Prologue

“UGH”

My 12-year-old daughter moaned from the couch.

“What?”

“I cannot believe the way this book ended. We need to buy the next one so I can find out what happens next.”

Normally I’m a big wall of “NO” when it comes to my daughters saying they HAVE TO HAVE SOMETHING, but I’m a pushover for books.

“Sure. What’s the title?”

It’s the 2nd book in the City of Ember series.

I’m already on my phone ready to make the purchase.

Mostly because I feel like investing in their time spent reading is worth every penny.

My 9-year-old is experiencing something similar, but the series she’s into (Amari and the Night Brothers) is currently being published, so she’s been waiting since December for a book that was first scheduled to release in May and has now been pushed back to September.

Bigger UGH, huh?

But this feeling they have:

This I-need-to-know-what-happens-next emotion

We can all relate, even if it’s a Netflix series.

It’s the craving for more of a really good story.

And, executed in newsletters, that episodic approach can work very well.

Think about your newsletter.

What makes people open it? When they finish reading do they groan, wishing the next issue would release sooner?

A great way to find out if this is happening (or research how to make it happen) is talking to actual readers and understanding how you can help them.

Ask why they subscribed.

What they like best.

What they find most valuable.

What they could do without.

Has it improved their life in some way.

What would make it NEED TO HAVE, not NICE TO HAVE.

Inbox goal:

Make them want more.

Newsletter Tips

Why One Creator Advises Starting With A Newsletter

Ash Ambirge has made $5M self-publishing books online. In this piece she explains what she would do differently if she were starting from scratch.

Number 1? “Start with a newsletter, not a website.”

Discover the 6 other things she would change about her journey.

TL;DR? Relationships matter (sound familiar?). It’s easy to get bogged down in the details and become indecisive, but that won’t lead to success. Ash concludes:

“Do not overthink this. Do not overanalyze it all to death and whether or not you are doing it right. NO ONE’S DOING IT RIGHT. We’re all figuring it out as we go. Just start taking action without constantly policing your action. Let yourself learn as you go.”

A Lesser-Known Newsletter Growth Tactic

Brian Dean of Exploding Topics has grown 2 newsletters to over 100K subscribers and says he doesn’t see much advice on a growth tactic he’s seen work really well:

“... I recommend putting at least one email sign-up form on your about page.”

Learn why here.

...brb, need to go work on an About page.

Use Your Newsletter To Attract Clients

Josh Spector says creating a good newsletter can replace client outreach. Check out his advice on how to use your newsletter to get clients.

Discovered via For the Interested.

Marketing

Act Like A Media Company—But Not As A Substitute For Traditional Content Marketing?

Ryan Law at Animalz addressed a topic you marketers who use your newsletter and other “‘media content’ like publications, books, podcasts, and shows content” might find interesting in his recent article The Value Arms Delivery Race.

Using brands like HubSpot, ProfitWell, and Wistia as examples, he explains how each justifies the expense of a media approach and the scenarios that make these investments make sense. But he also notes that they didn‘t start with media content, they layered it on top of their more traditional content.

Law’s current conclusion:

“And this is perhaps the best way to understand media strategies: it’s a way to build upon the success of traditional content marketing and not — yet — a substitute for it. Media is the next phase of the value-delivery arms race — but not every company needs to fight at the front line.”

My take:

I agree in theory, but I’m also watching some companies drive success by starting with a media approach—or introducing it earlier, including Refine Labs and Branch’s MobileGrowth.org, as well as creators who begin with podcasts and newsletters as they build an audience to sell to. I think it’s likely worth investing in sooner than later so that you can become a known authority earlier in the movement.

Snail Mail As A Marketing Strategy

When was the last time you handwrote a note? Rebecca Stewart reports that several brands are going this route to improve relationships with their customers and thank them for their loyalty.

Discovered via theCLIKK.

