WHAT MAKES FOR GOOD CONTENT?

Creating good content requires a wee bit of talent for expressing thought and personality through images and the written word. And, in truth, there are no rules for creating good content, only principles. Good email content is composed of equal parts communication and salesmanship skills, mixed with an eye for graphic design, and assembled with an awareness that “the media is the message.”

COMMUNICATION – The “style” of the email goes a long way toward pushing the message across. For example, technology (email, chat, text) has caused our communications today to be increasingly informal, personal and brief. So, whereas ten years ago formal-sounding business letters were the accepted response to customer inquiries, today short, informal email or text messages do the job nicely.

SALESMANSHIP – Every good floor salesperson working a customer knows that it is his/her job to direct and maintain the sales momentum. (The only person who can stop the sales momentum is the customer, right?) Similarly, our email follow-up letters should be designed to continually advance the sales momentum.

DESIGN – A clean layout will also go a long way toward getting your message across. Fonts and spacings that are easy on the eyes, and tasteful graphics that push the brand message are simple design elements that will give your emails a professional appearance.

MEDIA – People today are very media literate; if you are sending them an email, for example, they have expectations as to how an email should look and behave. Being aware of how people perceive media messages enables you to control your message so that it scores effectively with its intended audience.