Newsletters are your brand’s ambassadors, serving as a vital link between you and your audience. But let’s be honest; creating a newsletter that’s visually appealing and rich in content can feel like solving a complex puzzle. In this extended guide, we’ll delve even deeper into the nuances of newsletter formatting, share expert tips, and even sprinkle in some real-life examples to help you create newsletters that are not just readable but downright irresistible. Here is How to Format a Newsletter.

The ABCs of Newsletter Formatting: More Than Just Aesthetics

Think of your newsletter as your brand’s voice in someone’s inbox or mailbox. The way you package your message can make or break its effectiveness. Good formatting is akin to a well-tailored suit—it enhances your appearance and captures attention. On the flip side, poor formatting can make your newsletter look disorganized, causing readers to hit the ‘trash’ button faster than you can say “unsubscribe.”

Real-Life Example

Consider Apple’s newsletters. They are a masterclass in clean design and concise messaging. Using whitespace, balanced with high-quality images and a minimalistic color palette, makes the content easily digestible and engaging.

The Anatomy of a Killer Newsletter: Beyond Text Blocks

Imagine opening a newsletter and finding a single, large block of text. Not very inviting, is it? Here’s how to avoid becoming a snooze fest:

Headings and Subheadings

Using <h2> and <h3> tags to segment your content into manageable sections not only improves readability but also enhances SEO if your newsletter is also available online.

Visuals: The Eye-Candy

Visual elements like images, infographics, or even memes can add excitement to your newsletter. But remember, relevance is key.

The Art of Whitespace

Whitespace is the unsung hero of design. It gives your content room to breathe and helps guide the reader’s eye through the layout.

Cohesive Color Palette

Colors can evoke emotions and set the tone for your entire newsletter. Choose a palette that aligns with your brand’s ethos.

Font Matters

The right font can make your text readable and aesthetically pleasing. The wrong one can do just the opposite.

Real-Life Example

Take a look at the newsletters from Airbnb. They use a consistent font and color scheme that aligns with their brand. The use of compelling images of travel destinations not only breaks up the text but also inspires wanderlust.

Additional Steps for Formatting Perfection

The Rule of Thirds

In design, the rule of thirds involves dividing your layout into nine equal parts and placing the most important elements along these lines or their intersections. This creates balance and draws the reader’s eye to key points.

Call-to-Action Buttons

Remember to include clear and compelling call-to-action (CTA) buttons. Whether you want readers to “Learn More,” “Shop Now,” or “Subscribe,” make it easy and enticing for them to take the next step.

Footer Essentials

Your footer should include essential information like your contact details, social media links, and a straightforward way to unsubscribe. Transparency builds trust.

Test, Test, Test

Before hitting send, test your newsletter on several devices and send test emails to colleagues to ensure it looks good everywhere. A broken layout can be a deal-breaker for many readers.

Dos and Don’ts of Newsletter Formatting

Dos

1. Do Use a Responsive Design: Ensure your newsletter looks good on all devices.
2. Do Keep It Simple: Overcomplicating your design can confuse readers.
3. Do Use High-Quality Images: Pixelated or stretched images look unprofessional.
4. Do Proofread: Typos and grammatical errors can undermine your credibility.
5. Do Segment Your Audience: Tailor your content to different segments of your audience for more personalized messaging.

Don’ts

1. Don’t Overload with Information: Too much text can be overwhelming.
2. Don’t Use Too Many Colors: Stick to a cohesive color scheme.
3. Don’t Forget Alt Text for Images: This ensures that even if the image doesn’t load, the reader knows what it’s supposed to be.
4. Don’t Neglect the Subject Line: This is the first thing your readers see, so make it compelling.
5. Don’t Ignore Analytics: Use data to understand what’s working and what needs improvement.

Advanced Formatting Techniques

Interactive Elements

If you’re sending a digital newsletter, consider adding interactive elements like polls, quizzes, or even mini-games. These can significantly increase engagement rates.

Personalization Tokens

Use personalization tokens to address the reader by their first name or mention their last purchase. This can make your newsletter feel more personal and engaging.

A/B Testing

Consider running A/B tests on different elements like headlines, images, or CTA buttons to see what resonates most with your audience.

QR Codes

For print newsletters, adding a QR code can bridge the gap between paper and digital, allowing readers to easily visit your website or a specific product page.

Storytelling

Use storytelling techniques to make your content more engaging. A well-written story can make even the most boring information enjoyable.

