139: Winning Their Hearts: Master the Art of Engaging Newsletters with Nicole Kepic

Copywriting expert, Nicole Kepic, shares her wealth of knowledge on how to write effective newsletters that engage and sell. With 20 years of experience, she emphasizes the importance of consistency and personality in newsletter writing to build a community of loyal followers and convert them into customers. Her tips on incorporating personal stories, finding the right balance of selling, and measuring success will help any business create newsletters that stand out and connect with their audience.

Specifically, we discuss:

• Why it is important to stay connected with your email subscribers

• What to do if you’ve been ghosting your subscribers

• 3 different ways you can approach SELLING in your emails?

• Why stories are so powerful when writing emails

• Why done is better than perfect when sending newsletters

• Some metrics to measure when gauging the success of your newsletters

Summary:

Email newsletters are a crucial tool for businesses to build a community of loyal followers and convert them into customers. In a recent episode of The Course Creator's MBA Podcast, copywriting expert, Nicole Kepic, shared tips and insights on how to write effective newsletters that engage and sell.

Nicole, who has been copywriting for 20 years, emphasized the importance of consistency in newsletter writing. "You want to nurture the community and build trust, so that when you launch a product or service, your subscribers are already interested," she said. This means that businesses should aim to send out newsletters regularly, even if they're not perfect.

To keep newsletters fresh and interesting, Nicole suggested rotating different types of emails, such as behind-the-scenes updates, hard-sell pitches, and just-for-fun stories. She also recommended incorporating personal stories into newsletters to make them more relatable and engaging. "Pluck a story from real life and tie it into a business lesson," she said. "That's a great way to segue into a call to action."

Speaking of calls to action, Nicole advised against being too pushy or salesy in newsletters. Instead, she suggested using three different approaches to selling: the "buy the way" sales email, the smooth segue email, and the sell with confidence email. The key, according to Kepic, is to focus on serving the reader and providing value, rather than just trying to make a sale.

When it comes to measuring the success of newsletters, Nicole said that open rates and click-through rates are important metrics to track. However, she also noted that some readers may not engage with newsletters directly but still take action later on. "Some people are silent lurkers who eventually become buyers," she said.

Overall, Nicole's advice for newsletter writing boils down to two main principles: consistency and personality. By sending out regular newsletters that showcase the business's unique voice and perspective, businesses can build a loyal following of engaged readers who are more likely to become customers.

Mentioned In This Episode

• Where you can find Nicole: ⁠Website⁠ and ⁠Instagram⁠

• Nicole's free gift: ⁠5 Must-Haves for a High-Converting Sales Page

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Transcript:

Destini Copp 0:00:00

You. And today my special guest is Nicole Kepic. Nicole is a seasoned copywriter for coaches and course creator's, helping them stand out from the crowd, attract their ideal clients, and sell out their signature offers with fun, feel good copy. When she's not on her laptop, she's usually spending time with her family or staying up way past her bedtime to devour a suspense novel. Nicole, thank you so much for joining me. I am so excited to jump into this topic with you today and we're going to be talking about how to write newsletters your list will love. And I know probably I'm speaking for myself here, but I'm sure people who are listening can relate to this. The email sequences like the welcome sequence or launch sequence or somebody signs up for my list for a specific free gift, those are a little bit easier for me to write. But the weekly broadcast newsletters, that's something that I struggle with, so I'm sure others can kind of relate to that. So I am super excited to jump into the topic with you today on this. But before we get started, can you tell the audience a little bit more about you, how you help people and how you got started in all this?

Nicole Kepic 0:01:25

Yes, absolutely. Thank you so much for having me. Destiny okay, quick version of my story. I've been copywriting for 20 years just outside of journalism school. I hopped right into copywriting. So I've been doing this a long time, mostly in corporate writing, all the things you can imagine, video scripts, web copy, print brochures, like basically anything you can imagine, I wrote it. So all was good in my nine to five world, no complaints whatsoever. But then back in 2010, I think it was, I started a side business, freelance copywriting for a few clients here and there. And it just grew and grew and grew on the side. And even though at the beginning I had no intentions of taking it full time, I quickly well, I shouldn't say quickly, it did take me a while. I side hustled for many years. At one point something in my mindset flipped and I thought, hey, why am I not doing this full time? Like, enough of the nine to five, let's go full time in my business. So I finally did that in, I think it was December 2020. So just over two years ago, I did the side hustling for so long, finally went full time in my business.

