Download and listen to the audio version of Delivering Your Information in a Way that Entices Readers, by Jessica Albon.

• enclosure: http://www.designdoodles.com/blog-audio/nif-14.mp3 385703 audio/mpeg

Last week, I was speaking with a client (we’ll call her Jane) who was wondering about what she should write about in her newsletter.

Jane’s an independent professional who consults with retailers to help them maximize their sales. She has a loyal client base and has just started her newsletter. She’s on her third issue.

She’s having trouble walking that fine line between educating her readers with valuable information and “giving away her crown.”
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I was having coffee with my business coach last week and we were talking about NIF and my intentions for you, the newsletter, and my business.

“So tell me,” he said, “what’s the *point* of what you’re doing–this twelve-month approach?”

“To help people have better newsletters, of course,” I replied.

He looked at me for a very long time and finally said, “So what?”
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This week, readers are especially concerned about how being themselves might clash with being kind. They wonder about appearing insincere and about my previous (contradictory?) statement that you shouldn’t reward readers for bad behavior.

Find out how I responded to these three popular questions!
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A few years ago, I had a huge tech blunder. I wasn’t paying enough attention to what I was doing, and, entirely through my own *error*, NIF went out twice. So, each reader received two copies in his or her inbox.

I was so embarrassed! And more than a little bit anxious.

I was a newsletter “expert” teaching companies how to run successful email campaigns and I’d made a huge blunder.
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Sure, the popular kids in high school often got that way by being mean. But, this isn’t high school .

You’ll seldom bond with today’s global newsletter readership by pulling wings off flies or biting puppies (or guppies–bad joke, feel free to ask ).

Just two weeks ago, I was telling you to unsubscribe your hyper-critical readers (if you have any) instead of letting them bust your self esteem. This week, though, I’m cautioning YOU against being the mean one.
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You’ve made it to week eight in the year-long series of what makes a great newsletter. You’ve learned the importance of personality (and how to make your newsletter full of you) and you’ve taken a look at the difference between consistency and predictability.

You’ve come such a long way already! By simply taking a few minutes each week to apply what you’ve learned so far to your newsletter, you’re seeing how the tiniest changes (and the smallest *investment* of time) can make a big difference in your relationship with readers.

Keep reading with me and you’ll continue to read bite-sized bits for improving your newsletter, one small segment at a time.
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Q: Can a newsletter that’s not published consistently work?

Yes, if you keep a few parameters in mind.

First, make sure you’re clear with readers that the newsletter is published “as inspiration strikes” or as breaking news comes your way–explain to them the criteria for publishing a new issue.
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In the last lesson, you learned:

You’ve got to be consistent with the consequences (and expectations) but inconsistent with the rewards.

And we discussed how you could start to be unpredictable in your newsletter to keep your readers interested. What we didn’t look at was consistency.
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