We’d been at the beach for less than 2 days and already I’d sat under 2 of THEM.

It was quite comfy under the giant shadows my neighbor / friends had offered to share.

Each seemed excessively proud to own the latest in ridiculously-easy-to-assemble-beach-shade technology: the Shibumi Shade.

“My friend told me about it. She said they’re everywhere on Ponte Vedra beach. The Shiiiiii-buuuuuu-miiii.”

“I’ll have you know we had ours before they really caught on and it became a thing. We were the first in the neighborhood.”

It’s a smartly designed wind-powered apparatus that breaks down small (think, tent pole technology). You just assemble the pole, slide the kite-like fabric over it, arch it, then anchor it by filling the carry bag with sand.

One person can mount this thing without breaking a sweat, or their back.

Shibumi!

...

A day or so later my husband was at the local dive shop with the girls and he noticed they were selling them.

$250.

He passed.

But what was funny is that the sales lady talked to him about it for a bit and she was very, “I just don’t get what all the fuss is for.”

Well, you try mounting an umbrella by yourself a few times. Or a popup tent. And you’ll get why the very act of watching someone pop this thing up and dismantle it in a few quick minutes could sell you on the dream. To some people, that’s certainly worth $250. If I still lived at the beach I’d pay for it, but we’re only visiting. And I already have friends with Shibumis.

...

But you know I’m not trying to sell you on the concept of Shibumis.

I’m here to talk about newslettering and what we can learn from the Shibumi craze:

1. People with Shibumis feel like they know a secret other’s don’t (that you don’t need to waste excessive energy hauling something awkward and heavy to the beach and assembling it).
2. They want to brag about having figured this out way before you.
3. They think it’s worth paying $250 to use this secret knowledge to improve their beach experience.
4. All it takes is someone watching them build or dismantle the thing for a nearby beachgoer to ask, “What’s that and where can I get one?” The word of mouth is contagious.
5. They like saying “Shibumi.”

What’s your newsletter equivalent to the list above?

Do your subscribers feel as though your newsletter delivers a secret that improves some aspect of their life or work?

Does it take something challenging and make it incredibly easy?

Do your readers feel lucky they discovered you before their peers and brag about it?

Do they think it’s worth the time/money/attention they invest?

Do they tell others about it proudly?

Go forth and throw some (good) shade with that newsletter of yours.

Give them something to love telling people about.

“I read xyz newsletter. Have you heard about it? It’s all the rage in xyz industry.”

Shibumi!

It really is fun to say, right? I’ve said it in my head so many times while writing this that it now sounds like a word for when you’ve just done something wonderful and inspiring.

Ashley Guttuso  

Tips On Getting Started

John Bardos, curator of the IdeaEconomy Newsletter, shares how he got his first 2,000 subscribers (and maintains a 50% open rate) in this piece. He includes detailed information about:

• Writing original articles
• Advertising in other newsletters
• Cross promotions
• And things he would do differently if he were starting over

Discovered via For the Interested.

ideaeconomy.net  

Content Calendar ≠ Content Strategy ≠ Content Plan

Do you get these confused? They’re not the same. Sara Stella Lattanzio summed up the key differences in this LinkedIn post. Check it out and follow her for more content marketing tips.

linkedin.com  

Have You Heard Of Information Gain?

Copycat content is an SEO problem. You read one ranking article, you’ve read them all, right?

Especially for high-value keywords. But Google has a plan for that.

“Google’s solution is straightforward: reward articles that bring new information to the table.

They suggest doing this through something they call information gain, a measurement of the new information provided by a given article, over and above the information present in other articles on the same topic.”

This will mean bringing new information to your competing articles could increase opportunities to rank.

Ryan Law explains the ins and outs in this article.

animalz.co  

Here’s What’s Working In The Metaverse

What is (and isn’t) working for marketers in the metaverse? This Marketing Dive article rounds up some solid examples of metaverse marketing.

My favorites are the Unilever virtual marathon and Heineken’s virtual brew.

Discovered via Marketing Dive.

marketingdive.com  

Have You Tried This Writing Trick?

Here’s some writing advice from Derek Sivers:

“Try writing one sentence per line.”