Nicole Kepic 0:02:37

And at that point I switched from writing for big brands and corporations and companies to serving women like me who own their own businesses and are just so passionate about what they do, but they really struggle with the copy. So, long story short, I write sales page, copp, website copy, and yes, email copy, because that is a big pain point for some people.

Destini Copp 0:03:01

Writing emails, especially the newsletter. Emails, I think is a struggle for a lot of people, but we know it's important to stay connected with our email subscribers. But can you go into that and expand upon that and tell us why it is so important?

Nicole Kepic 0:03:18

Yes, and I think we've all heard, or most of us have heard from experts like Jenna Kutcher and Amy Porterfield how with social media, it's like building your house on borrowed land. We don't own that platform, whereas with email, I don't want to say we own our subscribers, but there's just certainly more control there. And we can just build this nice community of Raving fans, people who know, like, and trust us. So there's something really special in that. But the key is to really to be as consistent as possible, because it's almost like a friendship. You don't want to just drop in every six months or once a year and be like, hey, I need something. Or in this case in our businesses, hey, I'm selling something. You want to nurture that community so that when you do go to launch something, your course or product or service, they're already like, yes, I'm in. I know you, I trust you, I like you. Whatever it is you're selling, I want in. So, I mean, that's the dream. But yeah, it's just like such a nice community of people who just genuinely support you.

Destini Copp 0:04:20

So somebody out there, I'm sure, is saying, Nicole, I agree, I need to start emailing my subscribers, but I've been ghosting them for the past, I don't know, three months or more. What would you say to the and what should they do?

Nicole Kepic 0:04:35

Okay, first I would say don't beat yourself up too much about it. It happens to everybody. We all know how fast time goes by, but when you're starting back up again, just kind of treat it, like I said, like a friendship where maybe it's been a while, but you just pick up right where you left off. You're visiting somebody and it's like it's just back to how it was. So, yes, you can maybe do briefly touch on why you've been absent, but you don't have to go into this big apology or story of why you haven't been around. People are more forgiving, I think, than we think they are, and half the time they might not even notice. So, yeah, basically just dive right back in there.

Destini Copp 0:05:14

So let's talk about kind of delving into this weekly newsletter, writing this. Where do we go about getting inspiration for it? How do we write it? What is your recommendation in terms of maybe mapping out the next three months of our broadcast newsletters?

Nicole Kepic 0:05:36

Yeah, and I think what you said before earlier is so true in that when it comes to launch emails or welcome sequence, there's more direction there. So it's almost easier because of that direction. Whereas with the weekly newsletters, it's so open that people are like, what do I write? I could write about anything, but I don't know what to write about. So, I mean, I will often suggest a variety of different types of emails. So you might do a behind the scenes email, talking behind the scenes in your business, your process. You might do like a hard sell email, selling your products or service right to the point you could do just for fun emails where you're talking about your life or non business things because people want to get to know you too. It's really just kind of rotating those emails so that they're not all the same. And then as for inspiration, honestly, I pluck a lot of things from everyday life. Just random little stories that end up in my emails. And trust me, I don't have this really exciting life or anything. Sometimes it's just the tiniest things that I know people will be able to relate to. And I drop those into my emails and it just kind of sets them apart from how to emails. Like five tips for improving your copp. Those kind of emails are great, but you can also find that information on Google or from any other copywriter.

Nicole Kepic 0:06:56

So your stories are what kind of set you apart?

Destini Copp 0:07:01

Maybe I'm probably in the same boat. I feel like I live a very boring like literally, it's like taking my kids to the doctor or sitting on my computer making dinner. I mean, who wants to hear about that? So what is your kind of tip on pulling out some of those gems, if you would?

Nicole Kepic 0:07:21

Yeah, I feel the same way too. Sometimes we feel like our lives are so mundane, but I'll just go back to the fact that we don't have to lead these big exciting, epic lives. We can just pull out the tiniest things. And then my tip there is to always segue your story into some kind of business tie in. So you might pluck a story from real life, how you're feeling overwhelmed with whatever it might be. You're feeling overwhelmed with getting out of the parking lot at school when there's 5 million cars trying to get out at the same time. And then you would transition that into, hey, it's kind of like in business where you feel like DA DA DA and then you tie that in. So the key there is the the of the story is the same as the theme of the business lesson, if that makes sense. Yeah, I don't know, it's just like you start to find these stories or your brain starts to be more attuned to them the more email writing you do.

