Email newsletters deserve a big group hug.

Some call them unsexy. Some mock them as old-school. Some flat-out dismiss them in favor of newer, shinier options. (I see you, Livestreaming!)

But email newsletters are a key component of any high-performing marketing strategy. You need one. Here's why.

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Dear Email Newsletters: How much do we love you? Let's count the ways ...

Loves me #1: Human. An email newsletter is the only place where people—not algorithms—are in control. Gmail's algorithm does try to throw its weight around in your inbox, bullying you into what to open first. But, for the most part, email remains the place where we opt in to see what we want to see.

Loves me #2: Personal. Most organizations today use their email newsletter as a distribution strategy. They use it as a way to share other content.

But the email newsletter is inherently personal. It's a way to cultivate and nurture a relationship through your words and language. It's a letter from someone to someone. From you to me.

The most important part of a newsletter is the letter, not the news.

Loves me #3: Money. We talked about email's 38:1 return in the previous chapter. I won't quote the stats again. But I really want to remind us all: Email as a channel generates the highest ROI for marketers.

Loves me #4: Ownership. I love social media as much as any one of you. More, maybe. But we are vulnerable to the whims and vagaries and shifts in the business priorities of social platforms.

You do own your email list and database. You don't pay to access a database owned by someone else as you might on Facebook. You can swap email service providers whenever you want to, and pack all your customers into your carryon bag when you do—because You. Own. The. Data.

I just said that last point three different ways. But it can't be restated enough. Which leads to …

Loves me #5: Anarchy, in the sense that no one “owns” email—unlike, say, Facebook or LinkedIn or YouTube. With email, there is no single corporation or entity standing guard at the gate, charging you whatever they please to allow you to proceed.

It's like this:

If we want to drive on the social platform's digital roads, their tollbooth collectors charge us varying and arbitrary amounts based on how fast we want to drive. Those who pass for free can still drive, technically. But they have to drive in the slow lane where the speed limit is 2 mph.

In theory, you eventually get to where you're going. But most of us would give up out of sheer frustration.

Loves me #6: Democratic. Okay … one final comment about email versus social media: Businesses pay email providers for the service they sell. In other words, the email business model is cleaner, more straightforward, more transparent. That feels like a relief these days, doesn't it?

Loves me #7: Brand. Your email newsletter is a direct connection between you and your customer. Everything about it (voice, visuals, vibe) is all you. And only you.

Those who read your post on LinkedIn are on there interacting with LinkedIn. But when they read what your words in your newsletter, they are interacting with YOU.

Loves me #8: Trust. The cornerstone of an email relationship is trust. Subscribers opt in because they trust that you'll deliver something of value. If you break that promise, they'll unsubscribe. You cannot darken their doorstep ever again.

Brutal. But fair.

Love me #9: Reciprocal. We can send letters to our subscribers or customers, and they can hit reply and write back to us. (In most cases. NoReply@, I'm giving you a massive side-eye right now …)

Love me #10: Right where you left it. Ever see a post on a social platform and then try to find it later? I think that person published it Tuesday? Or was it Wednesday? Wait. Maybe it was last week? Email, of course, is always right where you left it. (Waves hello!)

And, finally, this is the most important …

Loves me #11: “Slow-cial media.” In the past few years, I've spent less and less time on Facebook. Newsletters have become my way of staying connected to the kind of information I used to get in my Facebook feed. My consumption of news has become slower. But that's been good: It gives me time to formulate my own thoughts and feelings without bias from the commenters and likers on social media.

I might ultimately share my thoughts on social media, but the difference is that I am able to first think about how I feel about an issue. I can swim around in the deep pool for a bit, alone, without being splashed by that opinionated guy who decides to cannonball right off the diving board.

The ability to think before speaking is embedded in email. That's almost impossible to experience on social media, especially with hot-button or political posts. Which is why I call email “slow-cial media.”

Loves me not …

Listen, I'm a realist. Email is imperfect. As much as I can count the ways that email loves me, there are also ways that email loves me not …

In some ways email can be frustrating and disappointing. For one, we send dump trucks full of email. Too much, really.

But that's why you and I are here, to figure out a way to consistently up our game.

Let's talk next about how to create must-read email newsletters.