Many companies decide that producing a newsletter is a great idea. And it is. But there are some really important things to remember if you're going to make it an ongoing success.

1. Don't give up after just a few issues. If you're going to commit to a newsletter, commit to it for a certain period of time. Same with social media. One of the most common mistakes I see is people deciding it's not working or it's too time consuming and giving up after producing only a few. It takes time to build momentum, so when starting out make a decision to stick with it for 12 months to give it a decent shot.

2. Make it relevant to your readers. If you're in fashion, make each item related to fashion. Don't include recipes, for example. If your readers wanted recipes they'd be signed up to a recipe newsletter, not a fashion one.

3. The exception to number 2 is articles about your business or industry. It's perfectly acceptable to tell readers what's going on in your industry, after all you're the expert. It's also perfectly acceptable to tell them about a development in your business that might be of interest to them.

4. Keep your articles relatively short. People have short attention spans. This advice is especially true if you are sending your newsletter by email. If the topic deserves more space than just a few paragraphs, put a longer article up on your website and include the link.

5. Use your newsletter to connect people with your social media sites. Include your Facebook and Twitter links, tell them where they can go to read your blog. Connect all the communication dots for them. Make it easy for them to find you - and make it easy for Google to find you.