Destini Copp 0:08:16

So as you were kind of talking through there, I was thinking about, well, one of the things I did today was pick up my son's graduating from middle school, going into high school, and at the school they had where you could buy these signs for your yards, moving up to high school or whatever. So I was like, how would I take something like that and maybe incorporate it into my weekly newsletter.

Nicole Kepic 0:08:41

Yeah, I'd have to think about that. But I mean, the first thing that came to my mind was, okay, your son's in middle school. It's like the first thing that came to my mind as a parent is how time goes so fast. And people always tell you when you have children it goes so fast. So you could tie that in somehow. To with business, time goes by fast, your weeks just fly by. So maybe the message there is you have to be really intentional about how you're spending your time. So again, this is just off the top of my head, please don't be.

Destini Copp 0:09:09

Rating you're so good. I was thinking about that. I'm like, I don't even know where I would begin on that. But now that you're kind of walking me through, I'm like, oh yeah, I could definitely go in there and incorporate that story into one of my weekly newsletters there. We know that we need to be doing this on a regular basis. It is a struggle for so many of us. But why would you say done is better than perfect when sending these out? Or should it said differently, how perfect does it need to be?

Nicole Kepic 0:09:47

In my mind, it doesn't have to be so perfect because I hear of people and I know I've done this myself too, where you wait so long to get the thing out, whatever that thing is, whether it's a course or an email, you wait so long because you just want it to be perfect. But it doesn't need to be perfect. And I can say with certainty that not every email I've written has been completely stellar. Like there have probably been a couple of duds in there. But if you keep emailing, then your name is still going to appear in people's inboxes, so you're going to get that visibility. So does every email need to be perfect? Obviously you're going to try your hardest to make it as great as it can be, but it's better to still just get your work out there so that more people can see it. And also sometimes it's funny, the emails I write that I think maybe this is not as good. I'll get the most engagement with, so you can never tell what will land with your audience sometimes. So yes, done is better than perfect 100%.

Destini Copp 0:10:43

So let's talk about some of those kind of measurements that we should be looking at when it comes to our newsletters. What are some of the most important things that we should look at and say, yeah, this one really hit the mark or maybe this one wasn't as good and what could I do better next time? What do you suggest for people to do there?

Nicole Kepic 0:11:07

Well, open rates are certainly important. More people reading your emails and click through rates. So if you're promoting a course or program, whatever it is, you want people clicking onto the sales page. So those numbers are important. But it's funny too, in terms of replies, some people will read and love and be so into your emails but not reply. Kind of like somebody who's scrolling on Instagram, loving your content there, but not leaving a comment. And trust me, it happens because I've had people months down the road say, hey, I've been reading and loving your emails, I think I'm ready to book a VIP day. And I'm like, where does this person come from? So in terms of replies, engagement is always great and you're wanting to get those replies because those replies will sometimes lead to bigger actions, but they're not always the mark of purchase decisions later on because some people will be kind of like silent lurkers for a while before they take action.

Destini Copp 0:12:06

And I think that's an important point. I know for me in thinking about my inbox, there are some people, when their email comes, I will read it and I will save it in my Google Drive or not in my Google Drive, in my kind of Gmail folder, if you would. And those are the ones that I am extremely interested in because I might buy from that person in the future and that's kind of why I'm saving their emails. But I'm certainly in most cases not responding back to their email.

Nicole Kepic 0:12:35

Yeah, and I think that's also because we get busy. But yeah, that just goes to show too that the timing has to be right. So when you have your lead magnet, your welcome sequence, people are most receptive to hearing from you the but the timing might not be right for them to buy and that's totally normal. So they might hang out on your email list, like you said, for a long time before they're ready to buy, but they're still enjoying the content you're putting out there in the meantime.

Destini Copp 0:13:02

So let's switch gears just a little bit. Nicole and I want to talk about selling in the newsletter email. So what are some different ways that somebody can kind of incorporate maybe a flash sale or selling their online course or their membership? What are your recommendations there?

