This Week in B.C. – Black Press Media
*2018 Second Street Award – Best Email Newsletter Winner
Over the course of the last year, Black Press Media has created a powerhouse newsletter for their readers. With the newsletter set to send out on Saturday mornings, the team doesn’t just pull top stories, but takes the time to curate the content their readers would want to read to start their weekend. Beyond their content, they’re also making a dedicated effort to grow their list while also cleaning and maintaining a highly engaged audience. This Week in B.C. consistently delivers an open rate of 30% or higher.
Town Talk – Lawrence Journal World
The team at the Lawrence Journal World is using their newsletters to create a personal connection between their readers and their writers and staff. For example, their Town Talk newsletter comes from editor Chad Lawhorn. This is a great way for Lawhorn to establish himself with the readers and be the public face of the paper. The team at the paper is now rolling this strategy into other newsletters as well.
Breaking News – New Jersey Herald
The New Jersey Herald is keeping things simple to deliver big results. Their Breaking News emails include a picture, short description, and clear call to action. Sent to an opted-in list, these emails get a great response every single time, consistently delivering open rates of over 40%.
Daily Headlines – Southeast Missourian
The team at the Southeast Missourian is leveraging all the best practices for their Daily Headlines newsletter. From A/B testing of subject lines to experimenting with format and style changes, the team is able to understand what works best for their audience. They’re also constantly cleaning and curating their database to ensure their always sending to an engaged audience. All of this has taken their open rates from 13% and below to close to 25%.
Daily Mashup – WEEI-FM
The team at Boston sports station WEEI has turned their Daily Mashup newsletter into a powerhouse. They’ve been running this for years, it always drives tons of traffic, their selling sponsorships, and testing headlines to know what works. Their brand voice shines in each newsletter.
Daily News Alert – Record-Journal
The Record-Journal has created a robust daily newsletter with a clean-cut design highlighting all the paper has to offer. The success of their Daily News Alert has lead the paper to creating many additional newsletters geared towards other topics such as real estate, business, lifestyle, and more. Plus, each newsletter includes a prominent subscription offer – a great way to convert casual readers into subscribers.
Find inspiration from these media companies to enhance (or start!) your own email newsletter program. Whether it’s making your newsletters more personal, leveraging better testing and analytics, or even cleaning up an outdated email database, see how you can improve on your newsletter strategy today.
Related Articles
Tim is the Director of Email Success at Second Street and has extensive background in media. Tim is dedicated to helping local media companies find success through their email programs while leveraging promotions to grow their database and achieve their company's goals.