How to compose usable newsletters

Your newsletters have been delivered and are displayed correctly on the screen. That's great, but do the recipients actually read your newsletters? Did you go through all that trouble for nothing? The rules on user friendliness and readability of landing pages also apply to newsletters. A newsletter that isn't pleasant to read will generate lower conversion.

Apply a clear structure to your newsletters

• The most important tip is: Don't make your readers think too much. Your readers are busy. There are more than enough competitors and people can leave with just one simple click. That's why it is key to apply a clear structure when composing your newsletter.
• Research has indicated we look at websites and newsletters according to an F-pattern. We look at the top, a rule somewhere in the middle and we look to the left side. Therefore, place the title of a newsletter at the top and include possible direct hyperlinks to your web page. The index should be placed on the left side.
• The navigation should be obvious. Make sure a button looks like an actual button (for example, a colourful square with some shadow), hyperlinks should have the correct formatting (colour and underlined) and the terms used in call-to-actions should speak for themselves (for example 'Request information' in stead of 'Click here to find out more about xyz').
  

Scanning or reading newsletters

• People do not read newsletters carefully, they scan them. Facilitate your readers by splitting up your texts into paragraphs and add several subheadings.
• Highlight important keywords within your newsletters allowing them to stand out more.
• A list is better readable when you write this down point by point.
• Offline texts cannot be copied and used for your newsletters. Use short sentences for the newsletter containing 20-25 words at most. Limit your paragraphs to no more than 6-8 lines.
  

Basic elements to pay attention to

• Do not forget to include the basic elements in your newsletters. Most important one: Include a hyperlink which refers to an unsubscribe-form. For example, by including a list-unsubscribe header in your newsletters by default
• Clearly state who you are. Email coming from an unknown sender will not be opened as quickly and increases the risk of ending up in spam-inboxes. Don't forget to check if your authentication data (SPF, Sender ID, DKIM) are set correctly.
• Use of mobile internet is still rising. That is why you shouldn't forget the email programs that cannot display HTML emails. Always add a proper text version of your newsletters.
  

Just a few simple tips to make your newsletters more readable. Een paar simpele tips om je nieuwsbrief beter leesbaar te maken. Now tell me, how did you first look at this article? Did you read it top to bottom or did you scan it first? So you see, testing newsletters starts with testing them yourself.