Content or Email Marketing? How to Decide Between Blog Posts and Newsletters
Content marketing and email marketing are just two of many strategies used by small business owners to spread word about their business. For many business owners, figuring out which one (or both?) to employ — and how to get it all done — is one more challenge added to the pile. Our team spends a lot of time helping business owners with these. Here are some ways to decide.
Consider Your Marketing Strategy
How you market your business depends greatly on your target audience and your preferences. Blog posts and e-newsletters are certainly not your only marketing strategies, but many business owners include them as part of the overall strategy. Doing so is smart; studies have shown the effectiveness of both approaches for B2B and B2C businesses.
However, when your business is small, you may wonder if you should create blog posts or e-newsletters, not having the time or inclination to do both.
Newsletters are emailed each month or quarter to your clients and to people who have signed up to be part of your list.
Pros - One reason these are often effective is that you’re speaking to people who have already declared their interest. People can unsubscribe at any time and it’s an outlet for you to offer additional services to current clients or offer specials to those on the fence. An email is an easy nudge, a way to keep your company’s name in front of people.
Cons - Growing an email list takes time and patience. You probably need to create some extra content that you offer as a free download in exchange for people’s email addresses or need to have another avenue where people sign up with you. (Warning: Buying a list and spamming people can get you charged hefty fines.) Plus, you will need an email program and time each month to write and design a newsletter.
Blog posts can be written daily, weekly, or monthly and are posted on your website.
Pros - Blog posts can easily be shared on social media, add credibility to your business, and can be used to answer customer questions. Blog posts are good for search engine rankings and most people can easily add them to their website without help.
Cons - Writing weekly or even twice a month can be challenging, especially if you’re not a writer. You may find yourself stuck for ideas, or you may find you just do not get to the blog post on time. There is no guarantee someone will find your post, and you’ll certainly want to pair this with social media to be effective.
Choosing the Right Strategy
If you cannot manage or do not want to manage both blog posts and e-newsletters (and don’t want to hire help), here are some questions to consider when deciding between the two:
How often can you write content?
Do you enjoy designing a newsletter? Newsletter programs offer templates, but you’ll still need to go in and fill in the blanks each time.
Do you feel comfortable posting to your website?
Will you pay for photos or find royalty free images?
Does your business require a larger volume of clients to make money or can you work with a small base?
Are you willing to create a system for gathering new email addresses?
Business owners have many other factors to consider when deciding between the two, but this will help you get started. If you want to create more content for your business, but need help getting it done, contact us for assistance.
