If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you’ve heard me say that how often you send a customer newsletter is the most important thing. It is more important than its style, color, size, name, or anything else you can think to ask me about. Some companies will send their customers a holiday card, a birthday card (not many these days!), and some might even send a quarterly newsletter. I consider this random, and while better than nothing, it is not enough to effectively build and strengthen client relationships. 

To determine the right frequency for your customers, ask yourself a couple of questions: “Am I communicating with my clients enough to convey how much I value them?” and “Am I doing enough to stand out among the thousands of marketing messages my clients receive every day?” 

Here is why a monthly newsletter is so important to your company: because it arrives every month, it is looked at as a regular “publication.” Think about it, magazines arrive monthly, and sometimes weekly; newspapers arrive daily; even bank statements arrive monthly! The point is that people see things they receive on a regular and frequent basis as having value, or at least important, and they generally anticipate them. Things like advertisements that arrive sporadically, including postcards and other marketing pieces, are just that — solicitations.  

So start off a new regimen accepting the fact that your customers will find more value in your newsletter if it arrives monthly.  

The previous concept is very important and worth rereading. In addition to frequency creating perceived value, frequency also increases brand awareness, which in turn will help to drive repeat and referral business. See how this works?! 

You may be surprised how many people resist my urging to do a monthly newsletter by saying, “It’s too expensive.” Quite frankly, this astounds me and I find it somewhat shortsighted. As a business owner, you need to figure out what you currently spend to attract new customers and clients, and also what the lifetime value of a typical client is to your business. If you can figure out what each new client costs your business, and what the lifetime value of a client is, I predict that you will start to see that building and maintaining these client relationships takes on a whole new meaning.  

I am writing — and will soon post — an article on the lifetime value of a customer and I think it will be an eye-opener. For those who are super price conscious, let me once again tell you about one of my companies, No Hassle Newsletters, and what we can offer. I am going to use mortgage brokers as an example. One of my first clients, a mortgage broker, told me that the average time frame for a repeat client in his business is at least 8 years. Wow, that is a long time! However, by sending his customers a newsletter, he supercharges his referrals! My client’s name is Ken Pitts, and while Ken is now working for another company, his original testimonial is still one of my favorites.

“Every time we mail our newsletter, The Home Connection, we get at least one new client by way of referral!”

Ken Pitts, Owner - Sunset Mortgage Company

It just doesn’t get much better than that. If you would like to see this awesome newsletter, go to www.nohasslenewsletters.com/products.html and check out “The Home Connection” newsletter for mortgage brokers. The minimum quantity is only 100 pieces, and No Hassle Newsletters will customize the newsletter with your message and company logo; we will also personalize each newsletter with your client’s name, and then print and mail the newsletters for only $1.09 each, postage included. This is truly a No Hassle Newsletter!

Based on my 27 years of experience producing kick-butt newsletters that get results, I want to share five secrets with you on how to create a great company newsletter. 

Secret # 1 - Tell them what else you do. Many customers initially engage with a business by purchasing a single product or service. Over time they may do repeat business, usually reordering the same product or service, unaware of the other products or services that the company has to offer. How many times have you heard a client I didn’t know you did that,” or, “I didn’t know you also sold that”? Or, “I didn’t know you also sold that!” These are all missed opportunities to increase your revenue. 

Secret #2 - Tell them what’s new. As business owners, we are always coming up with new products and services. A newsletter is a great way to get the word out to people who already trust you and find value in what you sell. This can often be done quite effectively by way of customer success stories or testimonials. 

Secret #3 - It’s not about you. This is very important. Your newsletter is not about you or how many industry awards you have won. Your newsletter should be about what’s important and interesting to your customers and clients. Inform, educate, and entertain them, and they will look forward to your newsletter. 

Secret #4 - Recognize the expensive real estate! The back page of your newsletter is not simply the mailing panel; it is the first thing your readers will see when the newsletter comes out of the mailbox. This is a great place to put important items that you want readers to see. 

Secret #5: - Frequency trumps everything. Frequency is more important than the size of a newsletter, whether it’s color or black and white, or even the quality of the content! Yes, you heard me right – I would actually prefer a homemade cheesy newsletter published monthly to a professionally designed newsletter done twice a year. You simply must have frequency to build trust and relationships.

I am just back from spending five days in Chicago, where I attended a huge marketing conference for entrepreneurial companies. I got to hear several nationally known speakers, and to be honest, my head is swimming with new ideas, inspirations, and business-building strategies! One of the best things for me—and if you are a newsletter editor or designer, this is good news for you also—is that almost all the speakers and successful business people I heard agreed that a monthly customer newsletter is one of the smartest things any company can do to build and enhance relationships with its customers! So, I will get back to preaching and teaching about newsletters soon, but I wanted to share with you a realization I had while I was mingling with some very sharp people. I am reminded of a quote from Jim Rohn, a successful and self-made millionaire:

“You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” 

Read that quote out loud and ponder it for a moment. In my opinion, a more truthful statement could not be made. Think about your closest friends and colleagues. Your circle of influence. Are they helping you grow or are they holding you back? 

If you believe Jim Rohn, then you will want to surround yourself with people who are more (or at least) as successful as you are. By “building your success team” and surrounding yourself with like-minded, driven, and positive people, you will be propelled to higher levels of achievement and accomplishment. This simple strategy is a trait common to all business giants. 

On the flip side, if the friends in your inner circle are lazy and like to complain about their problems, it might be time for a change. You need to be around people who take risks, think big, and talk about great ideas instead of the latest celebrity gossip or how much they hate their jobs. The bigger your goals are, the bigger your success team has to be. Having a success team in your corner will enhance your performance, keep you accountable and focused, give you support, and help you obtain the resources you need to achieve maximum success.  

I want to tell you about two very successful entrepreneurs whom I met in Chicago: Alexandria (Ali) Brown and Rob Berkley. Ali is known as “the e-zine queen.” That’s right, the guru of print newsletters met the queen of e-mail newsletters! Ali shared her remarkable success story with an audience of a thousand. She has an awesome business, and through her Web site, www.ezinequeen.com, you can sign up to receive a number of special reports and hear an audio message about e-zines.  

Rob Berkley provides leadership and communications coaching for the owners and leaders of technology, information and idea-based businesses. Rob is a Master Certified Coach and has a great program called Vision Day, where, amidst the breathtaking ambience of Martha’s Vineyard, people can put their busy lives on hold for one day, take a deep breath and, with the help of two masterful executive coaches, plot their way to their respective visions. Check out Rob’s business at www.visionday.com.  

Check back soon; in my next posting, I am going to share with you five secrets of a great newsletter.