By: Elizabeth Coffey, Marketing G2 Digital Marketing Specialist

To survive, news organizations need to embrace the digital age and create a community of readers around their news brand. A great way to do this is through e-mail marketing; targeting your readers (i.e. your reader demographic segments) with unique messages designed just for them and their unique interests.

E-mail marketing may sound easy but mistakes are often made by those new to the practice. News publishers should avoid the following mistakes as they get started adapting to the digital age.

1. Not taking your e-mail messages seriously – Your marketing department may have a lot on their plate, but taking the time to thoroughly read and edit the e-mail marketing messages your news media outlet sends out should be a priority. Nothing will compromise trust in your news organization like a glaring typo or some other obvious error.


2. Not getting permission – You should only send e-mail marketing messages to those who’ve signed up for them or have expressed interest in receiving them. Spamming a bunch of e-mail addresses is a great way to get yourself blacklisted by e-mail servers.


3. Being boring – Don’t miss any opportunity to engage with your readers. Be entertaining, provide them with meaningful news, give them information that they can relate to, etc. Draw them in to engage with your content and your brand.


4. Having no e-mail marketing strategy – Are you doing A/B testing? Researching what works best for you and your brand? Are your e-mails leading to subscription sales and (more importantly) more revenue?


5. Messing up the e-mail subject line or using spam words – Your subject line is the first impression your readers have with your emailed message. Make sure that it is free of errors and spam words that may get your e-mail sent to your readers’ spam or junk folder.

Is your news publication using e-mail marketing as a part of your overall strategy?