Iterate AI
Jan 6, 2025
Newsletters have evolved from simple updates. It is today a tool for engagement, and acquiring customers.
For product managers, newsletters complex product updates, share strategic insights, and foster a sense of community among stakeholders.
Whether it’s communicating with your team, keeping customers informed, or sharing expertise with a broader audience, a well-crafted product newsletter is a tool no product manager should overlook.
However, it is in your hands how you make your newsletter standout in countless online distractions.
Who to Send Product Newsletters To
When creating and distributing a product newsletter, it's important to identify your target audience. Here are some key groups to consider:
Internal teams
Product teams
Engineering teams
Design teams
Marketing and sales teams
External stakeholders
Current customers
Prospective customers
Partners and vendors
Subscribers or Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs)
People who sign up through your website or landing page
Attendees of webinars, workshops, or events you’ve hosted
Executives and decision-makers
C-suite executives who value product updates
Board members and investors
You can ensure your newsletter content caters to the interests and needs of these groups.
Who Owns Writing and Sending the Newsletter?
The ownership of writing and sending newsletters typically falls under these roles:
Product marketing team: Often leads the effort as they’re well-versed in communicating value propositions and product updates.
Product manager: Collaborates closely to ensure accurate and relevant content.
Content writer: Focuses on crafting engaging and polished content.
Marketing operations team: Handles distribution, analytics, and optimization.
How to Set Up the Newsletter Process in Your Company
Setting up a newsletter process requires strategic planning and collaboration. Follow these steps:
Define objectives: Clarify the purpose of the newsletter (e.g., customer engagement, knowledge sharing, etc.).
Identify the audience: Segment your readers to make content for them. We’ve already talked about types of audience groups in the previous section.
Create a content calendar: Plan topics, themes, and schedules in advance. You can also automate distribution.
Assemble a team: Assign roles such as content creation, design, and distribution.
Use collaboration tools: Utilize tools like Trello, Asana, or Notion to track tasks.
Measure performance if that a part of your objectives: Track metrics like open rates, click-through rates, and reader feedback to refine future issues.
Tools Required to Manage Newsletters
You will need email marketing platforms such as Mailchimp, Mailmodo, etc. You also need to integrate your customer and MQL data from CRM with an email marketing platform for seamless operations.
Newsletter Template for Product Managers
If you’re looking to create your own product newsletter, here’s a template to get you started:
Subject Line: Add a hooking subject line
Header: Add a header based on your content for the week.
Section 1: Insights of the week
A brief summary of a trending topic or key industry news. You can link to a detailed article or report.
What you learnt or did as a company regarding your product. New launch or updates regarding a launch.
Section 2: Tools & resources
Highlight 2-3 tools, frameworks, or resources to improve product workflows.
Provide quick tips on how to use them effectively. You can share what you or other companies use and what works in it.
Section 3: Expert corner
Share an exclusive interview, quote, or advice from a product leader. Include actionable takeaways for readers.
Section 4: Community spotlight
Feature success stories or challenges shared by your audience.
Encourage readers to contribute their own experiences. You can also do thought leadership articles and invite your readers who are in product management to participate.
Section 5: Upcoming events & opportunities
Share details about webinars, meetups, or job openings relevant to product managers.
CTA (Call to Action):
Invite readers to share feedback, ask questions, or suggest topics for future issues.
Footer:
Include your contact information and social media links.