Understanding The Target Market For An Effective Email Newsletter

Your email newsletter can have the best design, the most amazing photos, and highly informative content. However, that doesn’t guarantee effectivity. If you are designing your email newsletter for the wrong market, then it will be left unread. Worse, it might go straight to the trash folder. Can you just imagine the time and effort you have wasted on ineffective marketing materials? 

So how can you spare your company from this? What are the ways to ensure that your email newsletter will be read? 

First of all, it is necessary that you identify your target market’s behavior. You have to sit down with your team and identify what topics will spark their interest. Know which images are captivating enough, what layout is more appropriate, and what gimmicks you can include.

How to Understand Your Target Market  

It is nearly impossible to create something that will appeal to all niches. Marketing isn’t a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach.  It’s like saying that you use neon colors and force it to someone who loves neutral hues. If you attempt to do such in say, for example, your newsletter, it might end up too cluttered or will lack focus. 

Either way, it’s not good. Having said that, you need to understand a few techniques on how you can thoroughly understand your market. These are crucial not only in creating newsletters but for other marketing collaterals and activities as well. 

Segment a Market 

First of all, you might want to segment your target market further. Think about geographic, demographic, and psychographic segmentation. You can also try answering the following questions. 

• What is the age bracket of your customers or clients? 
• What is their monthly average income? 
• Where do they live and what type of environment? 
• Are they already homeowners? 

Simply put, know their lifestyle and everything in between. This can take a lot of time but if done correctly, can have its own rewards. 

Similarly, you can try the strategies or techniques below. 

Use Forums 

You can use forums and gather ideas from your target audience. The reason why most forums are effective is that you can stay anonymous and share your most honest answers. No one will judge you because you are hiding under a username. It also creates a room where people with the same interest can provide insights. As for you, be on the lookout for information that you can use for your email newsletters. 

Review Your Historical Data 

Checking the historical data is also helpful to gauge your target market. You can definitely use it in orchestrating the perfect email newsletter. Now, you don’t have to limit yourself with your own historical ideas. Believe it or not, psychology books can help too. Expose yourself to different areas of knowledge and you can have a unique email newsletter tailored-fit for your chosen niche.   

Look at the Competitors

Another technique that you can use is to observe what your competitors are doing. How are they reframing their messages? How is the target market responding? This doesn’t necessarily mean that you will copy their style. Nobody wants a copy cat after all. You just need to formulate your own strategy by using the data and observation you’ve gathered, including what you have seen from your competitors. 

Take It to social media 

You can use social media to your advantage and learn how your target market behaves. Also, you can take note of the trends and possibly integrate these into your upcoming email newsletters.  

Tailor Fit Your Email Newsletter 

When you are creating your email newsletter for your target market, it is essential that you remember these things: 

Importance and Timeliness 

So when deciding about your email newsletter’s concept, you have to gauge if it is important to your target market. Is it timely? It is relatable? Can they actually use it? Remove your personal biases and learn to empathize. This is the only way you can cater a content that your readers will appreciate. 

Thought-provoking 

Another thing you have to consider is to make your email newsletter interesting. Make them hungry for more. Having said that, make sure to use a striking headline and use appropriate language. You have to know how your target market talks so your message can be more effective. 

Different Types of Email Newsletters 

If you must know, email newsletters can be used in a number of ways. It is not just to solely promote your products and services. If you keep on sending newsletters that overly promote your brand, chances are, your number of subscribers will decline. Below are the other reasons for sending newsletters. 

Welcoming New Subscribers 

It is always a good idea to send a welcome email to your new subscribers. It gives that warm feeling and at least you can use the opportunity to direct them to appropriate links. 

Company News 

You can also use email newsletters to send company news to your target market. This is important because as clients, they play an integral part in your business. It is only proper that you share with them what’s happening with your organization. You can also send them what’s about to happen – making them the first bearer of the news. That can create a huge difference.  

Exclusive Promos 

Most companies use the power of email marketing by sending out exclusive promos and discounts. You’ll be surprised how many people would instantly subscribe to your newsletter because of this technique.  

Special Occasions 

You can also send seasonal email newsletters. For example, you can create an interesting holiday email. Make it more interesting by adding informative content. You can even add original videos if possible. How about creating an email specifically made for summer? Remember what we said about being timely? 

Advocacies 

And lastly, if your brand is supporting an advocacy, you can also use an email newsletter to raise awareness. 

As a rule of thumb, your content should not offend anyone. While you can infuse humor, you should never send derogatory or sensitive content. If you are not sure about your draft, you can ask different people to read it. Get their opinions and take note of the areas for improvement.  

Importance of Email Marketing 

This might seem a lot to digest right now but come to think of it, a well-thought-out newsletter can create a huge impact on your business. Have you ever thought about how many people are using emails every day? If you can just effectively tap even a small percentage, you can certainly amplify your leads and sales. You might want to consider working with a team that can focus on your content. This approach can ultimately influence the right market for your brand.