Combining an Email Newsletter
Template and Downloadable PDF

Combining an off-the-shelf email newsletter template and a PDF is a great way to deliver lots of high value content. The main benefits are:

• a PDF template is easier to design and much less restrictive than an email template (for more on this go to email marketing newsletter)
  
  
• Minimal HTML knowledge required, making it much easier to use a free email newsletter template that comes with your system
  
  
• ‘Print and keep’ format is great for high value content such as recipes and promotional vouchers

CASE STUDY

KEY CAMPAIGN FEATURES: lots of content, including a recipe to download and keep

Business name: Kilberry Inn

Business type: An award-winning rural restaurant with accommodation.

Location: Argyll, Scotland

Our brief: create the first email campaign for the Kilberry Inn, containing special offers, news and a recipe.

Here’s what we did:

• Step 1: Create the first template: a downloadable PDF containing the main newsletter and the recipe;
  
  
• Step 2: Create a second template: a ‘covering’ HTML email with a clear and simple Call to Action - to download the newsletter.
  
  
• Step 3: use our email marketing software to track important email marketing metrics such as the numbers of emails opened and PDF newsletters downloaded. This can be compared to future campaigns so that trends can be identified and action taken if necessary.

This campaign was opened by a higher proportion of people (61%) than any other campaign we’ve done. 31% of people who opened it downloaded the PDF newsletter. These statistics compare very well to the average email open rate of 20% for an opted-in list.

GEORGE SAYS... I recommended to the client that the next newsletter be contained entirely within the email and not use a PDF template. This way, we can compare the performance of the two campaigns and see which format their customers prefer. It may be that the PDF email newsletter template is just used occasionally when there’s lots to say. Only time - and analysis of those all important metrics - will tell.

• Take a look at these other case studies of web based email marketing
  
  
• Here are the key components of an email marketing plan