Start Your Own Online Store Newsletter Program

A newsletter or e-zine is a great tool for an e-commerce business. Studies have shown that the main reason customers will no longer buy from you is due to a lack of communication. In order to keep the customers you already have, you need to strengthen your relationship with them using a newsletter program as your form of communication. As soon as you have an ongoing relationship with your customers, it becomes a lot easier to continue selling to them again and again.

There are a number of elements you should include and different factors to think about when creating your own newsletter program. Here are some key features a good e-commerce website newsletter should have:

• Feature announcement of new products


• Provide customers with special promotions or discounts


• Make sure the layout of your newsletter matches that of your website, including header and tabs


• Keep it brief, the less content the better


• Deliver your newsletter in a timely manner, try not to send out too many or too little


• Give important information related to your products such as consumer reports or recent news


• Add multiple calls to action such as banners, text links and buttons that will send the subscriber directly to specific pages on your website


• Include an 'Unsubscribe' link in the footer section of each newsletter and make sure a form is added on the unsubscribe page asking for the reason to get feedback

There are several benefits of having a website newsletter in addition to your ecommerce store. The main reason for having a newsletter program is to develop customer loyalty and get more repeat business. Recent studies show that existing customers on average spend 33% more than new customers and those that participate in customer loyalty programs typically spend 4x as much. Your website newsletter does a great job of constantly reminding people of your brand and getting them familiar with your new products. Without a newsletter, people tend to forget about your ecommerce store almost immediately after they make a purchase. Don't count on your customers to actively visit your site on a regular basis to find out about new product offerings or promotions. That is why it is so important to have a newsletter program, it is one of the best communication tools that an e-commerce business can have. Your subscriber list is the most targeted market available. They have already bought from you, they know and trust your business, they clearly have an interest in your products and they are more likely to buy from you over a new customer. Your subscribers will also appreciate the fact that they are among the first people to be informed about new products, promotions or discounts.

A good ecommerce solution should be able to offer basic features for implementing a website newsletter program for your online store. Here are some of the most important things to look for:

• Have a built-in newsletter program in your store admin which lets you create and send newsletters directly from your site interface


• Collect names, emails and other information that you specify


• Be able to doublecheck whether or not emails are valid


• Have the ability to customize the layout of your newsletter


• Give subscribers the ability to unsubscribe at any time


• Have a special newsletter sign up feature built into the checkout area

Besides having your website newsletter sign up box front and center on your homepage and within your checkout, there are a number of other methods you can use to grow your subscriber list. It's crucial for visitors to be able to see your newsletter subscription information on each page that they are on. This can be achieved by placing either an opt-in box, banner, image link or text link on the header, footer or sidebar of your ecommerce website. You can also add a 'Tell a Friend' page or have that feature show up after checkout to collect names and emails of your existing customers' friends. Other ways to build your website newsletter program mailing list include setting up contests where people have to give their emails and the winner receives a prize from your online store. This is a marketing tactic used by a lot of well known online retailers and it can really help build your list quickly. You can market your contest on blogs, forums and other social media web sites.



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Choosing the correct e-commerce solution with a built-in newsletter management software is crucial for opening up channels of communication with your customers. You must have a solid newsletter feature to simplify the process of creating and delivering it to your subscribers.


Core Commerce is a full service all-in-one hosting, design, and marketing software made specifically for e-commerce businesses. You can set up your store in minutes, and with powerful tools to help with not only creating a website newsletter, but also SEO, product marketing and mobile commerce, it's no wonder why it has been rated one of the best e-commerce solutions. Click here to try it absolutely free for 15 days, no credit card required!