Why?

It helps you judge each sentence on its own, vary sentence length, move sentences, and see first and last words.

Don’t worry. You can combine sentences into paragraphs after you’ve written them new line by new line.

Unless you don’t.

Discovered via Growth Marketing Weekly.

sive.rs  

Is Your Copy Shepherding Your Reader?

Have you noticed messaging you used pre-pandemic is no longer working in today’s climate? Michael Stelzner recommends that post-pandemic copy should focus less on FOMO and more on guiding (or shepherding) buyers to make beneficial decisions.

He then breaks down the PASTOR framework:

• P: Person, Problem, Pain
• A: Amplify and Aspire
• S: Story
• T: Transformation and Testimony
• O: Offer
• R: Request a Response

Learn to wield your herding staff here.

Discovered via Smart Brief on Social Business.

socialmediaexaminer.com  

Secrets To Subscriber Growth

This week’s Publishing Insights look at two different publishers who are growing both in subscribers and revenue. Find out what they are doing to see if it could work for you, too.

• Axios Local publishes in 21 and counting cities and has surpassed 1 million email subscribers. Mark Stenberg examines how this model of growth and success could be the solution for local news.
• 300% growth in subscribers is significant for any publication. Peter Houston reports how Mail+ did it in just 2 years by providing 9 updates designed to meet readers’ needs.

Expert Suggestions On How To Improve Newsletter Monetization

Josh Spector recently gave Andrew Methven, author of Slow Chinese, advice on how to better monetize his newsletter. His suggestions include smart moves like

• Making it clear what free subscribers are missing
• Emphasizing benefits, not just features
• Offering a high-end product
• Broadening your monetization approach beyond just products and services

Check out all 10 suggestions.

joshspector.com  

Have You Seen These Meta Monetization Initiatives?

In this Social Media Today article, Andrew Hutchinson reports how Meta is offering new initiatives for creators including reels payments, NFTs, a creator marketplace, and more.

Anyone using (or planning to use) these? Reply and let me know how they’re working in relationship with your newsletter. I'm curious.

Discovered via Brand MVP.

socialmediatoday.com  

Have You Tried Using Curated To Build Multiple Issues At Once?

Hey, everyone. Seth with Curated Success here.

Did you know you can easily build multiple newsletter issues at the same time in Curated?

You can do this by moving saved links from your Collected Items page to different draft issues. To do this, you’ll need to create a few draft issues by clicking the Issues drop-down, selecting All Draft Issues, and clicking New Issue. You‘ll be prompted to select a target release date and time for each issue. Note: this does not automatically schedule the issue to release. It’s more like pencilling something in.

Once you’ve created a few draft issues, go to your Collected Items page and move saved links to your different draft issues. Click the arrow icon to the right of a link and select a future issue.

This is a great way to quickly assign the curated content you’ll include in future issues if you like to work in batches. It’s a great alternative to working in one draft issue at a time.

If you have any questions about this, let me know!

Curated Crash Course Is Today At 4 PM Central

Curated Crash Course is today at 4 PM CT!

As usual, the first 30 minutes include a tutorial on getting started with Curated followed by a Q&A session that begins at 4:30.

This is built to be a come-and-go Zoom call, so feel free to hop in whenever you can and leave when you have to.

If you have any questions about Curated or newsletters, we created a Google Form where you can submit them.

Seth will answer them live at Curated Crash Course during the Q&A segment of the session, but if you can't make it, he’ll send you a recording so you can see your questions answered.

zoom.us  

New to Curated? Make a copy of this Getting Started with Curated Checklist to help launch your newsletter (public, private, or paid).

Consider Swag

Everyone loves free stuff. But... there’s a right and a wrong way to offer swag for your newsletter. This week your Opt In Challenge is to check out this article by ​​Lauren Kaljur and see if you can come up with swag ideas that align with your unique audience goals.

Discovered via American Press Institute.

indiegraf.com  

Like this newsletter?

Let me know. Reply, email me at Ashley[at]optinweekly.com, or find me on LinkedIn to hit me with some feedback. I’d love to know what you think.

Happy newslettering,

Ashley Guttuso