e-Newsletter Best PracticesCreating successful content for GlobalSpec e-Newsletter Ads

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e-Newsletter Best Practices

Some things to position up front with best practices:1. Select a newsletter title where the demographics of the subscriber base best matches your target audience.

2. Remeber the mode of the subscriber: They are not necessarily ready to buy. Readers are interested in learning about new product, services, technologies and applications that will help them make their products or help their processes be more efficient, effective, move to market faster, beat the competition.

3. In general, the higher the position the ad, the better

4. Don’t expect a huge response from a single ad. Think of your advertising as a complete campaign.

5. Test and try new copy to improve results. (Don’t keep running the same ad)

6. Readers are smart. They recognize ad copy so if written to educate and to be more informative like editorial copy, the ad will be more likely reviewed by readers and generate higher click activity.

7. If your ad is not performing well, could it be that you are not in the right newsletter/not reaching the right audience?

Outline of e-Newsletter Best Practices1. How Subscribers Read Newsletters

2. Types of Ads a. Educational b. Product Specific

3. Types of Activity Generated from Ads a. Leads b. Clicks

4. Tips for Writing Successful Ad Copy

5. How to Organize the Ad a. Engaging Headline b. Benefits vs. Features c. Selecting Image and Links 1. Images 2. Links

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e-Newsletter Best Practices

1. How Subscribers Read Newsletters:a. Readers are busy and they will open and skim for articles of interest and this is the leading behavior with our

newsletters • To be effective, your e-newsletter ad needs to grab the attention of busy readers • Three key ways to attract their attention: • Headline • Image • Hyperlink

b. Develop attention-getting headlines to engage readers • Be creative – use humor, take advantage of alliteration, be bold, the sales like the better

c. Be specific – avoid general headlines • Headlines should persuade and excite, not just describe • Headlines should be unambiguous, simple, and pop well • Headlines that are straightforward are also good – they tell the reader what to expect – first sentence of ad should build on headline • Examples of good headlines • Relieve Your Stress Over Bellows Design • Product is touting the ability to make the readers’ job easier • Introducing Our Newest Configuration of Bearings • Announcements of new products tend to get high clicks • Complimentary LED Mount Sample Kit • Grabs the reader’s attention by offering a free sample • New Container Seals Resists Tampering • New product promises important benefit • Make Chemical Pumps Last Longer • Will help you save money by getting more out of a product

2. Types of Ads:a. Educational

• Educational ads educate and build awareness – they are more broad in nature – tend to generate clicks vs. leads • Advertisements that promote or speak to white papers or tech articles are more educational in nature • Ads tell the reader about the particulars of the product and how it helps them • Ads can also educate the reader about the company and its products and services

b. Product-specific• Product-specific ads help move readers along in the buying cycle and generate more leads • Ads are more product-focused and speak almost fully to the particulars of the products • Ads can be very technical-sounding

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e-Newsletter Best Practices

3. Types of Activity Generated from Ads:The goal is to create an ad that will drive your preferred results and fulfill your objectives

• The two main ad objectives are generally to create inquiries and click activity 1. Inquiries • More specific, action-oriented copy would tend to get more qualified inquiries because a reader would really need to have an interest in the specific copy to pursue the links • If the ad features a product with a product announcement (PA), then link to the PA for the most informative leads • All e-newsletter leads will be listed in the Client Services area along with other leads from the site 2. Clicks • Very general copy would likely generate more clicks • To generate traffic to your Web site, use embedded links/URLs to point the reader there • You may still utilize your own tracking by entering links that have appropriate tracking notations on the end

4. Tips for Writing Successful Ad Copy:a. Know the audience

• Our Specs & Techs e-newsletter is more broad in its coverage • There will be a very wide, demographically-mixed audience reading this newsletter • Our product or industry titles are more targeted • There will be a more niche, demographically-targeted audience reading this newsletter • They will likely have a higher interest level in the content and ad material

b. E-newsletter advertisements have four basic components: headline, copy, links, and images

c. The most valued content is content that helps the reader do his or her job and is more editorial or story-like in nature, so include copy that provides true value to the reader. Your audience tends to steer away from copy that reads like advertising.

d. Readers generally don’t like to be sold to, so try not to make the ad too sales-oriented in nature

e. Direct all copy to the reader by using words such as you, yours, your, etc.

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e-Newsletter Best Practices

5. How to Organize the Ad:a. Start with an engaging headline to attract the reader

• Keep it short • Highlight benefits – what’s in it for the reader

b. Benefits vs. Features• Develop the ad copy so the greatest benefits to the reader come first • Benefits show how the product, white paper, testimonial, or whatever your ad is promoting directly benefits the reader – “What’s in it for me?” • Features list product specifics – “How it works” • Hyperlink should reinforce the headline, not be redundant • If your ad copy offers both benefits and features, match them up • A feature is how the product or item works • A benefit is what it does for the reader – how it helps them

c. Selecting Image and Links1. Image • Images draw readers into the article • They should support the headline if possible and text if not • The more interesting the image, the better – do not use images that leave the reader wondering what the connection to the ad is • Images that are small may not be effective • Those that have copy on them may not be legible by the time it gets formatted to be in the newsletter • Logos are not considered “interesting” images because if the reader isn’t familiar with your company, they may skip over your ad • Graphs tend to lack color and pizzaz • Make sure images are recognizable • They should give the reader an idea of what they can expect to see when the link is clicked • When using a product announcement, most will have an image of the product it features • If you are referencing a product announcement, you can use that image in the e-newsletter • If the only image you have available is a company logo, you may use that • Often times, logos don’t get the highest amount of clicks, so using a more engaging image is encouraged • However, if one of your goals is branding, then a logo is appropriate

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e-Newsletter Best Practices

Overall techniques:1. If clients can focus on technology or why what they are advertising will help the reader with his/her job

performance, the better

2. Keep text simple, avoid awkward wording

3. Avoid long sentences, break long sentences into easier-to-read sentences

4. Don’t give all the salient points away in the copy or no one will click through

5. For product ads – a few attributes can be sited but specs should not be mentioned

6. Describing a product completely reduced the incentive for readers to click through

2. Links • Multiple links in an ad allow for flexibility • Hyperlinks can be used to supplement the headline with a bit more information • Different link destinations result in different performance • Video and podcast links are a great way to boost the performance of your ad, so if you have a video or podcast available, we recommend it be used • Link choices should reflect primary goal of the ad • If more detailed inquiries are desired, GlobalSpec links should be used • If more Web site traffic is desired, then your company’s site links should be used • End with a call-to-action • Describe the action you want the reader to take and explain what is on the other side of the action • Decide where you want the reader to click to • State what’s in it for the reader within the copy — give a good reason for the reader to want to click through to the other side • Examples • Learn more. • View products from ABC Company. • Visit our Web site. • Download the white paper. • View the product demo. • Order a sample.