Control Your Own Destiny!
When working with new clients, I want to know if they've considered launching an email newsletter. Often I hear, "I don't have anything original to say", or "I don't have an email list", or "I'll do that eventually, but I'm not ready yet". I get it. I said every single one of those things too.
But I regret not launching an email newsletter sooner. The reason is that on social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn, you're not the customer. You are the product. You have no control over who sees your content - if they see it at all. And their algorithms and priorities are constantly in flux, leaving you to keep trying to figure out how to make sure people see what you've created.
Now I'm a fan of social media to support your work, I just don't want to rely on them. So one of the easiest ways to control your own destiny as to who sees your work is to communicate with your customers directly via an email newsletter.
And if you're consistently sharing relevant content, you've earned the right to occasionally invite people to hire you or buy whatever products or services you're offering.
These emails aren't spam, and you're not landing in the promotional folder. You're an invited guest into someone's inbox.
Convinced? Here are the five steps to get you started:
Begin to create a list of people who have opted in. Please don't just add people to your list without asking them (that's called spam.) You can create your list in a variety of ways - ask people directly when you're in conversation with them, add a freebie to your website, promote it on social media, have a sign-up list at your next in-person event, etc. It will take time, and if your experience is anything like mine, it won't grow quickly, so don't be discouraged. Even a very small list of interested subscribers can be powerful!
Sign up for one of the email platforms. Mailchimp, Keap, and Squarespace are a few of several options. Don't get bogged down by which one you choose. They're all fine. Just get started. And if you're challenged getting it off the ground, hire someone for support (I have a guy I can highly recommend).
Commit to a consistent schedule. Be gentle with yourself, and don't let perfection stop you from just getting started. Once a month is better than never. Every other week is better than never. You can always dial it up (or down) in the future.
Sit down and write. This is the hard part, so go easy on yourself. Allow for the shitty first draft. Trust me; this will get easier. And if you're feeling stuck, think about your ideal client. What do you want to share with them? Would this help them? Would they find this interesting? Write from that place.
Make it easy. I get my best creative ideas when I'm walking or running, driving, or cleaning the house when listening to a podcast (go figure). So when inspiration strikes, I add it to a Google Doc of ideas if I'm near the computer or text myself if I'm not. Then when it's time to sit at the computer waiting for inspiration to strike, I'm not starting from scratch. And then, once written and sent, I take portions of what I've written and post it to social media. Easy.