“What content should go in my emails and what should go on the blog?”
It’s one of the questions I get asked the most (for real). Also:
“Can they overlap? Should they be the same, or different?” I struggled with this one for a long time. Here’s what I used to do:
- Wait for a good idea for a “blog-worthy” post – sometimes for months
- Spend all damn day writing it
- Eat many things in the “not worth it” category — like tiny crumbs of popcorn from the bottom of the bag, or jam straight from the jar — on the road to finishing this blog post
- Write an email about the post, which would end up being like another blog post in itself
- Lose lots of subscribers, because I’d been gone so long, they forgot who I was
I don’t have to point out the problems with this system.
Sometimes I was regular with it, but it was such a slog to write a blog post and then create a whole extra email to tempt people to read it.
I changed my system a couple of years ago when I realized something about my writing process.
I finally discovered that I write way more easily when I start with an email. The pressure’s off. It’s just an email. It doesn’t have to be a big, mighty blog post. Not that a blog post has to be big and mighty. That’s all in my head. But my head says that for something to be a blog post and live on my site, it should be evergreen and on a topic I’d want to be found for.
(I decided this after discovering that, as a result of my very rando blog posts, the search term I ranked highest for was “make slave eat toenail clippings.”)
So email’s my best way of creating consistent content — without flaking. And that’s where I start. I write an email, and if it turns into something I feel is blog-worthy, I’ll copy-paste it, adjust so it doesn’t have those time-specific email flourishes like “hey {first name}, how was your July 4th weekend?” and hit “publish” over on the blog.
Here are the ways you can navigate the relationship between blog and email:
A. Teaser email with link to blog post
Write a blog post and drive to it from a curiosity-provoking email that makes it nearly impossible to resist clicking the link. Long gone are the days when you could simply say “Hey, I have a new blog post” and everyone would run to read and comment on it. I used to do that every time I wrote a post. Now, I do it only when the blog post is way too long for an email.
B. Blog post and email are the same content
Write a blog post and put the whole thing in an email, with or without an option to “click here to read this on the blog.” So people *can* go read it in a web browser, but they don’t have to.
Example: my friend Ash Ambirge, over at The Middle Finger Project, turns every email into a blog post (or every blog post into an email), and so any time you get an email from her, you can also go read it on the blog.
I rarely do that, because most of my emails are exclusive content, just for my subscribers (AKA Shrimpers). You won’t find them on the blog. But anything that goes on the blog will go in an email to my list. They get word of just about everything I publish. So, once in a while, I’ll put the exact same content in the email with a linked note, “Prefer to read this on the blog? Go here to comment and share.”
C. Blog post and email are unrelated
Write blog posts and completely separate emails, which have nothing to do with each other. But why would you do that?
Which method is right for you?
Option A is best for getting more visitors to your site.
If traffic is a priority, or you have something on your site that you want your subscribers to keep seeing, this is the one for you.
Option B is best for rewarding your email subscribers for being on your list, and for getting them to read the whole thing. Because they can do that without clicking out of the email. I know from my own subscribers and my own experience, that often, people don’t feel like clicking over to the blog. It feels like work. I know, how spoiled and lazy are we that clicking to another application feels like “work.” That is insane. But it’s still true.
Option C, unrelated blog posts and emails, seems like a lot of extra work — and pointless. Unless, that is, your blog is a Game of Thrones fan fiction blog and your emails are about needlepoint. Two different things for two different readers. But that’s two different businesses, and we’re not talking about that. Another problem with option C: If you take the trouble to write a blog post or anything else, why wouldn’t you share it in an email to your list? Those are the people who’ll open it, comment on it, respond to it, and share it.
They’re your ride-or-die readers.
You might be saying, “But I can just share it on social media. That’s like sharing to a list.”
No, it’s not. Not for me, anyway. I can post a blog post on Facebook and get 15 likes if I’m lucky. {Cue me going back to check if I accidentally set it to “only you can see this,” the modern equivalent of having a friend call you to make sure your phone is working.}
How many of those few people even clicked over to read it, unknown. No doubt some are merely supportive “I like that you wrote this but haven’t read it yet and probably won’t” likes.
When I’ve shared content via email, meanwhile, I’ve always had hundreds or thousands of people reading it. (Depending on current size of my list and whether it’s the actual email or a link they have to click on from the email, as discussed.)
As for the “death match” I promised in the title:
If I were handed a Sophie’s Choice between email and blog — I can only keep one, the other dies — I’ll keep email any day.
If you took away my website, my social platforms, all of it, but left me with just my email list, I’d be OK. I could still do business.
