Select Editorial and Design Content That Will Accomplish Your Mission
How do you select the right stories, layout, and design for your publication?
Begin by asking yourself, "What do I want this newsletter to accomplish?"
Many organizations have launched internal or external publications just because competitors have them. But a newsletter without a clear purpose, or any evidence to prove it's achieving those goals, is usually first in line to be axed when cost-cutting time comes.
So, establish clear goals before you begin selecting content. If you publish an internal newsletter, you may focus one section of your newsletter — maybe even an entire issue — on benefit changes, another on safety, a third on recent operational changes, and so on. With an external newsletter, your topics could include new products, improvements in customer service, tips to help customers get the most for their money, and just about any other column or story containing information that will somehow benefit your readers.
Once you have decided what topics will best help you accomplish your communication goals, place the greatest emphasis on news and information that will interest the largest number of readers. Then present that information in several different styles — a news story, a "Message From the President," or a Q&A, for example — that will appeal to different types of readers.
In creating your content, try also to build in as many ways of measuring reader response as possible. Provide phone numbers, fax numbers, or e-mail addresses that readers can use to request more information. If you're doing a product newsletter, check with salespeople to get an idea of how many requests for information they received about a product featured in the publication. For internal newsletters, check with HR to see if they get fewer questions about a specific topic after it's been explained in the newsletter. Check with safety officials to see if the frequency of a particular accident decreased after a prevention story appeared in your publication. Encourage, even challenge, readers to respond to opinions expressed in editorials. Print letters to the editors and ask for more. Talk to readers whenever you get a chance. And every so often, do a readership survey to evaluate overall reader response and, at the same time, show the members of your audience that you value their opinions.
Measurements such as these will help you adjust the content of future issues, increasing the probability that your newsletter will continue to generate results for years to come. Keeping records of your success will also provide you with valuable ammunition you can use to defend your newsletter budget against cost-conscious executives looking for easy ways to cut the organization's budget.
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