How to Build and Grow Newsletters With RebelMouse

Newsletters are essential tools publishers use to build direct relationships with their readers and grow loyal and engaged audiences.

As content creators, we send out newsletters regularly and understand the challenges of growing your list. Today, we’ll walk you through typical newsletter platform integrations, client examples, and best practices for maximizing your newsletter engagement.

Live Integrations

Currently we have live integrations with the following email service providers (ESPs):

• ActiveCampaign
• Mailchimp
• Marketo
• Perfit
• PostUp
• Sailthru
• WhatCounts

At RebelMouse, we commonly use Mailchimp, our most robust integration for user-friendly email templates, drag-and-drop design features, automation, segmentation, and performance-tracking metrics. Mailchimp is integrated into our CMS so that you can seamlessly send newsletters from our Entry Editor.

Choosing the Right Provider

Choosing the right newsletter platform for your site depends on your business goals, needs, and priorities. To help you choose the best email service provider, consider the following before making a decision:

• Breaking News Alerts: Is breaking news important to your business? If yes, you should have the option to send a newsletter directly from Entry Editor. We offer this automated process with our Mailchimp integration.
• Personalized Messaging: If personalization is essential to your business, Sailthru offers specialized tags, categories, and filters to help customize your emails based on audience demographics, interests, and more.
• Email Lead Generation: If your business mainly focuses on collecting emails and generating leads, most ESPs provide embedded integrations. We can work with any provider to display that on your site.

Ultimately, the best ESP for you depends on your specific needs and budget. Consider factors like your audience size, marketing goals, technical expertise, and budget to make an informed decision.

Best Practices

To optimize your newsletters for higher engagement and more subscriptions, consider the following best practices:

• Create a call to action (CTA) to collect emails
• Build a template that fits your brand
• Launch a sign-up wall
• Send newsletters from our Entry Editor
• Consider building a newsletter archive
• Explore a referral program
• Make a home page for your newsletter
• Add a welcome series; it’s a great way to get users engaged from the beginning
• Preview the emails you're going to send
• Tell users how often and when they should expect your newsletter and *why* they need it in their lives
• Consider adding testimonials from users who love your newsletter
• Personalize newsletters with segments and groups
  • Allow users to “sign up” for topics they are interested in
  • Send content based on those topics
  • Segment your audience based on their interests, past engagement, demographics, age or gender, marketing funnel stages, etc.
  • Survey audience preferences for email content

We can help with all of these things through both strategy and design support.

Using RebelMouse's Newsletters Dashboard

We use an email provider's application programming interface (API) to connect them directly to your RebelMouse dashboard. From there, you can:

• Schedule a daily newsletter to go out at the time of your choosing
• Schedule a weekly newsletter to go out on a specific day of the week
• Send newsletter campaigns directly from RebelMouse

You also receive alerts when one of your posts goes viral, with the option to quickly send it out as a newsletter to your subscribers for more reach and better engagement.

Learn more about all of these options here.

Creating the Perfect Template Design

Newsletter customization tools are like magic wands for email marketing. They help you create a unique, brand-specific look that captures your audience's attention and compels them to click. When you build your newsletters with us, we guide you through every step, from designing customized newsletter templates to scheduling and configuring them on your site.

Newsletter Strategy

Emails are a common way people receive information from businesses and media sites. Many of us check our emails daily, making it an excellent place to communicate with readers and convert casual visitors into loyal newsletter subscribers.

Once you begin sending newsletters, keep an eye on performance metrics like open rate, click-through rate, and the ever-important click-to-open rate (of those who open, what % clicks) to improve your optimization efforts. You can achieve this in different ways, such as playing with the wording of your emails, A/B testing, and exploring varied newsletter formats.

Here are some additional helpful resources that you may want to check out:

• NewsletterGuide.org
  • Getting started, types of newsletters, creating workflows, growing your list, email monetization, and evaluating success
• Subject Line and Preheader Calculator
  • A tool to make sure your subject lines fit on most devices
• Good Email Copy
  • A searchable database of the copy that brands use in emails
• Accessible Email
  • A tool that analyzes your emails to make sure they’re accessible
• Mailchimp’s Email Benchmarking
  • Open rates across industries
• Mailchimp’s A/B Testing Campaigns
  • A how-to guide
• How to Grow Your Email List
  • A guide to growing your newsletter subscribers

Examples

Looking for inspiration? Here are some interesting things that our clients are doing with their newsletters.

GZERO Media | Rewards for Referrals

GZERO Media uses SparkLoop to reward subscribers for sharing a link back to their newsletter. It’s very easy to configure through RebelMouse's Layout & Design Tool.

GZERO Media includes two options: a referral link, and a link that opens up an email template that allows readers to quickly share the newsletter.

Okayplayer | Become a Priority

Okayplayer educates readers on how to prioritize their emails in their inboxes with a two-step visual instruction.

Narcity Media | Collect Feedback

Narcity Media allows readers to provide feedback through their newsletter, as well as makes it easy to follow them across social media.

Work It Daily | Provide Freebies

Work It Daily promotes free resources for working professionals and job seekers.

Ready to Supercharge Your Newsletters? Get a Custom Plan From a RebelMouse Strategist!

Still looking for more? We’re always here to help you take your newsletters to the next level. Get in touch with one of our experienced strategists and we’ll develop a custom plan for you.

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