email notifications for your blog content
TRANSCRIPT
Email Notifications for Blog Content
Becs Kemm
I work for
Company blogs
generate 55% more visitors
Source: Hubspot
> 62% of businesses
have a blog
Source: Hubspot
97% more inbound links
with blogs Source: Business
2 Community
Blogs have a
positive impact on
SEO
Many popular bloggers
earn enough to
live on
Company blogs
generate 55% more visitors
Source: Hubspot
> 62% of businesses
have a blog
Source: Hubspot
97% more inbound links
with blogs Source: Business
2 Community
Blogs have a
positive impact on
SEO
Many popular bloggers
earn enough to
live on
Company blogs
generate 55% more visitors
Source: Hubspot
> 62% of businesses
have a blog
Source: Hubspot
97% more inbound links
with blogs Source: Business
2 Community
Blogs have a
positive impact on
SEO
Many popular bloggers
earn enough to
live on
Company blogs
generate 55% more visitors
Source: Hubspot
> 62% of businesses
have a blog
Source: Hubspot
97% more inbound links
with blogs Source: Business
2 Community
Blogs have a
positive impact on
SEO
Many popular bloggers
earn enough to
live on
Company blogs
generate 55% more visitors
Source: Hubspot
> 62% of businesses
have a blog
Source: Hubspot
97% more inbound links
with blogs Source: Business
2 Community
Blogs have a
positive impact on
SEO
Many popular bloggers
earn enough to
live on
Company blogs
generate 55% more visitors
Source: Hubspot
> 62% of businesses
have a blog
Source: Hubspot
97% more inbound links
with blogs Source: Business
2 Community
Blogs have a
positive impact on
SEO
Many popular bloggers
earn enough to
live on
Pinch of Yum: $32,971
July 2015
You’ve blogged, now what?
!
Low reach unless you pay
Standard emails
are UGLY
Tiny lifetime in
ecosystem
!
Email is better, you can spy on your users…
(without them knowing)
Our own findings…
Sign up forms with
separate opt-in for posts
vs twice-monthly newsletters
Our own findings…
• Immediate feedback
• The comment game…
• 1400 subscribers in two months
• 28% unique opens
• 10% unique clicks
Our own findings…
Automation vs Manual
Automation - how?
• The default WordPress emails
• A plugin
• RSS->Email
• Time-saving
• Easy, mostly
• Can be set to schedule
Automation - WHY?
• Design limitations
• Boo-boos
• No ability to test & learn
Automation - WHY NOT?
Manual send - why?
• A/B subject line testing
• Customise copy completely
• More design options
Tips & tricks
To excerpt or not?
• Excerpt means you get more hits to your site
• Full post means likely to read more of post
• Full post reads not trackable
The big picture
Include a picture for a prettier looking
Add to functions.php// THIS INCLUDES THE FEATURED IMAGE (MEDIUM SIZE) IN OUR RSS FEED
function insertThumbnailRSS($content) {
global $post;
if ( has_post_thumbnail( $post->ID ) ){
$content = '' . get_the_post_thumbnail( $post->ID, 'medium' ) . '<br/><br/>' . $content;
}
return $content;
}
add_filter('the_excerpt_rss', 'insertThumbnailRSS');
add_filter('the_content_feed', 'insertThumbnailRSS');
Long-tail reading
NEWSFLASH: Not everyone reads
every single email you send!
Add links to older blog posts (a la Mailchimp)
Share blog posts in other emails
Use in combination with other
email types since not everyone
will want to receive blog posts by
Categorise
If you run a site with a lot of
different categories you might
want to allow users to choose
what they want to hear about
Apples
Oranges
Pears
What’s with the fruit?
Set your frequency
Promote
Sidebar
Before comments
Opt-in when commenting
Thanks! @becskr
Catch me at speed dating!