6 Ways Legal Marketers Can Write an Effective Email Newsletter

Email newsletters can be an effective way for small firms and large firms alike to provide value to their clients and generate new opportunities. That being said, to be effective, your newsletter must be more than just a grouping of your recent content. A focus on good writing, creative design, and intelligent analytics can help you to craft a law firm newsletter that is informative and client centric. Here are the fundamentals that great newsletters have in common. 

1. Choose a Design That Reflects Your Firm

Consider what people are expecting from your firm. While a technology start up might do well with super-creative and innovative designs, your clients likely expect a more professional look. 

2. Make Copy a Part of Your Design

Remember that the words you use, along with the tone, are part of your newsletter’s overall impression. Determine what voice you’re going to use in your newsletters and keep it consistent. Try to keep the reader in mind as you go through this process.  Graphic elements and words should work in tandem to relay the right messages to your readers. 

3. Create Strong Subject Lines

Your goal is to write subject lines that people actually want to click on. When drafting subject lines, keep the following in mind: 

1. 1. Character count – Browser display limits matter, and most experts suggest keeping subject lines to 30 characters or less. 
   2. Value and urgency – People are busier than ever, and the fact is that they’re unlikely to open an email at all if they don’t do so the day they get it. What reason do they have to click on your email right away? Are you offering an answer to an important question? Advice on time sensitive matters? You need people to open the email now, not think to themselves “maybe later”. 
   3. Personalization – Today’s best practice is to include personal information like a first name in email subject lines. To do this, you need to collect information and have recipients’ permission. 

4. Shape Lists Around Audience Interests

Segmentation is one of the simplest things that successful marketers focus on. Proper segmenting filters unnecessary emails from recipients inboxes, boosts open and click rates, and makes your readers feel like you’re tailoring content to them. We suggest the following: 

1. 1. Be specific but not too narrow – Ideally the group should share core characteristics, but not be so small that they aren’t worth marketing to. 
   2. Differentiate between lists – Good email marketing is far from one-size-fits-all. Group people into lists that make sense and label them accurately, then plan accurate content that is tailored to their pain points or stage in the client journey. 
   3. Optimize data collection – Collecting your own data is more important than ever. If you focus on ethically and reasonably collecting data, you’re more likely to be viewed as credible and trustworthy by recipients. When an individual opts into email communication and progresses through your communications funnel, make sure their data — including any opt-in status — is synced to the right apps.
   4. Use comprehensive measurements – It’s not enough to just understand if the newsletter is getting opened or clicked on. For your newsletter to really be impactful, you need to see how it’s affecting people’s actions across the marketing funnel. In a law firm where the sales cycle is longer, you need to set up goals for the newsletter to meet. View tracking across the entire cycle to see how the newsletter helps to convert people indirectly. 

5. Help Readers to Find Your Newsletter

People won’t see your newsletter if they haven’t subscribed. The way that you get people to sign up for your newsletter needs to be seriously considered as part of your strategy. You could try pop-ups on your website (especially on certain pages), adding a subscription link in your footer, and promoting the newsletter on social media. 

6. Stay Consistent

Once you decide how often you’ll publish your newsletter, make sure you stick to that schedule. However, don’t publish a newsletter just to get something out. Make sure each edition contains fresh and relevant content. The worst thing you can do is to have a newsletter that seems like the same information regurgitated each time. Mix up your content with personal insights, case study information, key legal updates, videos and photos, and surveys or opportunities for feedback.  

Takeaway: 

In today’s digital economy, the email newsletter is more important than ever. A strategic newsletter can help you to gain leads and nurture client relationships. That doesn’t happen on it’s own, though. If you want your email newsletter to do more for your firm, reach out to us. We help clients to create, customize, and automate their email strategy and optimize it to achieve the results they are looking for.