If your organisation has yet to establish an e-newsletter, then it’s time to jump on the bandwagon! Why?
When someone subscribes to your business newsletter, they’re displaying an interest in what you have to offer – which means they’re a prospective client. And in the instance of subscribers who are already clients, a newsletter is a great opportunity to keep your company front of mind for any future business.
Staying in contact with these leads means that they may be more likely to contact you when they are ready to buy something you offer, even if it’s not the product or service they originally had in mind. And being familiar with your business name means they may also mention you to other potential customers!
Here are five reasons why having a company newsletter is important.
1. To capture leads
Getting people to sign up for your newsletter is called ‘capturing leads’. It’s an important process for more than one reason – not only does it increase the size of your lead database and allow you to maintain contact with people who may turn into clients, it gives you valuable information about the type of individuals and businesses who are interested in your products or services. Newsletters and e-books are both common methods of lead capture, and for very good reasons.
2. To nurture leads
This is the process of staying in touch and developing some of those leads until they become paying customers. This is done by providing useful information that can help them solve their problems, and creating a demand for your services or products with the content you supply. In some cases, the process will be designed to lead the leads through a series of particular steps progressing towards a purchase. For example – newsletter signup > free information e-book > free consultation/demonstration > sale.
3. To improve your conversion rates
Imagine what a difference this lead capture and nurturing process could make to your turnover. If you currently receive three enquiries for every 100 visits to your website, and you can capture three additional leads from that 100 visitors via a newsletter sign-up, that doubles your leads! However, you do need to bear in mind that the newsletter sign-ups may be further away from a purchasing decision than people who email a direct enquiry, or pick up the phone and call you.
4. To entice readers with special offers
Special promotions and offers can be included in the newsletter to entice ‘almost ready’ buyers to proceed. These offers also provide value to your existing customers, and can help increase the visibility of a promotion you have running.
5. To remind readers that you have something valuable to offer
Perhaps the most powerful of all, sending a newsletter regularly keeps reminding readers that you’re there should they need anything. The mere arrival of the newsletter may remind some existing clients that they need something from you. For prospective clients, the regular arrival of the newsletter keeps them familiar with your business name, and some are likely to order eventually.
Do you need to know more about generating leads for your business? Download our eBook: Generating Leads by Publishing Content.