8 Things I’ve Learned Publishing a Daily Newsletter

  1. Feedback can be hard to swallow. When you write a blog, it’s easy to brush off negative feedback. When a post doesn’t take off, it’s easy to write off the failure as bad timing or poor promotion. But when someone unsubscribes from your newsletter, it feels personal.
  2. It’s different than sending newsletters for your employer. I feel a sense of responsibility to my readers that I’ve never felt when creating newsletters on behalf of a business. The quality is better as a result.
  3. It’s a lot of work. Sourcing new and interesting stories for a daily newsletter is a lot of work. I recently wrote all about my process for collecting source material and I’m always looking for ways to improve it.
  4. Email tools are lacking. Subscribe forms are largely a pain. Reports are never that good. As much as I’m loving Mailchimp, I wish there were fewer steps involved in creating new campaigns. I’m tired of clicking “Next.”
  5. Daily isn’t for everyone. Plenty of people have told me that they like my newsletter, but can’t handle the daily emails. Maybe I’ll create a weekly version at some point, but I truly believe it’s the best format for the content.
  6. It’s easy to evolve. I’ve been sending a daily newsletter for less than a month and the format has already changed a few times. The more I do it, the closer I get to finding my voice.
  7. People actually really like email. Email is slower than Facebook and Twitter. Users can control it. Everything is optional. And free. No one likes work-related emails, but in my experience almost everyone loves a good newsletter.
  8. Sponsors are willing to invest. It’s so much easier to secure a sponsor for a newsletter than a blog. And it’s much easier for sponsors to get a return on their investment. Monetizing content is simply easier when the medium is email.

Swipe File is a daily newsletter for people who want more from their work.

Instead of fetishizing the latest content, I dig around the web in search of timeless information to help you navigate our changing world.

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