What is the most important tip you'd give someone to improve their e-newsletter?

Be consistent. A number of years ago I was publishing a printed newsletter and I never heard from anyone whether it was valuable or not. One day I quit publishing it and ran into one of my readers on the street - and she asked where's the newsletters, she hadn't received it in a while. I told her, I wasn't publishing anymore because I wasn't getting any feedback from my readers so I quit. Don't quit.

Understand that people are busy. The most successful e-newsletter campaigns I have ever had have been from newsletters that were extremely light on text, rich in content, and link heavy. Don't use the newsletter to try to share everything all at once. Use it as a notification. By changing your message from a "megaphone" to a "memo pad" you will find that the readers who actually click through to your content are actually going to read it.

More advice over at The think (here) Blog http://jasonmarkow.com

Focus - on data segmentation and then the relevance of what you're sending to each segment.

Don't tell people what YOU want them to know, give them what THEY are interested in. In other words, let your subscribers' interests/issues dictate the content, it shouldn't be about you so much. If your e-newsletters are mostly about your company, your accomplishments, your products, etc., you'll see your "open" rates decline pretty fast.

If you don't have a good "from" adress and "subject line," you're already walking up hill. A lot of people overlook both the "From" and "Subject" components of the email header. That's gate number 1 for a lot of people, including me.

Use pictures, especially when they are worth 1,000 words.

Don't be afraid to use humor...it's the best way to break down barriers and establish common ground.

Ask for feedback and use it in a future newsletter - people appreciate not only being listened to, but also feeling like they are an equal participant in your publication....it is made for them after all, isn't it?

http://www.fcibglobal.com

Thanks, everyone, for your comments and suggestions. To Howard: Dumping the newsletter is not possible for some of our small clients. They just don't have the capacity to manage the rigors of a blog on a regular basis. But it's a good idea.

Mari-Lyn -- I'm with you. I used to manage a blog for Unica. We decided to shut it down and months later we got inquiries from editors and others looking for it. (We also got coverage on the fact that we turned it off, but that's another story.) Thanks for the feedback. It's good to remember this!

As pedestrian as this may seem, I'd recommend that every e-newsletter producer adopt a consistent set of editorial rules and regulations, to make sure that, for example, no acronym not in broad use goes unexplained on first use, and that all appropriate references to companies and people include complete, accurate hyperlinks. Memorizing the Chicago Manual of Style isn't necessary, but a bit of consistency goes a long way towards greater readability. I've written "rules for readability" documents for past consulting clients, and many of these guidelines are still in use years later!

Thanks again... I was able to include both Mari-Lyn and Michael's comments in my newsletter article. Once it's up, I'll send you a link.

Grab their attention. A colleague once told me about a newsletter series that gathered a tremendous following simply by having a trivia question every Friday. They would award that week's winner the following week simply through a mention in the e-newsletter. It would be trivia questions relevant and occasionally non-relevant to the industry but it always sparked conversation and interest. Find a way to get recipients involved. That's key!

Keep it short, short, short !
Print contact numbers large !
Share product/service information and also relevant information that is helpful to using the product/service.
Just some thoughts !

Wow. You guys are great with ideas. I've already put the first draft to bed, but if these keep coming, I'll do a blog post and add the new ideas. Just note: it would be good if you could remember to add your full name not just first names. Thanks.

Newsletters can be an invaluable marketing tool... if utilized properly. A business benefits when they are consistently at the forefront of the consumer's mind, and when the newsletter provides useful information, tools, and techniques. Newsletters that are filled with "Buy This" or staff specific information typically don't hold the attention of the customer. I agree with Merrill Clark, focus on what the reader wants to hear about.

I promised to share the final article on newsletter tips with everyone. I compiled the tips for an article for the Ennect newsletter and I just posted it on the eMarketing blog. We called it "Marketers Sing the Praises of “R-E-S-P-E-C-T” to Improve eNewsletters."

Here are links to both in case you want to read the tips provided or are curious about an online sweepstakes that the Bay Area Rapid Transit is running that includes a unique viral component. It's designed to help raise awareness for BART's train service from the Bay Area to the airport. You can go to their website to win free Southwest airline trips.

Marketers Sing the Praises of “R-E-S-P-E-C-T” to Improve eNewsletters -- http://www.ennect.com/blog/sing-respect-for-emarketing-success/

Newsletter with eNewsletter tip article and BART story: http://www.ennect.com/Newsletters/November2009.html

Thanks again for your contributions.