Apply These 6 Tips For A More Personable Social Media Presence

As a newsletter creator, chances are you know there’s value in vulnerability, reality, and personality. In this SmartBrief article, Ambreen Ali explains how social media works the same way and offers 6 tips to “unpolish” your social media, including “make people laugh.”

Discovered via SmartBrief on Social Business.

Is It Time To Scrap Personalization?

The movement toward personalization has consumed the marketing industry, but Peter Weinberg and Jon Lombardo are offering a hot take: “let’s embrace impersonalization – the path to simplicity, scale and success.”

Check out their case against personalization here.

Writing

Are You Distracted?

Does it ever feel like the minute you sit down to write you’re overwhelmed with distractions? One of these 13 writing apps compiled by P.J McNulty might help.

Discovered via The Write Life.

Curation

Are You Curating Responsibly?

Sarah Sain challenges curators to truly evaluate the content they share. Evaluation includes asking if your content:

• Informs or persuades
• Shares an opinion
• Tells the whole story
• Includes a sales pitch
• Recognizes bias
• Represents your entire readership
• Admits to mistakes

Dig deeper here.

Publishing

Recent years have brought both new challenges and new solutions for publishers. This week’s Publishing Insights seek to examine both.

• The Guardian has launched 10+ newsletters over the past year as part of their changing strategy to stop using website clicks as a measure of success. Andrew Kersley explains why here.
• Does the news need “fixing?” Ros Atkins thinks so and is offering 7 ways publishers can help.
• How have “user needs” changed over the years? In his LinkedIn post, Dmitry Shishkin goes back five years to evaluate.
• In this article, Damian Radcliffe recaps leadership challenges the media industry faces, per his conversation with Anita Zielina, founder of the Executive Program in News Innovation and Leadership at CUNY.

Money Matters

Using Crypto to Challenge Traditional Media

Can NFTs be the future when it comes to newsletter-based communities? In this Axios article, Sara Fischer reports how Dirt, one of the first newsletters to fund itself solely using only NFTs, has raised a $1.2 million seed round, and is challenging the boundaries of traditional media.

Discovered via The Media Roundup.

Curated News

How To Collect Links To Your Publication From Slack

Hey, everyone. Seth with Curated Success here.

Did you know you can install a Curated integration into your Slack?

With this integration, you can save links that have been shared in your Slack chat directly to your publication’s Collected Items.

Here’s how to set it up:

1. Go to your publication’s settings
2. Scroll down to the “Integrations” section and click “Slack”
3. Click “Add to Slack”
4. Enter your Slack Workspace URL on the page you land on
5. Give Curated permission to access your Slack workspace

Note: If you have multiple publications that you want to connect to Slack, you’ll need to follow the steps above for each publication.

Once you’ve installed the Curated integration, you’ll be able to save a link to your publication’s Collected Items by hovering over a Slack message with a link, clicking the three dots at the top right of the message, and selecting “Collect link”. You can see this in action in the GIF above.

If you have any questions about this Slack integration, you can reach out to me or check out our full help doc.

The Next Curated Crash Course Session Is June 2nd

Curated Crash Course for today, May 19, and May 26 are canceled, but Seth will be back on June 2nd to walkthrough creating a Curated account and answer any questions about newsletters.

If you have any questions about Curated or your newsletter before June 2nd, reach out to our support and we’ll be happy to help!

New to Curated? Make a copy of this Getting Started with Curated Checklist to help launch your newsletter (public, private, or paid).

Opt In Challenge

Address Your Deliverability Issues

There’s not much more frustrating than realizing your emails aren’t reaching subscribers’ inboxes. This week’s challenge is to download this free guide on email deliverability from Validity (not a sponsorship, BTW) and walk through the 10 steps to address deliverability issues (pages 8-9).

Discovered via Growth Marketing Weekly.

Signature

Let me know. Reply, email me at Ashley[at]optinweekly.com, or find me on LinkedIn to hit me with some feedback. I’d love to know what you think.

Happy newslettering,