Hey Lizzo and other subscribers,

Email is a personal marketing channel. You have an opportunity to make a strong connection with subscribers by sharing your unique personality and the values that make your company special.

If you are just using email to sell stuff, this is your wake-up call!

Here are 17 idea starters to help you add the personal touches that will build long-lasting relationships with subscribers. The kind of relationships that turn into loyal, long-lasting customers.

1. Tell your origin story

💡“It all started with $5 in my mom’s garage." People love hearing stories, especially from a company that they like and respect. There is no better way to establish authenticity than to share how it all started.

2. Values are powerful

💡What you believe matters. Your subscribers want to know what you stand for. What drives your decisions. When you share values and show people how you live those values, you lay the foundation for a super strong connection.

3. What's behind the curtain?

💡When you let people behind the scenes, they get to know your personality. Maybe create a day-in-the-life post about your typical day or make a video of your team at work.

4. How the sausage is made

💡OK, I am sure your product development process is not gross like sausage-making. The point is that people are interested in how things are made, especially if they are a fan of the product. Provide a window into how you make your products.

5. Meet the team

💡The best way to make your newsletter more human is to put humans in it. Duh, right? Introduce team members in a way that fits your brand personality. You can embed videos or a social media post in your newsletter to show your human side.

6. Share what inspires you

💡Have you recently read or seen something that impacted you in a positive way? Share things that you love or that inspire you. You could include images, music, articles, stories, etc.

7. Be a community champion

💡In the same way people gravitate towards shared values, they also love learning how your company gives back. Without being self-serving, spread the news about your company’s involvement in making the community a better place.

8. List job openings

💡Hire your subscribers! Why not? If they buy from you, they could be great advocates for your brand too. Insert a job posting into your newsletter and see who responds.

9. Get social

💡Share the most popular posts, tweets and pins from your social media platforms. You could embed your social media posts in emails.

Dance break. 🕺

10. Express your opinion

💡OK, proceed with caution here. If your company has strong opinions outside of the professional sphere, then you are probably already sharing them. For everyone else, subscribers like hearing your opinions around issues specific to your industry.

11. Tale of the trust fall

💡Team-building exercises within a company are super important, but often they fall flat. If you’ve had a successful experience, people want to know about it! Share the experience, what went well and what you learned.

12. Top 10 personal insights

💡Write a top 10 list of the things you wish you had known when you started your business. Share your challenges and how these insights can help others overcome them.

13. Employee picks

💡Create a list of books or podcasts that inspire your employees. People love free resources and good recommendations. And at the same time, they get to know your team through their interests.

14. Personal CEO message

💡Every once in a while, include a note from your company leader. Perhaps it’s a thank you message or a message about the future of the business. Let subscribers feel like extended members of the company.

15. Promote non-profits

💡 Shine a spotlight on organizations your company sponsors, or showcase team initiatives/involvement in volunteering opportunities and community events like shave for a cure or charity runs.

16. Work anniversaries

💡 A sign of a successful company is the happiness of its employees, and happy employees stick around! Share work anniversaries with anecdotes, quotes or musings from your celebrated colleagues.

17. Showcase your furry friends

💡Do you have an office pet? Or a loyal four-legged remote team? Give Fluffy and Fido the spotlight in your newsletter.

Your Turn!

We know there are more great ideas out there. Please let us know the ideas we missed. If we like it, we'll add them to our website and credit you with a backlink.