Real-Life Example

Netflix’s newsletters often use storytelling and personalized recommendations based on your viewing history, making their newsletters highly engaging and relevant to each subscriber.

The Art and Science of Newsletter Formatting

Creating a compelling newsletter is both an art and a science. By focusing on the fundamentals, making informed choices based on real-world examples, and maintaining brand consistency, you can craft newsletters that not only look good but also deeply resonate with your audience. So go ahead, unleash your creative genius, and make your next newsletter a masterpiece!

There are newsletters making millions a month. Learning How To monetize a newsletter is easier than ever if you know what to do.

You won’t get anywhere without building a loyal following and having a decent subscriber account. Our study found that newsletters with over 10k subscribers get more sponsorship deals.

The good news is, that you don’t need to use sponsorships to monetize your newsletter. Let’s dive into how else you can.

How To Monetize A Newsletter?

We can take 6 different paths to monetize our newsletter, each being different. Depending on your newsletter determines what works for you; not every newsletter earns the same way.

Here are the most popular ways to monetize your newsletter.

Ads

There are two types of ads.

Display Ads and Sponsored Ads.

The above is an example of a display ad by the popular newsletter TLDR. Dan has become one of the best copywriters in the space over the past 5 years and for good reason. He wrote this ad and follows his style.

Ads shouldn’t mess with the flow of the newsletter but should be called out to let the user know it’s an ad.

Display Ads are different, think of Google ads when are viewing a website that pop up on the side. Those ads can also be placed in your newsletter for people to click.

The significant difference between the two is Display Ads earn when the user clicks on the ad, while Sponsored Ads usually pay you a fixed cost and sometimes reward you for signups.

No matter what one you use both can be lucrative and increase your monthly MRR.

We recommend checking out Who Sponsors Stuff for every company looking to sponsor your newsletter.

Memberships and Premium Newsletter Subscriptions

The following way to monetize a newsletter is through memberships or premium content within your newsletter. This strategy has become popular over the past few years thanks to companies like beehiiv.

You allow subscribers to sign up for a premium service from your newsletter. This is popular in investing but can be used in any niche. The service can be anything from VIP access to a database, a premium version of your newsletter articles, or anything in between.

Some premium newsletters make millions a year.

Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate Marketing isn’t anything new and has been around for years. The crazy thing about affiliate marketing is it kills it in newsletters.

Signing up for affiliate programs is easy, and with tools like Affiliate Finder, you can search tons of affiliate programs for any niche.

The good news about running a newsletter is that affiliate programs don’t have to match your content exactly.

This newsletter has added an affiliate program to Start a Blog with WordPress and uses a popular web hosting affiliate program Bluehost.

This simple snippet could generate you over $65+ for 1 sign-up. It’s a win/win and simple way to add to your MRR per month.

Example:

You have 25,000 subscribers with a CTR of 5%. This means that on average 1,250 subscribers click a link each time they open a new email from you.

We will cut that into one-third, giving us 416 clicks. If 416 sign up for this affiliate program. You would make $27,000 + from one email.

Make sure when looking for affiliate programs you find ones that fit your “niche”. Don’t sell someone beauty products when you are talking about losing weight. Know your Audience and what they are looking to buy.

Cross Promotions

Cross Promotions is broken into two categories:

• Free Cross Promotion
• Paid Cross Promotion

Free Cross Promotion

Free Cross Promotion uses newsletters providers like beehiiv, Convertkit, and others to recommend other newsletters.

This allows you to reach out to newsletter businesses and suggest you collaborate in cross-promotion. Newsletter Blueprint is a great place to find newsletter operators looking for cross-promotion. It’s a discord with 100’s of operators looking to cross-promote.

Paid Cross Promotion

If you want to do paid cross-promotion, there are a few players in the space. One of the top ones is sparkloops.

Sparkloops is a promotion platform where when a user signs up for your newsletter a popup appears sharing 3-5 other newsletters. If they opt-in to sign up for those operators pay you anywhere from $1-$4 a signup.

The cool thing about this is, that newsletters that are already generating tons of signups a month are making most or more of their money back using other operators in their popup.

Wrapping Up

If you are looking to monetize a newsletter, following all the steps above will make you profitable in your newsletter in no time. As we mentioned above, depending on your niche can determine which of the 6 ways you can earn from.

Creating A Newsletter is just the first start. learning how to monetize and grow your newsletter is just as important. You are on the way to becoming like the top newsletters making $100k+ a month.