How To Write A World-Class Newsletter In 75 Minutes

How to write a world-class newsletter in 75 minutes:

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 17, 2023

Store Ideas:

If you want to go faster, you should always be building an idea bank.

Every day I spend 15 minutes going through:

- YouTube channels
- Aggregator newsletters
- Relevant news stories
- Things you've learned

Jot them down and keep a running list.

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 17, 2023

Gather Information:

Once you've chosen your topic, then do some research to back up your thoughts.

I like to Google and look for:

- One book
- One Tweet
- One quote
- One article

Then, choose 1 or 2 and use them inside of your issue.

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 17, 2023

Use a Template:

This is where most of my speed comes from.

I use a newsletter template so that I can generally follow the same process each week.

- What's a big problem?
- How do most people solve it?
- Why doesn't it work for them?
- How would I solve it differently?

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 17, 2023

Write the Headers:

Before I write anything else, I write the headers.

This basically gives me an outline to follow and makes it much easier to write.

Once you have the headers, you have a little treasure map to follow.

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 17, 2023

Fill Out the Body:

Now you can fill the information in to support each header.

Use this framework:

- Start with an opening line that explains the header.
- A paragraph about what you learned about the header.
- A paragraph about how to put learnings into action.

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 17, 2023

Add Images, Video, and Research:

Once you have the body, you can add supporting multimedia.

Find your Tweet/Book/Quote from above and insert it.

If you need an image or video to help explain something, now is the time to put it in place.

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 17, 2023

Write the Title:

With the first newsletter draft written, it's much easier to choose a title.

Use a subject line tester to see how "good" or "bad" your title is.

Work it until you're sure you'll have decent open rates.

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 17, 2023

Edit Using a Process:

Here's mine:

- Are your sentences concise and understandable?
- Do you have any long, ongoing tangents?
- Do you deliver what is promised in the headline?
- Did you add links to relevant resources?

— Justin Welsh (@thejustinwelsh) June 17, 2023