Nicole Kepic 0:13:22

Yeah, and the first thing I'll say there is, I remember somebody told me about a year ago, oh, you should never sell in emails. And I thought, whoa, no, you absolutely should sell in your emails, especially if you're selling from a place of serving. And you might not want to do it all the time, but absolutely use your emails to sell to your audience. So with that said, yes, I have three ideas for how you can structure different selling emails just to kind of keep things fresh and rotate them. The first one would be the buy the way sales email. So the structure for this is you have the body of your email, it's a story, it's a lesson, it's something. But the key is it's non sales related. So you're not trying to sell something in the body of your email, but the in your PS, you say something like, hey, by the way, did you know I have this new course available? Or PS, by the way, are you struggling with this? Here's something that can help. So the key here is that it's not really front and center that you're selling it's only in the PS. But this is also really powerful because a lot of people, especially nowadays, are skimmers. They're going to skim through your email and more times than not, they're going to go right to your PS, because who can resist reading a PS, right? So it's kind of like it's not in your face, but it's still prominent. So that is one way to structure a selling email.

Nicole Kepic 0:14:46

The second one I like to call the smooth segue email. And this is kind of like what we talked about earlier, where you're having a story introducing your email. Like in the beginning of your email, you're telling a story plucked from everyday life, and then you have a line in the middle of your email that's kind of like a Segue, a transition. Like I'm sharing this because or here's how this relates to business. Or don't you find this happens in business, too? And then you go into your business tip or business lesson. So again, the point here is that you're going to have the same theme in the beginning of your email, in that story, and then in the business tying in the lesson that you're sharing. So that's the smooth segue email. And the last one is the sell with confidence email. And this is basically like, you know, you have a great product, you're so proud of it, you're just going to sell it right from the get go. Why are you going to have any kind of rambling in the beginning? You're just going to go right into it, diving into selling. And that's why it's called the sell with confidence email. And sometimes people really appreciate those emails because they're like, hey, I don't have time to read through a story. I just want the information.

Nicole Kepic 0:15:56

So that's why I say it's nice to kind of rotate these different styles so you're not always doing the same thing.

Destini Copp 0:16:02

I love that suggestion about kind of mixing it up and to kind of put some flavor in there in your newsletter, broadcast emails and going back to your, by the way, sales email. I just want to make a comment there and say that that one absolutely does work. Because a few months ago, I did one of those PS, and it was for an affiliate product that I was promoting, and I got so many sales off of it just from that PS, and I wasn't even going to put it in the email. And I thought at the last minute, I'm going to go ahead and throw it in because it goes with what I'm talking about and I really think some people are going to be interested in it. So it was like a flute that I did.

Nicole Kepic 0:16:43

Oh, that's amazing. Yeah, I think that approach works for people who are really shy about selling. Like, it's a great way to start because again, it's not so interface, it's not obnoxious in any way. It's just kind of like, hey, by the way, yeah. So I'm so glad that worked for you.

Destini Copp 0:17:00

Nicole, any last minute tips for the audience before we hang up here?

Nicole Kepic 0:17:06

You know what, I would just say to always remember with email, especially with email, it's like you're writing to a friend one to one. It's a one to one conversation. So keep it conversational inject your personality where you can like I said before, people can get facts and figures on Google or from other people in your industry, but what sets you apart is your personality, your approach, your stories, so keep it conversational. I say that too, because many of us have come from corporate, so we're used to writing emails that are like, as per my last email, or effective immediately, like using corporate speak. But this is absolutely a place where you can show your personality and just kind of tone down the corporateness.

Destini Copp 0:17:51

And I will have to say, I can raise my hand and say, yes, I come from corporate marketing, and that was me. So I really had to work really hard to get over that. Now, Nicole, can you tell people where they can find you? And I think you have a free gift for them also?

Nicole Kepic 0:18:07

Yes. So you can go to my website, it's my first and last name, Nicole Kepic. I'm also on Instagram. I hang out there a lot at NK Copywriting. Or you could just look up my name and yeah, and my freebie is actually related to sales page copy, which ties in because you obviously want your copy to be consistent and cohesive across all the channels. And it's a small video, I think it's about 15 minutes and it's five must haves for a high converting sales page. But honestly, these tips can be used in your sales page, your website copy or your emails. They're pretty versatile tips and we'll make.

Destini Copp 0:18:45

Sure that those links are in the show notes so people can find you and grab your free gift. And Nicole, thank you so much for joining us today and sharing all of these great tips about broadcast newsletters.

Nicole Kepic 0:18:58

You're welcome. Thank you so much too.

Destini Copp 0:19:01

Bye.