In fact, I’ve built my business, as it exists today, on emails. They do all the selling for me. If you’ve ever wished yours could, too, check out my signature email copywriting courses, Inbox Hero and Launch Hero.
It’s all about email, yo.
Here’s why — and how to write emails better.
Now you:
Do you blog?
Do you have a list?
How do you deal with the blog post vs. email question? What tips would you add?
And if you’re on the other side of it (the consuming side), which do you prefer: emails that send you to a blog post, or the whole thing in the email?
TELL ME IN THE COMMENTS.
This is a useful and excellent share. Will definitely share it with people I know.
This was incredibly helpful. I blog and do email marketing for a B2B service and have dabbled in each of these methods. I’ve also found myself needing to defend my final choice (I’ve settled on option A) to my boss and now I feel more empowered to do so.
Thanks!
First of all –> Cue me going back to check if I accidentally set it to “only you can see this,” the modern equivalent of having a friend call you to make sure your phone is working.
OMGosh, 100%!!!
Ok, back to the topic at hand… I am working on building an email list, so Blog Only is my only option at the moment. My next step will be a teaser email to get them on my blog. When I’m as amazing as you… I’ll go with Option B!
You’re incredible and I love reading your stuff – it makes me laugh pretty much every time… and I learn some stuff, too.
I prefer emails that send me to a blog post (reading them AND writing them), but honestly, as a writer, I do all 3 options sometimes, and as a reader, if I like the person’s content it doesn’t matter what option they use – I’ll read it all.
Like you.
I like you and your stuff. And when your book hits the shelves, I’m ordering one.
Thanks for sharing this – and everything you share.
Thank you for this. I’m a fiction author and when covid hit, I pretty much abandoned my blog. It doesn’t move books for me, and was really only for times I felt like sharing something more complex or telling a story too long for email. I’ve been feeling guilty about it, but now, thanks to you, I don’t! I love the idea of putting my “juicier” emails up as blogs. Less work and it makes those messages evergreen. Thank you!!
Hi Laura!
I love that your “Option B” gives us permission to use the same content for both. And… if I had to choose only 1, I would choose to keep my email – hands down.
I can hop on the site where I create my email messages and it just flows every single time. I am writing to my people!
Yet so many times, I’ve gotten deep into something and thought, “This totally should have been a blog post – it’s “that good”.
Thanks for the great reminder that it can be as simple as copy, paste, publish. I love seeing that this post is indeed evergreen – since the first comments were a year and a half ago!
🙂 Have a great day – (and this comment is meant to be evergreen as well). 🙂
Kim Funk
I have a blog and an email list- in the dark ages I used to write separate posts for both. Now I either copy past content from my blog to email or include an excerpt of the blog post in my email, along with other content like shows, workshops and events. My readers seem to like it, with about 45 % open rate. Blog/web traffic is up since the pandemic too. Thinking about your highest ranking post and wondering what I can post on my blog that would surpass my highest ranking (slightly irrelevant) post.
This awesome! I let my list wait for a blog post for a month or at least a couple of weeks…
I just scheduled emails for the next 2 weeks and now I have the time to edit the blog post I have been so wanting to publish…
Thanks again, Laura!
That makes sense. I heard somewhere that it’s good to use content on multiple platforms (like email, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter). This falls in line with that and I’ve had a blog too and yeah no one reads it. I didn’t have an email list tho! Haha
What about option D Laura? You start writing an email which turns out te be a blog gem; copy the first part in a message for your email subscribers and refer “read more” to the blog.
As a consumer, I Marie Kondo my inbox when the number of incoming messages gets overwhelming. The first ones to go? The ones where I can read the whole thing on the blog.
I bookmark the blog “to read later”, although withe life and everything, I rarely do…
Any thoughts on option D Laura?
This is awesssoomeee!
I totally love giving info to visitors about how to have a great vacation on my island on my blog!
But the emails …they are wonderful (and a bit scary)..
In the email I can show my personality… share stories…share jokes about my island which helps me form a deeper connection with my readers!
I totally agree with choosing to share some things only on your email list. I think this it makes you have a deeper connection with your audience and gives them a reason to stay on your email list..
Thanks for all the free content and encouragement! Wishing you continued success with your business.
Much love!
Keiwa
Hi Laura,
Thank you for the great advice! You definitely have me thinking!
I do have a few questions that I’m hoping you can help me with…
I usually write 1 blog post a week, and 1 email a week.
I’ve been really working on interacting with my subscribers and letting them know who I am and what I can do for them. Which is why my weekly email consists of parenting advice, which is what I blog about at the blog.
