Why Your Newsletter Isn’t Taking Off (and How to Fix It)

You religiously send your newsletter every week. Yet the numbers remain desperately low. 12% open rate. Click rate hovering near zero. Subscriber list stagnating for months. If your newsletter isn’t taking off, you’re not alone. According to a Campaign Monitor study, the average open rate across all B2B sectors reaches 21.5%. Many companies are below that.

The good news? The causes of an underperforming newsletter are identifiable. And solutions exist. In this article, we’ll break down the 7 main reasons holding back your results and concrete actions to reverse the trend.

The 7 Reasons Why Your Newsletter Is Stagnating

1. Your Signup Form Repels Visitors

Before even talking about content, ask yourself this question: how many people actually subscribe to your newsletter?

If your signup form is:

• Hidden at the bottom of the page
• Too intrusive (aggressive popup upon arrival)
• Asking for too much information
• Visually unappealing

…you’re losing potential subscribers every day.

The numbers speak:

• A form with more than 3 fields loses 50% of conversions
• 70% of visitors leave a page if a popup appears before 5 seconds
• Forms placed above the fold convert 2x more

With Skedox, you create clean and customizable signup forms. One email field, a clear value proposition, a design that fits your brand. The bare necessities to convert without friction.

2. Your Value Proposition Is Unclear

“Subscribe to our newsletter” is no longer enough. This phrase answers none of the essential questions:

• What am I going to receive?
• How often?
• What concrete benefit for me?

Reframe your promise in terms of user benefit:

“Subscribe to our newsletter” “Every Tuesday, receive 3 actionable tips to improve your conversions”

“Stay informed of our news” “An exclusive market analysis + decoded tech trends, every week”

Newsletters that perform have a strong identity. They promise something specific and deliver on that promise.

3. Your Email Subject Lines Are Invisible

Your email subject line is the first and sometimes only element your subscribers see. If it doesn’t capture attention in 3 seconds, your email goes unread.

Common mistakes:

• Generic subjects (“Newsletter #47”, “This month’s news”)
• Subjects that are too long (cut off on mobile after 40 characters)
• Lack of personalization
• Impersonal tone

What works:

• Direct questions (“Are you making this mistake on your forms?”)
• Specific numbers (“3 techniques that increased our conversions by 34%”)
• Justified urgency (“Last seats for tomorrow’s webinar”)
• Personalization with first name

Mailchimp data shows that personalized subjects increase open rates by 26% on average.

4. Your Content Doesn’t Address Any Need

A newsletter is not a promotional channel. It’s a value appointment with your audience.

If your emails contain only:

• New product announcements
• Commercial promotions
• “Company news” that nobody asked for

…your subscribers will gradually disengage.

The 80/20 rule:

• 80% useful, educational, entertaining content
• 20% promotional content (maximum)

The best B2B newsletters share:

• Industry trend analyses
• Concrete experience feedback
• Exclusive resources (templates, checklists, guides)
• Case studies with quantified results

5. Your Sending Frequency Is Unsuitable

Too many emails kills engagement. Not enough emails kills memorability.

Statistics to know:

• 45% of unsubscribes are related to too-high frequency
• A monthly newsletter has a 7% higher open rate than a weekly newsletter
• But weekly newsletters generate 4x more cumulative traffic

The right frequency depends on your ability to produce quality content. Better a punchy monthly newsletter than a sloppy weekly one.

Our recommendation:

• B2B: 1 to 2 times per week maximum
• Educational content: weekly
• News monitoring newsletter: daily or bi-weekly

6. You Haven’t Segmented Your List

Sending the same email to your entire base is a costly mistake. A prospect who just signed up doesn’t have the same needs as a 2-year loyal customer.

Segmentation measurably increases results:

• +14% open rate
• +100% click rate
• +18% revenue generated

Essential segments to create:

• New subscribers (less than 30 days)
• Active subscribers (opened a recent email)
• Inactive subscribers (no opens for 90 days)
• By area of interest (if you have multiple topics)
• By stage of customer journey

Centralize your signup data with Skedox to collect the information needed for relevant segmentation from the first contact.

7. Your Deliverability Is Compromised

If your emails end up in spam, even the best content will never be read.

Signs of a deliverability problem:

• Sharply falling open rates
• Bounce rate above 2%
• No response even from your most engaged contacts

Corrective actions:

• Authenticate your domain (SPF, DKIM, DMARC)
• Clean your list of invalid addresses
• Remove subscribers inactive for more than 6 months
• Avoid spam trigger words (“free”, “urgent”, “exceptional offer”)
• Maintain a balanced text/image ratio

How to Turn Around a Newsletter That Isn’t Taking Off

Step 1: Audit Your Current Performance

Before acting, measure. Collect this data over the last 3 months:

Metric	B2B Sector Average	Your Value
Open rate	21.5%	?
Click rate	2.3%	?
Unsubscribe rate	< 0.5%	?
Bounce rate	< 2%	?

If you’re below these averages, you have significant room for improvement.

Step 2: Optimize Your Acquisition

A high-performing newsletter starts with a qualified list. Focus your efforts on:

Form placement:

• Site header (one-click signup)
• End of blog posts
• Exit intent popup
• Dedicated page with detailed value proposition

Quality of your promise:

• Attractive lead magnet (guide, template, checklist)
• Social proof (number of subscribers, testimonials)
• Content preview (example of previous edition)

Step 3: Test and Iterate Systematically

Newsletter improvement is a continuous process. Test one variable at a time:

Week 1-2: Test 2 different email subjects (A/B test) Week 3-4: Test a new sending time Week 5-6: Test a new content structure Week 7-8: Test a new CTA format

Document each test. Cumulative results over 3 months can transform your performance.

Step 4: Re-Engage Your Dormant Subscribers

25 to 50% of your list is probably inactive. Before deleting these contacts, try a re-engagement campaign:

Email 1: “We’ve missed you” + summary of best recent content Email 2: “A question for you” + survey on their expectations Email 3: “Last chance” + exclusive offer or announced removal

Subscribers who don’t respond after this sequence should be removed. A smaller but engaged list is worth more than a large dead list.

Tools for a High-Performing Newsletter

Newsletter success rests on three pillars:

1. Optimized collection: high-performing forms, segmentation from signup
2. Professional sending: reliable email tool, good deliverability
3. Continuous analysis: accessible metrics, facilitated testing

For collection, Skedox lets you create optimized signup forms in minutes. Data centralization, integration with your email tools, built-in analytics. Everything you need to feed your newsletter with qualified subscribers.

Conclusion: Your Newsletter Can Take Off

If your newsletter isn’t taking off, it’s not inevitable. There are many accessible improvement levers:

• Optimize your signup forms to collect more qualified subscribers
• Clarify your value proposition
• Work on your email subjects
• Produce useful content, not promotional
• Segment your audience
• Monitor your deliverability

Start with one element. Measure the impact. Then move to the next.

High-performing newsletters are not the result of chance. They result from methodical and continuous optimization. Your next edition could be the one that changes everything.

Ready to build an engaged subscriber base? Start with the essentials: signup forms that convert. Try Skedox for free and create your first optimized form in just a few clicks.