Key concepts:
Structure of a easy to read and follow newsletter in 5 steps
Appealing designs that call to action
The purpose of a newsletter is to be interesting and call to action the reader. You propose a change of their current status through what you send so reach their emotional side and help them take that action.
The structure is:
1. The header
The first part that draws the attention is the header. The easiest way to direct the focus here is through something that pops up and is easy to follow: a photo and a creative, call to action title. Together these 2 elements should sum up the reason for the newsletter.
The image per whole should contain one way or another your logo (increasing the brand awareness) and needless to say be correlated with the title and contents per whole.
2. Contents
Depending on the main reason, the contents should be short tips as a bullet list, or extended with explanations because people need the reasoning behind it.
The length of the content however should not exceed 2-3 paragraphs of maximum 18-20 lines in total and an ending for saying goodbye or thanking for their time.
3. Call to action buttons
The contents should give the brief description of your intent, yet the full picture of it should be accessible through a redirection front the newsletter to your main web, social media accounts etc.
The button could be for more information, access to the E-shop, invitation to download, reservations etc.
The call to action text must contain a verb (an action that you want them to do) so it must address them specifically.
4. Additional information
If you have the available space, within 2-3 sentences you can give some extra information about who you are as a company, other related products or services and a link to the webpage for more details. Don’t place images here so the newsletter is easy to load.
This information should be relevant to the timeframe of when you send the newsletter (specific national holiday, season, holiday etc).
5. The footer
This section should contain the same information, regardless the topic of the newsletter, such as:
Contact data, connections to web page, social media;
Legal data (identification of your company);
GDPR information, possibility to access, modify or cancel these aspects; management of subscription (cancel, modify, update).
In terms of the actual visual design, here is where we take into consideration the following aspects:
Colours - should match or take from your brand’s visual identity;
Images - high quality, copyright free or your own;
Creativity and personal touch - it should reflect who you are.
There are various templates that you can obtain online for free and that can support you as an inspiration or even work directly on them. Choose whichever suits the best your vision over it, and before sending the official version, send it to yourself or friends to see how it looks and gather feedback.