If you have a website, maybe a social media presence and the need to reach a large base of vendors, partners and customers, email marketing — and specifically email newsletters — are a great way to nurture those relationships. Sharing company blogs, links to company social media sites, company announcements and surveys are ideal for email distribution plus the cost for newsletter subscription services are low and the reach can be substantial.

So, where do you start?

Content. It all starts with content, including blogs, promotional pricing, links to specific sites and topics that could be of interest to the reader and are relevant to your company’s products/services. Remember to include only original information; do not plagiarize other sources. However, you may be able to secure permission from an author or publisher to use their work.

When developing your own content, think about every word as a driver for a specific goal. For example, if you are promoting a 10-day discount on widgets, you will want to specifically mention the widget, describe the details behind the discount, provide information on why the widget is a “hot” commodity, why the viewer should choose your widget and provide a link for the viewer to get more information about the widget.

It is also a good idea to embed images relative to your topic. Like articles, you need to have permission to use these images, so you should consider using your own photos/charts or subscribe to a stock photo service where you can purchase the rights to use the photos.

Length. The goal of the newsletter is to encourage the viewer to click through to a desired Web page with further information. Here is an example:

DISCOUNT ON SUPER FAST PINK WIDGETS
10% discount on our Super Fast Pink Widgets through October 21, 2011. Click here to receive your discount code.

or

5 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD ALWAYS MAINTAIN YOUR WIDGET
It is a good idea to maintain your widget by cleaning the parts monthly. (Insert the URL LINK to the page that talks in more detail about this topic.)