I started to get annoyed when I saw my inbox flooded with “new blog post published” emails so I stopped correlating my posts with my emails. Is this a bad idea?
My thought process was, that I’d much rather hear from someone who gives me tips on a weekly basis, than someone who only contacts me when they want me to read their blog post on their website. Again, is this not what I should be doing? ( I do link to my recent blog posts at the bottom, just in case)
I also struggle with length of emails. Generally they’re about 600 words. But I think they may be too long and people don’t read them entirely.
My blog posts are very lengthy because they’re usually lists of ways to achieve certain things and I know if I got an email that was 4000 words I would not read it. Doesn’t the same apply to most people?
Any insight would be great! Sorry for the length of this comment. Lol.
I’m wondering about length too, because most of my posts are a few thousand words.
I have been emailing the past year to my list with verbose emails anywhere from 600-1000 words, sometimes more, with fair engagement (~20% open rate). I was told I should move it to a blog but like Laura, I found email to be much easier to write and digest. Also as a working side hustling mom, posting to the blog where I have less visibility than my list was an extra step that would be a bottleneck to pushing it out so I haven’t done so.
Like it was for every other commenter, this was eye-opening for me—thank you!! I will start with my email moving forward.
This is effing brilliant. I feel validated that I came to B myself, but I am (also for real) asked about this a lot, and so am thrilled to point people in this direction!
As a side note, I came to B because I’d always craft this great, entirely separate email in order to lead people to my blog, then speak to people who’d be like, “Oh…that WASN’T the blog??”
Great stuff! As a reader, I’m a huge fan of method B. And I figure I can’t be alone, right? So the plan has been to use that method myself….
BUT I was missing the whole first part – the thing of which is easier to write. I’ve been sabotaging myself exactly as you describe – waiting for big inspiration to strike, then writing a PhD-worthy blog post (often giving up halfway through).
Email. Start with the email. That feels like it might just work.
Ok, I’m a weirdo. As a consumer, I much prefer clicking over to read on a blog. (I’d rather eat my own toenail clippings than spend an extra second in my inbox).
BUT…I still need a pretty juicy email to let me know that the blog post is worth clicking over to. So basically I’m demanding double the work from the people I let into my inbox.
Gosh, I hope my email subscribers aren’t as fussy as I am. Bring on Option B!!
Laura, this is gold! How did I never come up with the genius idea to simply paste my blog post into an email for my subscribers instead of creating *more* content (….duh)?
I’ve been dancing between option A and option C since I started my blog. Thanks for showing us the light! You’ve rocked my world. Becki x
You totally light-bulbed me with this one Laura and it’s sooo easy: write an email first!!!! I won’t be chewing my nails on figuring out meaningful emails ever. And it never occurred to me that I love reading the whole thing in the email anyhow, I hardly ever switch to the blog. You’re the best! OXO
Hey Laura! Great post! When I started, I was practicing Option C. Writing to my list and then writing a whole new blog post (similar topic, different words). You actually inspired me to use Option B – simply by watching you. I have a really teeny, tiny list. I was feeling exhausted creating emails and then going back to write a blog post on top of it. So, I took a cue from you and now…I write to my list first. If I feel like what I’ve written deserves to be promoted to blog status – I’ll post it on my blog. I will include a link in my email somewhere for my list to share it or go read it directly on my site.
In my opinion, email crushes the blog. My list is more likely to read my stuff than someone breezing through my site. I’m not widely known at the moment so I feel like most people aren’t even seeing what I write. Consistency is key (another tip I got from you). I try to commit to at least one email a week. The blog is more like once a month.
And as a consumer – I’d rather read what’s in the email. I might click on the link for funzies…to see where it takes me. But honestly, I’m watching and learning the behind the scenes of all this “how to get people to be nosey and click on my links”marketing stuff.
You are right Laura, reading straight from the email is easier and I wouldn’t go to your site and leave a comment if it wasn’t for the email I read. Just wanted to say you are on track. Hoho
Hi Laura! I blog but B-School is reminding that it needs to be consistent so I am working on that. I am thinking of doing an email one week and a blog the following week and starting up that schedule. So in a month, I would do two blogs and two emails.
This was so, so, SO helpful. I feel absolved from a huge chunk of guilt because I feel like I should write a blog but then I just get mental cramps and decide to do it later and then – oh- three months go by. Ok, more than 3. My email list is very small, but if I do the copy/paste/amend my email to be a blog, then the people who come to my website will have at least a chance to read it. Win-win. It all makes so much more sense. Thank you Laura, you never fail to be entertainingly valuable.