I’m a big believer that physical paper newsletters are usually a waste of resources. If you’re sick of producing a physical newsletter, and thinking about switching to a digital one, Kivi Leroux Miller has some tips. What parts of the physical newsletter should you keep? What parts should you drop?
My favorite part of the article is Kivi’s description of that old standby, “The Letter from the Director:”
Honestly, these are often ghastly in print because they are typically full of jargon and behind-the-scenes minutiae, all of which is exactly opposite of what works in email. If the director really loves writing that letter, then it’s time to give him or her a blog. Your email newsletter, on the other hand, should be focused primarily on the readers and what they care about and how they can connect to you and your cause. Very brief letters can work, but they must laser-focused on the reader — the letter is simply a format for content you want to share, not an open invitation for the director to ramble.
Sure, some people will miss the slick newsletter you’ve been sending them every quarter for the past 20 years. But you’re better off producing more timely, more relevant, more frequent content online — and sending an occasional “digest” form of that electronic newsletter to your readers who don’t have computers.
I think that printed newsletters do have their (very limited) place – although I agree entirely that the standard format is past its sell by date.
We produce a bi-monthly newsletter for a small chain of gyms. It’s mostly distributed in-house to anyone who wants to pick one up and as part of their new member induction.
Although a printed version works from a distribution angle we actually write it in a ‘bloggy’ style – a couple of informative features, a member profile or two and small news snippets.
I’ve strongly urged them to adopt a blog as well but if the content is good and the style is accessible, print still has merits.