Nitty gritty

Our main challenge was to come up with a newsletter format so relentlessly interesting that people would feel compelled to open it each time it appeared in their inboxes. In other words, find a way to make email (literally, legally) habit-forming.

We decided the solution was to create a template that forced single-mindedness – a structure that celebrated the one thing on offer each day, unclouded by anything else. With this focus, the newsletter could swiftly build a reputation for being a quick and consistently worthwhile read, attributes that need to be buried in the mind of the reader who is going to bother to open something when it drops into their inbox.

The “Netted” name we put forward gave the newsletter a playful identity speaking to its mission to capture the best of the web. Because people could use the word anecdotally, as a verb – “We were Netted by the Webbies!” – the name was also well-suited to help spread the brand.

Smart, flexible templates made each email feel fresh and crafted while also allowing for growth in the form of new ad support. Netted’s low-maintenance design means it only takes one person to produce the newsletter, and they can do it quickly – allowing Netted the spontaneity it needs to keep its content fresh and timely.

Highlights

• Fighting our corner for simplicity and witnessing the client start to see the benefits.
  
• Seeing ‘Netted by the Webbys’ become part of Internet vernacular. 
  
• Watching Netted grow and evolve as a property. 
  
• Working with the Webbys folk, who are our favourite kind of people (geeky, brilliant).