such as tutorials or interviews, and longer written content, like in-depth articles or white papers. This variety keeps your content fresh and engaging for subscribers with different content preferences.

• Provide Value with Every Email: Focus on delivering content that your audience finds valuable. This might include how-to guides, industry insights, or practical templates. Attention spans are short and inboxes are overflowing. Become known as a value-provider to give yourself the best chance at high engagement on your email newsletters.
• Share Relatable Stories: Sharing challenges and solutions that other entrepreneurs face can help build a sense of community and provide actionable insights. Consider featuring a “Member Spotlight” section where you highlight the successes and challenges of different members

Humor, when done well, is almost always a winner. If you can combine stories with a little humor, you’ll be well on your way to scoring a gold-star for email newsletter best practices.

• Vary Content Formats: Given the equal interest in videos and written content, experiment with different formats to keep your audience engaged. In this blog, I’ve also included a long-form video where I break down the data.
• Limit Behind-the-Scenes Content: While it’s important to humanize your brand, too much behind-the-scenes content might not resonate with all of your audience. I’ve learned this the hard way. Too much behind-the-scenes content in email can lead to brand confusion and uncertainty about what you offer as an expert.

Understanding what your audience values allows you to strike a balance between different types of content. For example, if your audience prefers practical guides, consider making these the focus of your newsletters, with occasional updates on other topics like industry news or personal insights.

The email newsletter best practices summarized in this video come from the survey completed in August 2024. I plan to update this regularly and ask even more questions about email newsletter preferences in the future.

Design and structure play a crucial role in how your emails are perceived and interacted with. A well-designed email can increase readability, engagement, and overall effectiveness.

• Mobile Optimization: With a significant portion of email opens occurring on mobile devices, ensuring your emails are mobile-friendly is essential.
• Clear and Compelling Subject Lines: The subject line is your first impression; make it count by being clear, concise, and compelling.
• Use of Visuals: Incorporate images, graphics, colors, and videos to break up text and make your emails more visually appealing.
• Consistent Branding: Ensure your emails reflect your brand’s voice and aesthetic to build recognition and trust.

• Prioritize Important Information: Place the most critical information at the top of your email where it’s most likely to be seen.
• Use Bullet Points and Short Paragraphs: Break down information into easily digestible chunks to keep your readers engaged. Remember that you can always link to a more detailed resources.
• Include Clear Calls to Action (CTAs): Whether it’s to download a guide, read a blog post, or reply to your email, make sure your CTA is clear and stands out. I believe you can have multiple CTAs in your email newsletters, especially if your frequency is longer than weekly.

Personalization goes beyond just including your subscriber’s name in the email. Segmentation allows you to tailor your emails to different audience segments, increasing relevance and engagement. Many email newsletter software make the following suggestions relatively easy to implement.

• Segment by Interests: Group your audience based on their interests and send tailored content that speaks directly to their needs.
• Use Behavioral Triggers: Send emails based on specific actions your subscribers take, such as clicking a link in a previous email or abandoning a cart on your website.
• Leverage Dynamic Content: Use dynamic content blocks to show different content to different segments within the same email.

To continually improve your email marketing strategy, it’s essential to track and analyze the performance of your newsletters.

• Open Rates: Indicates how many people opened your email. A lower-than-expected open rate could suggest your subject line or sending time needs adjustment.
• Click-Through Rates (CTR): Measures the percentage of recipients who clicked on a link within your email. This metric shows how engaging your content is. A lower-than-expected CTR means the call to action wasn’t compelling enough and may need adjustment. It could also mean there were too many CTAs in your email newsletter.
• Conversion Rates: Tracks how many recipients took the desired action, such as signing up for a webinar or making a purchase. A lower-than-expected conversion rate may mean it CTA wasn’t clear enough so they subscribers were surprised by the requested conversion. It could also mean the landing page for conversions needs work. Finally, it could  mean the audience simply wasn’t ready yet to convert. A follow-up campaign to those who clicked-through, but didn’t convert, may be in order.
• Bounce Rates: Shows the percentage of emails that could not be delivered. High bounce rates can affect your sender reputation. That’s why the experts tell you to scrub your list regularly.
• Unsubscribe Rates: While some unsubscribes are normal, a sudden spike could indicate that your content or frequency is not aligning with your audience’s expectations. A “normal” unsubscribe rate is between 0.19% and 0.30% for every email you send. So if you have 1,000 subscribers, you should expect 2-3 unsubscribes from each newsletter you send.

As a side note on unsubscribe rates – if you build your email list primarily by giving away free resources, a higher unsubscribe rate may be expected. Also, if you’ve recently changed anything about your newsletter – content topics, frequency, design, etc. – you should expect higher unsubscribe rates for the next 3-6 newsletters you send.

However, if you’re losing more than 1% of your list with each send, it’s time to review your entire email newsletter strategy.

• A/B Testing: Experiment with different subject lines, content, and layouts to see what resonates best with your audience.
• Optimize Send Times: Test different days and times to find when your audience is most likely to engage with your emails.
• Refine Your List: Regularly clean your email list to remove inactive subscribers, which can help improve engagement metrics.

Even with the best intentions, some common mistakes can undermine your email marketing efforts. Here are a few to watch out for.

As highlighted earlier, the frequency of your emails should match your audience’s preferences. Sending too many emails can lead to fatigue, while too few can cause your audience to lose interest. The main indicator of fatigue include much lower open rates.

While the goal of email marketing is often to drive sales, overly promotional content can turn off your audience. Balance promotional content with educational and value-driven content to keep your audience engaged. Key indicators of being too salesy include lower click-throughs and conversions, and higher unsubscribe rates with complaints.

With the majority of emails being opened on mobile devices, neglecting to optimize for mobile can lead to poor user experiences and lower engagement. Key indicators of poor mobile optimization is normal open rates, but much lower engagement rates like click throughs and conversions.

Without tracking the performance of your emails, it’s impossible to know what’s working and what isn’t. Regularly review your metrics and adjust your strategy accordingly.

Email newsletters remain a powerful tool for engaging with your audience, but success depends on striking the right balance in frequency and delivering the content your audience wants. I’ll explore and survey more email newsletter best practices in the near future, to continue to help entrepreneurs and small business owners!

If you need some additional guidance, please book a 1:1 review session with me here. In that session, we can identify what’s working, and what’s not, for your email marketing strategy. I’ll also guide you on how to fix what’s not working.