- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.”
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.