I've been in the publishing business a long time, including a stint as an associate publisher for PC Magazine and PC Week. Ever since I started this column, I've been stockpiling "think like a publisher" tidbits. As many of you will soon be knee-deep in planning next year's budgets, I'll share these over the next weeks.

Tidbit No. 1: Why Publish an E-Newsletter, Anyway?

You may not think of yourself as a publisher, but you are. It doesn't matter whether you work for a major international corporation, a small nonprofit organization, an academic institution, or yourself. You're a publisher. Time to act accordingly.

People who think like publishers always start with the question: "Is there a real need or demand for this content?" From the beginning, it's critical to consider the role your newsletter will play in your organization and in the lives of your readers. Key questions to ponder are:

• Does your organization really need a newsletter? If so, why?
• Whom do you want to reach with this newsletter, and why?
• What important messages do you want to communicate to your target audience?
• What other goals do you have for your newsletter?
• Besides content promoting your organization's identity, products, and interests, what else can you offer to make your newsletter uniquely valuable to your audience?

It's easy to identify newsletters where the publishers have not figured out the answers to these questions. We've all seen them:

• They feel aimless, unsatisfying, and dull from the moment you get there.
• They are one big ad for the company and its products.
• They are confusing and aren't easily understood.
• They aren't read for more than a minute.
• They aren't mentioned to anyone else.
• You've never even visited the Web site.

Don't deny, ignore, or belittle your role as a publisher. If you do, you'll find your newsletter won't achieve the goals you've set for it. It will disappoint subscribers.

Tidbit No. 2: Motivate Readers With Your Passion

Never forget what made you want to start publishing a newsletter in the first place.
This issue is emotional as well as rational. Newsletters propelled by passion yield the most effective and compelling content.

Of course, some online venues take passion too far. Their content deteriorates into rants or diatribes or goes into far more detail than anyone cares to explore. If your audience supports that, fine. If not, strive to remain aware of your motivating passion without being consumed by it.

For some publishers (especially corporate and e-commerce sites), making money is the motivating passion. By and large, the very best newsletters are those for which making money is not the primary publishing motivation.

Getting rich might motivate you, but your audience's passion isn't to help you get rich. Visitors are drawn to your online venue if they share your passion and respect your efforts. If they sense you're trying to manipulate them, they'll abandon your content, even if you're selling the best product in the world.

Tidbit No. 3: Remember, the Audience Is in Control

In the old days, when print and broadcast were the only options, we publishers (and our advertisers) were in control. We paid big money to be flashier, more outrageous, and more intrusive than our competition to win mind share.

The online world shifted that balance of power. Now, the audience is in control. It's a user-directed world. The audience gets to choose which sites to view, which newsletters to read, which ads to read, and which path of clicks to pursue.

The content of most print and broadcast media is primarily structured to suit advertisers. If they pay more, they get more space and better "play." The fight for bigger and better often overshadows the development of strong content in these media.

By and large, this model doesn't work online. Many users turn to the Web specifically to escape that second-class treatment. They like being in control. They expect Web publishers to work hard to please them.

Tidbit No. 4: Define Your Priorities

When I worked in the print world, I lived by three words as a publisher: attract, acquire, and retain. The online world is no different. Every publisher must focus on attracting, acquiring, and retaining subscribers not only to survive as a publisher but also to give momentum and ongoing life to a newsletter.

It's critical to keep updating your marketing plan with ideas on how to add fresh prospects to your subscriber base, with the ultimate goal of turning those you attract to your business into customers. Once you've convinced these potential prospects to subscribe (and you've acquired their names), the goal then becomes retention. This is the essence of newsletter strategy and planning. The only way you can turn readers into customers is by retaining their interest by understanding and respecting their priorities, needs, and expectations.

How do you retain your readers' interest? Supply the content they want.

Tidbit No. 5: Retention Through Content

I've said it before: Too often, content is treated as an afterthought, something to fill in the gaps between graphic design elements and online order forms. It's regularly not considered worthy of strategic planning and careful consideration, let alone a significant investment of money or other resources.

Newsletters that stand out from the crowd come from publishers who place the very highest priority on addressing these interests and needs in the meat of their newsletters and companion microsites. Thoughtfully planned and prepared content makes a major difference in how readers view your site. It's no longer an advertisement. It becomes a critical resource for readers, one that retains and builds loyalty over time.

Online audiences instinctively perceive slapped-together, superficial, or marketing-focused newsletters as inferior options for their precious time and attention. Such newsletters reflect poorly on the organizations that publish them. They don't retain readers for long.

How do you serve up a meaty, well-thought out, comprehensive newsletter that keeps your readers coming back, issue after issue? Put a plan together that includes a handful of these formats:

Backgrounders: Backgrounders give you an opportunity to discuss nuts and bolts from an in-depth perspective, focusing on how different products work or perhaps how various technologies or services compare.

Case histories: Customer-focused stories explain how various types of businesses use your services and products to make a difference in their business and how to make them succeed.

Surveys: Surveys help you keep in touch with readers and understand what keeps them up at night. When you ask readers' opinions, surveys let your audience know you care about them.

Letters to the Editor: This format is a great way to let readers share their enthusiasms and concerns others, and it helps build community.

Quizzes: An educational quiz, such as "Guess why this product is better for promotions?" challenges as well as teaches readers.

Free advice specifically for you: An "evaluate your product or service needs" questionnaire can be used to help readers determine what product might work for specific situations. After filling out the form, they receive a list of options to consider.

Market or statistical information: A pie chart can show which products are most commonly used in different market segments.

Pure entertainment: Everyone likes a little comic relief. A daily or weekly joke can be a successful attraction. It can prove particularly helpful drawing repeat visitors. Jokes can be archived in a humor library.

Helpful advice: These articles should be useful to a wide audience without being so basic as to condescend to most readers.

A final thought on retention and content: To really hold onto readers, don't be afraid to take a bold (but smart) risk on the content you offer and the formats above, as well as others. Try something that virtually demands experimentation, that gets you beyond brochureware and blatant commercials. It's a risk that always yields rewards.