photo by intangible arts
Print or digital, the newsletter continues to be one of my favorite communication tools. It’s a quick targeted read, relatively inexpensive and easy to produce with current technologies. For example, I do a 12-page philanthropic newsletter for my nonprofit’s stakeholders and distribute it cheaply via print by using in-house color copiers (the quality is surprisingly good) and by emailed PDF. We get great feedback and it’s helped to create a culture of philanthropy where little existed previously.
There’s really no excuse for a bad newsletter these days, and yet they’re everywhere (like here and here). Bad writing and poor design are common culprits, but I think the biggest mistake made is a lack of thoughtful planning.
Here’s how too many newsletters are born. Someone’s boss suddenly decides, “Hey, we need a newsletter.” The newsletter “editor” (sometimes qualified, often not) throws together a story list based on what management thinks everyone needs to know rather than what the audience will actually find interesting. Some poorly written stories are cobbled together. Someone takes really bad snapshots of people standing around at a meeting or posing awkwardly against a bare white (sometimes beige) wall, holding a check or report or some other lame prop that “connects” to the story. Then someone puts it all together using Microsoft Publisher and a newsletter template they found in the program or on the web and voilà ! We have a newsletter.
Creating a great newsletter isn’t rocket science (unless it’s a newsletter about, you know, rocket science). But you do need to answer these questions before you get started:
What am I trying to accomplish? Seems simple, but you’d be surprised how many newsletters are launched with the vaguest of answers. “Informing people what we’re doing” and “creating greater awareness” are lame at best. Get specific. The answer to this question should dictate everything that goes into your newsletter.
Who is my audience and what need am I fulfilling? These aren’t simple questions. Your audience may be composed of several different stakeholder groups, each with different information needs. How are you going to meet these needs and yet remain focused?
How will I organize what I’m trying to communicate? A good periodical is made up of well-defined parts that hang together as a whole. Every article should have a specific reason for being that relates directly to your communication objectives. If you can’t quickly explain why you’re including something, then it probably doesn’t belong.
The easiest way to organize newsletter content is to establish departments and a feature section. Departments have a specific focus and are consistent from issue to issue. For example, an alumni newsletter might have a department that tells a current student’s story as a way of drawing a connection between life on campus today to the reader’s own experience. An association newsletter may have a standing roundup of legislative actions taken that affect the industry it serves.
Features are where your newsletter can really stretch, but again keep in mind your objectives. Readers like both the comfort of the familiar that departments offer and the unexpected surprise of a feature that takes an unconventional approach to its subject.
What are my resources? If you’re relying on amateur writers, be sure to give them plenty of guidance and time to develop their stories. I’ve found that giving a novice a fairly detailed outline that suggests how the story might flow can help a lot. Rather than rely on bad photos, consider the creative use of stock photography and illustrations. Play good art big and minimize the bad if forced to use it.
What’s my schedule? Make sure you allow enough time to get it right. Rushing production is a sure path to a sloppy, unprofessional final product. Be sure to pad your schedule for unanticipated issues like approvals taking longer than expected, or a story falling through at the last moment.
As you answer these questions, keep the following in mind:
Every story has a purpose. I’m going to say this again because I see pointless stories all the time. There shouldn’t be anything in your newsletter that doesn’t link back to your communication goals and objectives. If the story you’re considering doesn’t, then chances are it doesn’t belong in your newsletter.
You’re building a relationship with your audience. What I love about a great periodical is the sense that I belong to a larger community of shared interests. I felt it when I was a kid reading comic books. Each issue had a letters to the editor section where fellow fanboys would comment on the latest developments, rail about something someone else wrote in last issue’ s letters page, etc. Although I never wrote a letter myself, I still felt a part of the community.
The same thing is true today with magazines. My subscription to Inc. enrolls me in a community of fellow travelers, all interested in what it takes to start and grow a business. When I read Garden & Gun, I’m communing with others who love the life and culture of the American South. Your periodical has the potential to tap into this power … if it’s done well.
Incorporate calls to action. A good newsletter engages the reader in a conversation about what you’ve written. Give your audience a way to respond. Encourage letters, use polls to find out readers’ thoughts on relevant issues, create quizzes and contests that are both fun and informative, anything that begs a response.
Keep it short, simple and easy to follow. You hear this all the time with respect to writing for the web, but it’s always been true for newsletters. This is short-form communication. Newsletters are uniquely suited for an audience that has little time for long, drawn-out stories.
Vary your story approach. As with departments and features, use different ways of telling a story to keep your publication interesting. Telling someone’s story can take the form of a straightforward profile or a Q&A. Do “10 Things You Didn’t Know About X,” or make it a photo essay with very little text at all. Make sure whatever you do is appropriate to the subject; don’t try to force cleverness. But don’t do story after story in the same voice, from the same perspective. You’ll bore your readers.
Design is important. We live in an age of sophisticated design, from furniture to teapots to office supplies to newsletters. You may not be able to afford great graphic design, but there are enough resources out there for you to fake it. Affordable graphic designers and inexpensive design templates are just two options available to you.
I could go on and on (and probably have), but I’ll save further discussion for a future post. The important thing to remember right now is that if you’re thoughtful and strategic in your planning, you just might end up with one hell of a newsletter.
Popularity: 2% [?]
{ 1 comment }
Hi Dan- I appreciate you re-opening the comments section for me! I just wanted to add that, in our age of using social media as a leading form of communications, one should think about how to strategically integrate social media with the newsletter. Many use the newsletter to support social media efforts, and vice-versa. In nonprofit fundraising, the newsletter is still the most effective way to drive people to online giving, but I also read somewhere (wish I could remember!) that fundraising click-throughs on social media sites are higher when supported by e-newsletter blasts. If you have thoughts about how to best integrate newsletters with social media, I’d be very interested in reading some best practices, or great examples. Maybe another blog post? Thanks!
Comments on this entry are closed.