Tips for crafting engaging newsletter copy

If you’re a business owner or even sit within a marketing team, it’s likely you’re running a newsletter (or at least hope to run one when you have access to a few more resources!). 

But we’re realists. We know that newsletters take time, from designing the ideal visual layout to ideating themes each week or month to scheduling and reporting on the data. And sometimes, newsletters aren’t always the top priority. 

When you have 30 other tasks on your to-do list, your newsletter can end up neglected, and god forbid, not go out at all!

What happens if you don’t have a newsletter? We’ll argue the case for them below… but with a few caveats. 

Why are newsletters effective? 

You might hear an online and offline discourse both for and against the use of newsletters. As a stretched business owner, you need to know something is worth your while - you don’t have time to waste!

Here’s what we think: Newsletters work well if they are considered. They should not be rushed into without a strategy, a good idea or intention. 

We sometimes see newsletters that don’t have a clear idea of their audience. For example, if you’re an e-commerce business selling home shelving, your audience doesn’t want a newsletter about food recipes - content relevancy is everything. 

If you don’t consider where your email is landing in inboxes, you’ll end up with low open rates and, even worse, be flagged as spam. 

Equally, consider your business and your industry, is there something worth saying? You don’t want to regurgitate information that people read day in and day out. Readers want originality, especially in your copy (writing). 

Below, we’ll share 10 tips to keep your content feeling fresh!

10 tips for crafting engaging newsletter copy

Writing the copy for your newsletters can be time-consuming, but don’t fall into the trap of just using AI. This creates content that is predictable, boring, and people can spot the patterns of LLMs too easily now - it can erode some trust!

Instead, think about the practicals we’ve highlighted. 

1. Avoid too much fluff

   
   

Linguistic fluff, the kinda stuff that makes you reread a sentence 10 times and still not understand what it’s trying to say. 

You can have a copy personality without the head scratch. Try to simplify your sentence structure, clarify your meaning, and be concise. 

For example: 

Before

As minimalist retail layouts continue shaping modern interior design display trends and changes, more stores are choosing to feature shelving near the entrance. 

After

As minimalist retail layouts continue shaping modern interior design trends, more stores are choosing to feature shelving near the entrance of their stores. 

2. Get the subject line right

   
   

Your subject line and sender email are the first pieces of information about your newsletter in your sender’s inbox.

It's important to get the tone right - make it interesting enough to stand out in the many emails saturating our inboxes. Avoid vague and valueless subject lines, and focus on being timely and clear. 

Example of bad subject lines:

• “Update”

• “Shelving Information”

• “News About Retail”

• “Monthly Newsletter #4”

Example of good subject lines:

• Why Minimalist Shelving Is Dominating Retail Design”

• “3 Store Layout Trends Retailers Are Using in 2026”

• “The Entrance Display Strategy More Brands Are Adopting”

• “How Modern Shelving Can Increase In-Store Engagement”

There’s a fine line between a subject line being engaging and clickbaity. 

Remember, open rates are not everything. Someone might be curious enough to open the email, but if this is due to a shocking or irrelevant subject line, you’ll only ruin the trust between your business and the reader. 

3. Don’t forget the call-to-actions

   
   

Once you decide why and for whom you’re creating your newsletters, think about what action you want that reader to perform when they see your newsletter. 

In general, and compared to sales or product emails, newsletters tend to be more informational and engaging, so the need for strong CTAs might not be as evident. But you can still include softer nudges, like likes to: 

• Trophy articles

• A related page on your website

• A survey you might be promoting

• LinkedIn profiles

4. Find your voice

   
   

Are you writing from yourself as a co-founder or marketing professional, or from the business itself? 

Make these decisions based on who your audience is and your overall intention of the newsletter. These decisions should really be made in the strategy and planning stage, rather than execution - but late is better than never!

Think about what tone of voice you’d like to use. Are you serious and factual? Are you humorous and opinionated? Are you curious and collaborative? 

5. Make the language an extension of your brand

   
   

This ties into the above point about finding your voice, especially if you’re writing from the business rather than as a figurehead. 

Your newsletter should also be an extension of your overall brand to avoid confusion and a possible identity crisis. 

For example, if your social media is filled with memes and colloquial phrasing like “tea” or “and that’s on business”, it would be odd not to use that language and instead replace it with intense corporate speak like “the internal dialogue between stakeholders”.

6. Don’t drown the readers in text 

   
   

As you know, newsletters contain limited visual space. 

You have to fit text, visuals, buttons, and lots of other elements. This means you can’t write paragraphs and paragraphs of text, no matter how valuable the information might be - consider the format first. 

Readers will take 3-seconds to glance over an email, and if it’s not immediately engaging, they’ll click off, so keep that in mind. 

Equally, many readers will be consuming that content on mobile, with an even leaner amount of visual space.

7. Lean on AI, but don’t copy-and-paste

   
   

Nowadays, not all content is human-made. LLM models like ChatGPT have made it super easy to craft full newsletter copy with a small, targeted brief. 

Ultimately, it’s up to you and your brand how much you want to lean on these tools. BUT be aware that for many readers, AI content is increasingly easy to spot, and sometimes this can erode trust with your readership. 

If you are going to use AI, we never recommend treating it like a copy-and-paste exercise; use it as inspiration for formatting or themes, but authenticity is built in the human-to-human experience. This can’t be replicated by a machine. 

8. Understand your audience

   
   

As we’ve mentioned above, your audience is everything when crafting the copy in your newsletter. How well do you know them? 

Ask yourself some questions like: 

• What value does your newsletter give them?

• How often would they like to see you in their inbox? 

• Are you increasing trust with your audience? 

If you aren’t sure about the answer to the questions above, ask them outright and get some feedback. They might highlight some interesting topics you haven’t covered in the newsletter and give you some ideas for future campaigns. 

9. Focus your newsletter theme

   
   

Giving your newsletter a theme can help keep you focused each week or month (depending on its frequency). 

For example, if you’re a gym, you might focus on 3 core areas: breaking down gym myths, educating on particular machines, and highlighting your team. As a schedule, this might look something like: 

July: “Why cardio is not the best way to use weight” (gym myth) 

August: “Machine spotlight: How to use the Leg Press properly” (machine education)

September: “A day in the life of personal trainer Adam” (team spotlight) 

October: “You should feel sore after every workout” (gym myth) 

November: “THIS is how you use the Treadmill ” (machine education)

December:  “Why Jenny decided to join XYZ” (team spotlight)  

Not only will this help you plan ahead, but your readers will spot you quicker in their inboxes. 

10. Always review!

    
    

This seems obvious, but when you’re busy, you don’t always do the steps you know you should be doing. 

To avoid this, build a copy review process within your email tasks, and stick to it! This can include passing the draft to a team member to get some fresh eyes over the text, or looking at it yourself the next day, once you’ve had a rested sleep. 

Always utilise the “preview” and “test send” buttons on your email management system! Viewing the email in a new environment can help you spot errors and give you a more objective lens.