4 ways to gain subscribers to your business newsletter

As a small business owner, you likely spend a lot of time thinking about how to get more customers and clients. A great way to get people interested in your company is sending out a newsletter to let them know about sales, events and what your business is up to. Try these four tips to get people to sign up for your newsletter:

1. Include a discount
When you go to a clothing store website, you might be greeted by a pop-up window. It may offer a discount if you sign up to receive the company's e-newsletter. We've all clicked "yes" to receive the rebate and ended up buying more when we saw something great in the newsletter later on. You don't have to offer a huge percentage off – even 10 percent can be enticing.

2. Give advice
Let's say you are a jewelry maker and your business focuses around custom charm bracelets. In your newsletter, include pictures of beautiful creations you've recently made and information on what sales you have coming up. You could also include some advice that your customer would appreciate. As a craft person, maybe your client base spends a lot of time on Etsy. You could add a short blurb to your newsletter about how you find Etsy helpful. Maybe you'd like to make favorites boards on the site, so that other people who like your work can find artists with a similar style. If your customers can benefit from just reading your newsletter (without buying anything), they will be more inclined to read each installation. Plus, they'll see the information on upcoming sales as they read along, and they may end up on your website browsing through merchandise.

3. Use a great design
When your newsletter isn't aesthetically pleasing, people will not want to read it. If you have experience with programs like Photoshop, you can create your own template and manipulate it to look exactly how you want. People who have less expertise or want to work with a professional can talk to a graphic designer to make a template that best suits their business. It's helpful to have a logo to work off of and use for color inspiration on your newsletter.  There are also plenty of online platforms for e-newsletters that are simple to use and make the actual mailing process quick and easy. Choose the method that is the least time-consuming and most effective for you.

4. Have a sign-up link on your website
When people browse your company website, they should be able to sign up for your newsletter easily. It's helpful to have a side bar widget that shows up on every page where website visitors can type in their email address to receive your newsletter. This is a great place to advertise what your newsletter features, such as sale information, fun do-it-yourself projects or helpful advice. It's also a good idea to include a sign-up link in any client communication emails. Add a little section to your email signature, so that anyone you communicate with can quickly sign up.