5 time-saving tips I wish I'd known when I started writing newsletters

--> Hard-won lessons from 15 years in the trenches

Even though I've been writing emails and newsletters for well over 15 years now, at times, it's still a struggle.

A large part of the issue is simply the time it takes to write.

No matter how great your ideas are or how well you can illustrate them: if it takes an absolute age to write them you'll eventually give up.

And that's a huge shame. Those unwritten emails could have been building relationships for you, demonstrating your expertise and insights. Getting you clients.

Instead, they lie half-finished.

So here, with the benefit of very hard-won experience is a short list of tips on how to speed up your email writing.

First, keep a running list of potential topics to avoid last-minute scrambling for ideas. I keep a list of ideas on my phone as I think of them and then transfer them to index cards when I can (writing by hand seems to help get the ideas into my head).

Second, start your email by creating a rough outline - or even just a bulleted list of the main points you want to get across. Whenever I think I'm saving time by just jumping in to write it takes much longer.

Third, write your first draft without editing. Just get it down and then go back to it. Otherwise you'll rewrite the first few paragraphs time and time again.

Fourth, develop a handful of go-to structures for your emails that fit with your style. My email template packs will give you brilliant starting points for these.

Finally, batch up your writing and do a handful of emails at once. This doesn't actually work for me - I seem to need the pressure of a looming deadline. But I know it works brilliantly for many clients I've worked with. They dedicate a couple of hours every few weeks, clear all distractions and get writing.

Now, I'll be the first to admit that none of these tips are earth-shattering revelations. But they work. And they work pretty much instantly.

The thing is, we often overlook the simple stuff. We're drawn to fancy tools or complex techniques, thinking they'll magically solve our problems. But more often than not, it's these basic principles that make the biggest difference.

Try putting these tips into action - they’ll save you a bunch of time. And if you'd like to get really good at writing powerful emails fast, then this will get you there.

- Ian