Christopher Knight, an email list marketing expert with
Email Universe, says, "Reader interaction builds more reader interaction, just like the law of motion that states what is in motion stays in motion. What is not in motion is not in motion. If readers are interacting—more readers will interact with the hopes of having their interaction published. All readers (even if they don't admit it) have an emotional need to be 'heard' or recognized and acknowledged."
It is
clear from these experts that interaction is valuable for keeping readers’
attention and helping define newsletter content. Here are five ways to persuade
reader involvement:
-
Open the door for readers to
share a problem related to their every day work life through a Q&A
column.
-
Allow readers to
respond to a reader's problem.
Take a short
poll, since some readers may not want to do more than click.
Offer contests
related to the newsletter topic and award prizes.
-
Invite readers to submit
articles in exchange for a byline, which is free publicity for their business.
Experiences with reader
interaction
For this
article, readers were invited to share their experiences with reader
interaction in newsletters. Gotta walk the talk! Bernstein gives readers three
ways to interact with his newsletter:
-
Invite comments on articles.
-
Conduct contests in which
input becomes the basis for future stories.
-
Encourage submission of
articles.
Bernstein
says, "All three have
worked well, although the responses to some contests have been better than
others. The greatest compliment I get from readers is how accessible I am when
they write to ask me questions or offer a comment."
He gives
another great benefit of interaction: accessibility. When readers feel they can
reach the company behind the newsletter, they believe people are behind the
company; this helps build relationships.
Ken
Farrish asks for content tips and improvement suggestions, publishes subscriber
testimonials and invites readers to submit a personal story.
"Acknowledging people by name,
publishing survey results, publishing their testimonials and personal stories
that link to the issue's topic have worked well. The ‘recommend it’ form and
business-related surveys have not worked well," says Ken.
Christopher Knight says, "What has worked
well is selecting only the best of the submitted comments and giving a comment
or analysis on each. This adds value to all readers. What has not worked well
is posting every single reader comment. Readers are busy and don't have time to
read every comment made."
Maintaining interaction
action
Professional Services
Journal and The Remediator Security
Digest provide several ways for readers to get involved. Readers can
submit and respond to the question of the month in the "Best Advice"
column. Also included is a reader survey requesting feedback about the
newsletter. The survey has a few questions where the reader quickly chooses a
multiple-choice answer. A couple of them are open-ended questions to give
readers a chance to share their thoughts. All questions are optional.
Most of the time, readers complete the
quick-to-answer questions. However, many readers take the time to share their
thoughts. To help encourage readers to respond to the survey and the "Best
Advice" questions, the publisher entices them with a prize. When people
complete the survey, their names are entered in a drawing for the prize. Two
people win every month: one for the survey and one for the "Best Advice
response."
Joan
Stewart's The Publicity Hound, which covers
getting publicity, also uses the "Best Advice" approach called
"Help This Hound." Readers write in with publicity challenges and
others respond. The questions have covered how to get media attention for: a
honeymoon registry, a new free weekly Hispanic newspaper and a new high-rise condo targeting a specific
market.
With a
name like "Hound" in the newsletter name, it opens the door for a lot
of creativity. Stewart adds a reader-submitted "Hound Joke of the
Week" at the end of every issue. Who says a newsletter has to be dry? Not
us! Woof!
When seeing a big fat zero
Publishers
are happy to open the door for readers to speak their minds and get involved.
Unfortunately, some have to shut the door after a few zilches. It's
embarrassing for the publisher to find an empty box, no or low responses. What
to do?
We've had
to deal with this. It isn't an easy situation. After it happens the first time,
take a look at the interaction and see if it can be improved. Try again. Maybe
it is too specific. Too broad. Takes too much work.
Gauge the
results from the second test and make a decision from there. A few issues ago,
we had a column called "Copy Court" and people loved the creativity.
We invited readers to find examples of poor copy on the Internet and submit
them. Then, we presented it in the next issue for readers to comment on it.
After a
few attempts, I nixed the column. What was the problem? It required too much
work on the reader's part. I should've known this when I started writing the
first article and went searching for an example of lousy copy. It took a lot of
my time.
Make sure the interaction isn’t a time zapper
Good interaction
should take little of the reader's time. The "Best Advice" style
columns work well because they're based on readers' experiences, something they
can write right up. No research. No looking for anything.
This is
not to say all contests and questions fail when readers have to expend more
energy to get the answers. I've played in a few contests that have taken a few
hours of my time simply for the challenge and the fun of it.
If there
are few responses for a "Best Advice" column, I work them in, plus I
contact experts on the topic and ask them a few questions, which I add to the
column to give it more meat. On occasions when the experts aren't forthcoming,
I quote articles on a similar topic giving full credit to the authors.
When it
comes to low response rates on polls and feedback, share the results in
percentages. That's what Ken Farrish does. This method is noticeable in many
newsletters.
It's easy to let your ego deflate when the response rate is poor.
Look at the data in a different light like Ken does.
He says, "If I get very low response rates to specific items or requests, I now look at this as valuable data,
rather than ego deflation. It shows that the issue / item is not really that important to my readers.
I keep track of all response numbers to various surveys and questions to help me plan future ezine topics and / or content."
Reap the rewards of engaging your
readers
Interacting
with readers is rewarding. I've gotten to know a few and regularly communicate
with them. I've also gotten to know the editors behind the newsletters.
Occasionally, I get a note from a reader who expresses genuine surprise that I
responded to her submission along with a thanks.
Even if
you never gain business or referrals from a newsletter, the opportunity to meet
persons is priceless. Who knows? Maybe one person will eventually introduce you
to a future client. You can never meet too many people. Letting your readers
know there is a real person behind the newsletter is a big step in cultivating
the relationship.
Meryl K. Evans is the Content Maven behind
this newsletter, Dear Abby marketing-style MarketingProfs' columnist
and a Web design
tour guide at InformIT. The Texan is geared up to tackle your editing, writing, and content needs.
[ PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION ]
