Everybody Writes, 2nd Edition



75Writing an Email Newsletter

The most important part of the newsletter is the letter, not the news.

I've been obsessed with email newsletters since January 28, 2018, when I relaunched my newsletter Total Annarchy (annhandley.com/newsletter) to 2,111 subscribers. Now, close to 50,000 people receive a letter from me every other Sunday morning.

Those 2,111 people were subscribed to blog post triggers at AnnHandley.com. I can't even really call them “subscribers”—because an email alert and a newsletter are not the same thing.

The former is auto-generated. Soulless. Bloodless. More like a ping that it's time to change the batteries in your smoke detector.

Let's do the math: 2,000 to 50,000 is a 2,400% increase. Yet I've grown the list with a focus on engagement, not size.

Size is a byproduct, not a goal.

Here is my approach to creating and writing a newsletter as well as growing an engaged audience—because the two go hand-in-hand.

Let's talk about what worked, what didn't—all with a focus on ideas you can steal.

I have a lot to say on this topic. Empty your bladder. Grab a drink. Settle in. Here we go.

1. Create what you wish existed. For years I searched for a marketing newsletter that focused on writing and storytelling. That walked the walk—meaning, the writing was fun and engaging. Writing I wanted to read.

   Why doesn't it exist? I used to muse, stroking my metaphorical ascot. More musing: How can Marketing see the power in writing?

   Like … ...