Professional services such as law firms and financial services firms should consider email marketing one of their core marketing tools. It provides direct contact with your target audience and shows your organization is thoughtful, informed, and proactive on the topics that concern them – whether that’s regulatory updates or probate law FAQs.
Providing valuable and timely content to contacts in a consistent way will also help keep your services top of mind even if it’s been a while since you worked together. In our recent article we can see that Financial and Legal Services tend to get around 25% open rate which isn’t too bad considering the B2B nature of the content!
Chances are you already create content on your website or directly to active clients. If you’re worried about “giving away” knowledge, remember that very few will have the time or skills to execute your ideas…and if they do, they are unlikely to be a good match for you as a client anyway!
10 Professional Services Email Newsletter Ideas to Try This Year
Experiment with different email types, layouts, and content. Try these 10 formats, and then remember to collect data on the newsletter’s performance. As always, test, analyze, and optimize.
1. Case Studies
Highlight successes or interesting cases your firm has worked on in your newsletters every so often. Doing so not only helps establish credibility, it can generate ideas for your clients or prospects, and provide education that they will value.
2. FAQ
Are there certain questions that your team gets asked all the time? Maybe they pertain to your firm’s specific expertise, or maybe they are questions that are commonly asked as part of an initial consultation. Whatever the format may be, it’s a smart strategy to lay out a few frequently asked questions – and their answers – in one simple newsletter for your readers.
3. Listicles
Listicles are easy to digest and usually deliver helpful information. Briefly elaborating on a list is a way to provide relevant content in a format that’s more likely to be read and saved.
10 Things You Should Consider Before You ____
5 Of The Best Articles On ____
8 Reasons Why We Always ____
4. Newsjacking
While the name is off putting, it’s actually a great way to highlight that current news in the media is relevant to your expertise and that your organization has services that can address the topic (e.g. cybersecurity hack, new legislation, etc.)
5. Changes to The Law
Laws and regulations are always changing and showing that you have in-depth knowledge of how to address them either in your own compliance or acting on behalf of clients is important.
6. Informational Video
Video content is a great way to demonstrate the skill of your team and gives both a preview of their expertise and an intro to the partners. We recommend a conversational style but filmed to a reasonably good quality. Take a look at the great work our clients Hugill & Ip Solicitors do with video (and podcasts!).
7. Guides and Downloads
Readers are constantly looking for more in-depth information that they can digest on their own terms, or save for later. Publish links to download long-form thought leadership pieces created by your firm within your email newsletter. This may be an eBook, a checklist, a guide, etc.
8. Content Roundup
A content roundup will be especially interesting to your subscribers. Choose a few items that you think offer practical insights for your clients, and create a brief post highlighting all of them to send via email. For example, you might develop a newsletter such as “The 7 Best Articles to Read if You’re Preparing to Create a Shareholder Agreement”, or “Our Five Favorite Posts on Cryptocurrency in Hong Kong”.
9. Social Media
Use your newsletter to highlight social media to generate more followers and engagement. Share some of the more engaging posts and interactions you’ve had over the past year, and make it clear how people can follow or like your firm online.
10. Business Development
Use this method sparingly but do on rare occasions focus directly on attempting to get more leads and build relationships. Highlight your expertise, include testimonials, and share any special offers your firm is running. For example, if you offer free 30 minute consultations, this is your chance to promote them!
