With so many emails swamping our inboxes everyday you have to provide a good offering in order that people stay with you.

DO

• Make sure your readers are "opt-in" subscribers.
• Plan ahead and write a number of newsletters in advance.
• Have a style or a theme and try to keep as close to it as possible.
• Teak your theme dependant on feedback form your users.
• Keep an "ideas list" and use it to note & develop future email newsletters.
• Ensure your content is fresh and up-to date.
• Keep the subject line short, sweet and to the point. There's only a limited amount of characters there in which to grab your reader's attention. You want them to go "ooh, interesting" and open your mail.
• Keep your email content in keeping with the subject line.
• Read other newsletters especially in your field of expertise, it will keep you abreast of developments, and aware of what your competitors are up to.
• Get honest feedback and don't shy away from criticism. Negative comments become positive when you respond to them and eventually you improve your newsletter offering.
• Watch your stats, ask for responses & get suggestions.
• Keep to a schedule and let readers know if there's going to be a break in delivery, e.g. over the Christmas period.
• Spell-check your newsletter. Typos will have an adverse effect on your cerdibility. Oops!!

DON'T

• Don't start on a promise to you readers then fail to deliver - that will only piss them off.
• Avoid CLICK HERE for links - it may be a call to action but it's also a bit dated now.
• CLICK HERE and FREE tend to be picked up by anti-spam measures so you may not even reach your readers in the first place.
• Be careful of anything in BIG LETTERS it is considered as SHOUTING and may be picked up by anti-spam measures.
• Don't just Cut & Paste a page from your website in the newsletter and then link to it. What's the benefit in that? It's just repetition, a waste of space and a waste of your time and your readers' time.
• Don't use anybody else's content - not only is it unoriginal but it is illegal too!
• Don't make it difficult to for users to unsubscribe should they need to.
• Don't fill your newsletter with too much advertising. An overtly commercial newsletter may scare off your readers!