An internet newsletter is the equivalent of a brochure or an
offline informative newsletter - it needs to capture attention,
deliver high quality information and content and convince
readers that your company is worth remembering. With Internet
newsletters, however, there is an additional issue. Unlike a
printed brochure, which everyone sees the same, Internet
newsletters are displayed on different browsers and screen
resolutions. This may affect the way the newsletter looks or the
way the layout is seen on different computers. Another test you
should do with your newsletter concerns the way the message
arrives at your target audience. Let's have a look at both test
types that you should do before you submit your newsletter to
your subscribers.

Technical Tests

There are many browsers that interpret web pages slightly
differently. Many websites that look great on Netscape are
displayed all wrong on Internet Explorer, and viceversa. This
calls for your attention as you cannot afford to release the
newsletter and have it display poorly on certain web browsers.
Before sending it out try to proof it in several browsers and on
different computers with different resolutions. This may be a
hard thing to do if you don't have a larger office with several
computers, but you can always ask a few friends to check it out
and let you know if it looks ok on their screens. However, a
basic test you can do even on one computer is to download
different browsers and try them with your newsletter. You might
also want to change the screen resolution from your current one
to lower and higher ones as part of the test. The standard
computer operates in SVGA true color, but you should also see
other configurations.

Testing the way the message reaches your audience

This is mostly a test that resembles a focus group or a survey.
Send the newsletter to a few people and ask them about it once
they have read it. Did your message go through without any
obstacles? Did they find the graphic layout attractive? What did
they think about the photos you used in your newsletter? How did
they respond to the call to action at the end of the newsletter?
Were they tempted to find out more by visiting your website?
Once you get answers to these questions you can easily see
whether your newsletter is working properly. The message is
essential and there is no point in going through all the trouble
to publish the Internet newsletter unless you get the readers to
visit your website and to trust your company.

Putting it all together

All of the things mentioned above sound like a lot of stuff to
do for a simple newsletter. However, keep in mind that once you
get the pattern right and once the first issue of the newsletter
starts having success you will never have to repeat 90% of that
work. It might still be a good idea to test your Internet
newsletter in different browsers if you have made changes to the
graphic design or layout. It would also be advisable to have at
least one more person read each issue of the newsletter before
sending it out, to see if you might have passed some errors.

Testing your newsletter is essential. Both the technical details
of the newsletter and the expected response from the readers
have to be tested thoroughly in order to ensure its success.



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