It’s really quite unfair but as excited as new members or potential members may be about you sending them an update via email that they can skim at their leisure, all it takes is some very boring content and you can guarantee they won’t open another one.
You just don’t get that many chances when it comes to delivering valuable content.
A member of the Chamber of Commerce Professionals Group on Facebook asked:
What does your newsletter consist of? Do you find it’s more event focused or do you write your content or pull from other websites?
Chamber newsletters have two jobs – providing your members with valuable information (their definition, not yours) and keeping prospects interested. A list of your upcoming events rarely accomplishes that on its own.
What Should I Put in the Chamber Newsletter?
Member Highlights
This needs to be more than just a “Member of the Month” section. Most of those are boring.
A highlights section does more than just name the member it captures and conveys their uniqueness and tells their story.
When written well it will bring them more business and get the community talking about them. The secondary benefit is that other businesses (members and nonmembers) will see how effective these highlights are and want to be your next one.
Links to Content
If this is an e-newsletter, don’t place the entire article you just shared on your blog or social media in the newsletter. It takes up too much valuable real estate. Add a teaser to what your audience can learn from it and link it. This drives traffic back to your blog or site and allows readers to choose what’s of value to them, plus you can learn more about their preferences by tracking what they click on.
Guest Posts
Another way to highlight a member in a more in-depth way is through allowing them to create content. This is especially effective from an educational standpoint. If there’s an issue on the ballot let both sides ring in. You can post their content to your website and place teasers and links in your newsletter.
Eye Candy
Share at least one image (infographic, meme, inspirational quote, pic, etc.) in every newsletter. It breaks up the text and gives the eye something to focus on.
What are you doing in your newsletter to retain members or convert new ones? Join the conversation here.
Remember your newsletter isn’t a school project. It has an objective to move people down your sales funnel and keep members tightly connected to you.
