{"id":147122,"date":"2025-03-21T05:41:17","date_gmt":"2025-03-21T05:41:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/business\/marketing\/inbox-anarchy-an-audience-first-email-marketing-strategy\/"},"modified":"2025-03-21T05:41:17","modified_gmt":"2025-03-21T05:41:17","slug":"inbox-anarchy-an-audience-first-email-marketing-strategy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=147122","title":{"rendered":"Inbox Anarchy: An Audience-First Email Marketing Strategy"},"content":{"rendered":"


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My theory is that marketing leaders don\u2019t need more content. They need better filters.<\/span><\/p>\n

Each day new marketing reports, frameworks, and case studies flood your feed and inbox. There\u2019s always another podcast episode, a LinkedIn think piece, and a \u201cmust-read\u201d report. But, you don\u2019t have time to consume it all. And yet, working in marketing requires knowing what matters and why.<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s why newsletters are having a moment and brands are rethinking their email marketing strategy.<\/span><\/p>\n

People are craving well-curated smart summaries of what\u2019s happening in the world, in their industry, or in their local community. Providing that curation has value.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We see that with our newsletter, ON from Convince & Convert. We produce a lot of content through our blog, podcast, training, and original research \u2014 curating it to our newsletter has been one of the best ways to receive that updated content for years.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But great content marketing<\/a> requires listening to and understanding your audience.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We survey the marketing leaders in the C&C audience once a year and one thing stood out to me in this most recent survey: <\/span>newsletters are our audience\u2019s preferred way to stay informed <\/b>when learning about marketing trends and insights<\/span>.<\/b> More than short-form video, webinars, blogs, or podcasts.<\/span><\/p>\n

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The specific question we asked was \u201cWhat content formats do you prefer when learning about marketing trends and insights?\u201d Of the seven answers, respondents had to rank each 1 to 7. Newsletters were almost twice as likely to be ranked first than any other medium.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Because the right newsletter can do a lot of thinking for you. Or initiate important thoughts. It\u2019s not just about what happened \u2014 it\u2019s about what it <\/span>means. <\/span><\/i>Why it matters.<\/span><\/p>\n

That\u2019s why we decided to evolve our C&C newsletter and rebrand it. Moving from <\/span>ON<\/b> to <\/span>The Trendline<\/b><\/a>, a more focused, more useful resource for marketing decision-makers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And we did it by listening to our audience and based on what works in today\u2019s content landscape.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why Traditional Newsletters No Longer Work<\/b><\/h2>\n

There are some basic formats that most brand newsletters have followed for years. Chief among them is a list of links or news. Versions of that format can still work today for many businesses. But there is a growing risk. As content mediums mature, the quality bar goes up. What worked to engage audiences 5 or 10 years ago can easily be ignored today.<\/span><\/p>\n

For newsletters, if you\u2019re not providing helpful content that is also easy to consume without clicking on links, you risk losing authority and the sense of value you bring to your audience.<\/span><\/p>\n

We followed this playbook too, but over time, it became clear that this model wasn\u2019t delivering the value that our audience actually needed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Marketing leaders don\u2019t need more content in their inboxes. None of us do, really. We want to be entertained, inspired, and feel smarter. Our theory is that marketers need less content, and the content they do consume needs to help them make smarter decisions in an industry built on rapid change.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A good portion of the decisions we made in our newsletter refresh focused on providing more insights to help our audience think strategically. What will help them understand what\u2019s worth their time before they invest it? And how do we provide that value upfront, without making them click through multiple links?<\/span><\/p>\n

We saw three opportunities in reviewing our old approach:<\/span><\/p>\n

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  1. Inbox Overload<\/b>
    <\/b>Marketers are drowning in content. Industry updates, reports, and hot takes pile up, unread. If an email doesn\u2019t immediately stand out as essential, it gets ignored. We knew we had to move beyond just sending another list of reading assignments as our email marketing strategy, even if we knew that the content was valuable. We had to provide a layer of strategic thought.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Trust is Fragile<\/b>
    <\/b>Promotional-heavy newsletters are harder. If every issue requires them to click through to find the value, you risk readers tuning out. We needed to prove our value inside the email itself, not just on the other side of a new browser tab.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Curation Has Value, Not Just Creation<\/b>
    <\/b>The best newsletters today don\u2019t just push content\u2014they <\/span>distill<\/b> it. Marketing leaders don\u2019t have time to sift through every new trend or study. They need a trusted filter. We weren\u2019t providing that before, but we knew we could.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    This realization led us to rethink our entire newsletter approach. We aren\u2019t just changing a name. We are shifting how we deliver insights. The Trendline is built to help marketing leaders cut through the noise, focus on what matters, and think more strategically \u2014 all within the email itself. Yes, you can click through to read more (or listen more) but you don\u2019t have to.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    What\u2019s In \u201cThe Trendline\u201d and Broader Lessons of What\u2019s Working Today for Email Marketing Strategy<\/b><\/h2>\n

    Marketing leaders don\u2019t have time for constant deep dives. So The Trendline is set up as a <\/span>debrief<\/b>. A resource that brings important topical resources to our readers through the team\u2019s strategic lens. Why do these stories matter to marketers? What questions should they be asking?<\/span><\/p>\n

    We built The Trendline to reflect this need, focusing on four major improvements:<\/span><\/p>\n

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    1. Broader Curation<\/b>
      <\/span>To optimize for the new debrief format, we knew the best insights wouldn\u2019t come from a single source, so we cast a wider net, broadening our scope to curate from a variety of media and industry voices. <\/span><\/li>\n
    2. More Strategic Takes<\/b>
      <\/span>The top stories each issue are intentionally titled \u201cThe Big Picture\u201d because we are not just sharing a big topic, but explaining <\/span>what it means<\/b> for marketers. Every issue includes strategic takeaways from C&C strategists who average 20+ years in marketing. Our goal here is to distill the biggest shifts and frame them with a lens of actionability.<\/span><\/li>\n
    3. More Topical Relevance<\/b>
      <\/span>The Trendline is not a list of news stories but we do want it to focus on what\u2019s driving real change in marketing right now, whether that\u2019s an industry shake-up, a shift in consumer behavior, or a strategic move from a major brand. It\u2019s not about being timely for the sake of it, but about surfacing the stories that <\/span>actually affect marketing leaders\u2019 decisions.<\/b><\/li>\n
    4. Hierarchy and Variety<\/b>
      <\/span>Structure matters. We designed The Trendline with a clear content flow: first a brief introduction, then a breakdown of the biggest stories with takeaways, and then wrapping each issue with interesting links, events, and a reader<\/span> poll. The <\/span>hierarchy gives context<\/b>, while the variety of formats helps us deliver value in multiple ways.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      These adjustments are about being more useful in the way marketing leaders actually consume information today.<\/span><\/p>\n

      Formatting The Trendline: How and Why<\/b><\/h3>\n

      When we looked at our previous newsletter, we saw clear opportunities to improve. The old format, Convince & Convert\u2019s <\/span>ON<\/b>, was useful but made the reader work more to get to strategic thinking. The format was based on content medium (blog posts first, then podcasts, etc)<\/span><\/p>\n

      With The Trendline, we reworked the entire format. Hierarchy would be more curated, and each section would have a clear purpose to match the importance of the curated content. We also have clear guidelines for every section so our full team can contribute and we can keep even the biggest stories compact to help save our readers time.<\/span><\/p>\n