How Can You Re-Engage Inactive Subscribers?
Dan Oshinky’s offering suggestions via LinkedIn for re-engaging inactive subscribers. His advice? Get a little creative with what you send.
Related: Dan’s also the author of “Not a Newsletter.” Check out his most recent issue here.
Find Inspiration In 2 (Very Different) Newsletter Success Stories
One of the best things about newsletters is they reflect the people and entities sending them, which means success is in the eye of the sender, right? Check out these 2 very different newsletters that might inspire your unique definition of success.
GQ reports that musician Mike Hadreas, aka Perfume Genius, has hit the newsletter scene by storm with bizarre essays and sexual fan fiction. His reasoning?
“I really missed when I would make things just to make them and share them right away… I needed somewhere for that energy to go.”
Anne-Laure Le Cunff published 100 articles of her newsletter, Ness Labs, in 100 days. For her, the journey (and success) was about learning in public.
In her words,
“Consistency trumps strategy.”
Some Online Communities Are Disappearing... Here’s Why
Want to know why online communities fail? Steve Fortier tweets that it’s because they lack specific purpose.
I’d like to expand this argument to newsletters. Niche, people, niche.
Discovered via For the Interested.
Mail Privacy Protection Is Here. What Does It Mean For You?
Apple’s new privacy changes are live, and chances are you’ll be affected in one way or another. Here’s the latest from experts I trust.
What Can You Learn From These Newsletter Creators?
When it comes to creating newsletters, you don’t always have to recreate the wheel. Check out the advice these creators have to offer.
The Rise of “Zombie Subscribers” And How You Can Bring Them Back
As consumers are able to go out and do in-person activities, online subscription services that boomed in 2020 are starting to see disengaged users that Felix Danczak calls “zombie subscribers” (this is a perfect article as we head into October).
Read on to learn how you can bring these subscribers back to life.
Discovered via theCLIKK
The “Newsletter Network Effect”: How You Benefit From More Newsletter Creations
Alex Kantrowitz brings an interesting point of view with what he calls “the newsletter network effect.”
“Just like each member of a social network makes the network more valuable, every additional newsletter writer makes reading news and analysis in the inbox more commonplace by introducing the behavior to new audiences.”
Discovered via Publisher Weekly
How To Establish Newsletter Sending Habits
Beth Carter and the GoSquared Weekly marketing team just sent out their 300th issue. Learn how the secret to their consistency lies in rooting their habits in what they value.
Discovered via Inbox Reads.
Related: Hoping to make an impact with your newsletter? This article looks at the best times to send. Discovered via Really Good Emails.
2 Possible Ways To Increase Newsletter Readers
AWeber and Newsletter Crew released this article about increasing newsletter readership and I’m half-impressed, half-meh about the fact that it promotes using older, non-email-related, content distribution techniques: RSS and Push Notifications.
Esmé Ara'resa breaks down these lesser-known methods for making sure people who want to see your content actually see it:
Both are somewhat antiquated web approaches to allowing a reader to be alerted when you post new content, but each serves its role in giving your audience a choice in how they want to be notified when you publish something.
My take? While providing these options is nice (I’m a big fan of letting people choose how they want to consume content), I consider them “extras.” As a newsletter creator, your ultimate goal is winning the inbox, which means producing something people intentionally choose to receive. I’m not convinced many people want to get newsletters this way, though. Do you opt in to push notifications? I only do for really urgent news.
Discovered via Publisher Weekly.
Curated note: If you’re not aware, every Curated newsletter with a publication site has RSS (along with the option to show or hide it) and we had some people using Safari push notifications for a while, but they weren’t very popular so we haven’t prioritized other browsers.
Thinking Outside The (Algorithmic) Box
Instead of focusing on what’s viral or letting algorithms dictate your scrolling, Clive Thompson stresses the need for seeking out diversity, uniqueness, and idiosyncrasy.
“If you want to have wilder, curiouser thoughts, you have to avoid the industrial monocropping of big-tech feeds. You want an intellectual forest....”
Clive’s piece brings together valuable modern thoughts on the benefits of prospecting beyond the incomplete suggestions you’ll get if you allow platforms to dictate your content consumption habits. For newsletter creators, especially those of us who curate, this should mean going beyond a set of standard sources and finding the obscure news that can prompt fresh ideas.
Is it time for you to “rewild your attention”? I’m in!
Discovered via Really Good Emails.
