Email newsletters are regular emails that you send dog parents who have signed up to your email list. They can share your services, tell stories, announce new ways of working with you and can be a way of letting people get to know you and why you should help their dog.

Email newsletters can be such a powerful tool to use in your dog trainer business. 

You can set up an email newsletter and reach dog parents who need you and not be controlled by social media that has a constantly changing algorithm.

Email newsletters defined generally

Campaignmonitor explains beautifully, in the simplest form, what email newsletters are: 

A newsletter is a periodically-sent email that informs your audience of the latest news, tips, or updates relating to your products or services.

I firmly believe that your email newsletter can be so much more than this, and can offer something that other dog trainers don’t.

So basically setting you apart from other trainers.

Did you know that you can actually sell without icky selling in your email newsletter? You absolutely can!

In a nutshell, an email newsletter offers a way of consistently nurturing your audience so they know you well and feel comfortable getting you to help their dogs. They really are a no-brainer.

If there’s one thing I want you to do after reading this, it’s to set up your email newsletter – even if it feels overwhelming – it is totally worth it.

I have a guide that will help you navigate the first steps.

Let’s dig in!

No more being held to ransom by the algorithms of social media

Email marketing is a great way to boost your ethical dog training business.

After all, you’ve probably got experience of social media changing its algorithm just as you are gaining traction and visibility, right?  

Or, like me, have your account frozen out, meaning you can’t access your audience. (Btw I sorted that eventually!) 

It’s no joke – especially when your business is your income. 

The beauty of your email list is that you own it.

It is yours, and no social media platforms will cancel it at a moment’s notice. 

How do email newsletters help me increase my income? 

Litmus reported that the ROI of email marketing in 2022 is an impressive $36 for every $1 spent. 

This means you can make potentially so much more income, especially when your list grows.

But to be successful with emailing your dog parents, you need to nurture them over time.

One of the best ways to do this is by regularly emailing an email newsletter. 

What is the difference between an email newsletter and a sales email?

An email newsletter is an email you send out regularly, letting your audience know about the latest content or how to work with you (more ideas below). A sales email is focused on promoting one product or service.

Email newsletters – what is their purpose? 

Email newsletters are a great way to connect with dog parents because you can personalise what they receive, encourage them to visit more of your content, and increase their awareness of your expertise. 

For example – if you share short tip videos online, you could link to one of these so they can try them out.

Increase your dog training brand awareness

Repetition is the key.

Your email newsletter is a place to share your values and mission. You can do this by telling stories of your experiences.

Example – tell stories about results you achieved with the dogs and parents you work with.

Format

Every time you send out a newsletter, ensure you have a familiar format.

This may take time to refine. When you first send it out, use your email stats to inform you of what content your subscribers are enjoying.

What are they clicking on? 

Have they replied and asked further questions? 

This could be: 

• Your latest blog post, Youtube tutorial, or podcast 
• A story or video behind the scenes of your trainer business.
• A feature on one of your dogs or a successful dog parent and what they implemented to see success.  
• The story of how you came into dog training. 
• Your latest training offers and why they are so helpful. 
• A heads up about a new mini-course you have released.  

The more regularly you share who you are, your values, and what you do to help, the more people are likely to understand your business. They will also think of you as the go-to expert. 

For example – maybe you specialise in dogs with anxiety, or Romanian rescue dogs.

If you are passionate about force-free training, give examples of how to do this ( I guarantee dog parents like me need their awareness challenging and examples to help them)

Build your like, know and trust factor 

You should aim to be consistent with your email newsletters because they are a perfect way to build trust with lovely dog parents over time.

People are very different, and will also take varying times to trust you enough to be in a position to purchase from you.

One person may start consuming your content and buy your mini course to help their new puppy two weeks later, whereas another person may need two months or longer for example if they are struggling with a rescue dog. (They need to make a carefully calculated decision that they think will benefit their dog)

This is called the buyer’s journey, and I will cover this more in another post. Debbie Spiegel’s story is particularly inspiring in this post. (not related to dog training, but v good)

Your email newsletter provides a regular touchpoint that will help you stay top of mind when it comes to solving the problems dog parents face.

Boost traffic to your dog trainer website

If you are creating regular blog posts to help people see that you are the go-to dog training expert, your email newsletter can be an additional way of getting more eyes on your content, wherever that lives.

This could be your website or, for example, your podcast platform. 

Email newsletters can help you make more sales 

Believe it or not, email newsletters are great ways of sharing your latest offers.

It can be a subtle way of building awareness of exactly what services you offer, particularly that you can link out to so that you always give your dog parents opportunities to work with you.

Done in a non-salesy, helpful way, you can significantly boost your income every month. 

Another example is if you share a case study – this is a detailed way of sharing the results you get for your dog parents.

It’s also a very real context that people will understand – you could show clips of before and after, or write these as story emails that sound like you chatting to a friend.

Top tip – make sure you provide a way for people to get in contact with you if they want the services you have described in the case study. 

Have a button that links to your consultation call, or your contact form.

Why are email newsletters important for your business? 

Email marketing is a great way to boost your business income.

As I quoted before, email marketing can bring in over 3600% return on investment, which is fantastic! Email newsletters are a huge part of this because people expect them to hit their inboxes regularly. 

Can build your credibility 

You can share many things to build your credibility in your dog training niche. Here are some examples: 

• Blog posts answering key questions 
• Sharing case studies 
• Sharing podcast interviews or Youtube videos
• Sharing success stories – students, client results

Email newsletters can be personalised

From the get-go, ask lots of questions, or in some newsletters, share short quizzes so that you can create lists of people interested in different areas of your expertise. Then, when you have the resources, you can create highly-targeted email newsletters for people with different interests. 

Bivek Minj, writing on Linkedin also mentions that email newsletters need to be carefully designed. He explains that 

…the key is that it should look like it comes from a helpful friend instead of a salesperson. BIVEK MINJ, LINKEDIN

Need help with writing your email newsletters? 

If there’s ONE thing that separates online business owners who implement successful email newsletters from the dreamers, it’s overcoming the tech and writing overwhelm. 

It’s so confusing. And most online business owners get stuck trying to figure out these questions:

 How often do you send out an email newsletter?

 What days and times do you send out your email newsletters, so you don’t annoy your subscribers?

 What days and times are best to send your email newsletter?

 What do you write in your email newsletter when you’re not a professional writer?

 How do you know which email service provider is best to use?

→ What if I could help you solve EVERY one of those problems in under an hour?

→ What if I could help you make FOUR key decisions about your email newsletter, so you have firm foundations in place going forward?

Introducing my free guide to email newsletters. 

It’s easy to use and comes with a free worksheet where you can record your decisions.

So where will you be in an hour’s time?

Showing up confidently and consistently via your email newsletter?

Nurturing your dog parents without the overwhelm?

 Not putting it off until next week?

Get in on this now 👇🏼