Internal Newsletters That Your Employees Will Want to Read
Everyone comes across at least one well-meaning employer that sends too many newsletters. It has probably happened to you too; your inbox slowly filling up with that weekly or even daily newsletter outlining company ethics, strategy, and vision. Now, do you actually read them?
If you answered yes to the above question, you are part of a loyal but ever slimming minority. The problem with most internal newsletters is that they are rarely read.
When you are on the sending end, this is not something you would like to hear. However, it is essential to face the facts. Only then can you undermine them and create an internal newsletter employees will actually want to read.
Plan for Internal Newsletters in SharePoint
1. Why You Should be Sending Newsletters to Your Employees
2. How to Write an Internal Newsletter Your Employees Will Want to Read
3. 10 Topic Ideas to Help You Jumpstart your Internal Newsletter Campaign
4. Why Your Internal Newsletter Communications Should Be About Security, Too
5. How You Can Use Insights Into Your Internal Newsletter Campaign to Boost Results
6. How to Turn Your SharePoint into the Ultimate Engagement Platform
7. How Information Architecture Will Help You Automate Content Delivery
8. Responsive Email Templates, Why Do We Use Them?
9. Newsletter Metrics, Link Clicks and Opens, How They Work
Let’s start with a promising idea: Writing is easy. Everyone does it all the time. Following this line of thinking I’ve collected 5 of the best practices for sending internal newsletters. They have worked well for us in the past and continue to do so now. Take a look, and you will be well on your way to writing a captivating and effective newsletter.
1. Don’t Be a Bore
No one wants to receive static information. By now your staff will know your company’s vision by heart. Trust me, no need to repeat yourself. Instead, find out what your employees are talking about. Go hangout at the water cooler, ask your staff in a survey, or take a walk around the office. You may, for example, hear that lunch offerings are often discussed. Why then, not include the week’s cafeteria menu into your future newsletters? Spice it up by marking your personal favorites.
2. Think About Appearance
The first thing that catches the eye when opening an email is its layout. If it looks like it was put together by a toddler (or worse: by simply copy-pasting a word file), the recipient will not even consider reading the email. Pretend your email is going on a date, and find that perfect balance between classy and provocative.
Use enough white space to create a clean look, go for an easy to read sans-serif font, insert a few beautiful pictures – but make sure this doesn’t become your new scrapbook project. Be consistent in your choice of color, make your email responsive and follow trends in email marketing (for example: insert a live twitter feed).
3. Make It Personal
In our increasingly polarized information society, everyone longs for a slice of personalized information. Fortunately, it couldn’t be easier nowadays to offer a newsletter that adheres to the principle of personalization. With the data you have on your employees on your SharePoint or Office 365 lists you can easily create newsletters with a personal touch. Simply start by addressing your employees by their first name in your email campaigns. Don’t stop there. Go as far as to align topics with the individual interests of each of your recipients.
4. Include a Call to Action
Engage you staff by including a call to action. Maybe they can win a prize? A lunch date with the CEO, an extra day off, or their name on a wall of fame. Show that you value your employees’ opinion by asking a question and starting up a conversation on your SharePoint. And if you must talk about the company’s vision (sometimes you just really have to), do it in an approachable and fun way. By using a quiz, for example.
5. Cover Captivating Topics
Before reading an email anyone will ask themselves: what’s in it for me. Make sure your emails include captivating stories that will attract the attention of your readers. When creating a good newsletter, you are not that different from an editor putting together a magazine. Every topic needs to fit in well, look attractive and pull in the reader. Next up in this series we will give you a list of surprising ideas that abide by these criteria.
Time to Get Personal
Send out personalized emails, select fascinating stories and engage your users on your SharePoint and Office 365 platforms. Take your audience serious, but don’t take yourself too seriously. Follow these tips and you will soon be sending out readable internal newsletters.
What would an ideal newsletter look like to you? Do you use other methods for creating an effective internal email campaign?
Coming up next in our Best Practices for Internal Newsletters series:
10 Topic Ideas to Help You Jumpstart your Internal Newsletter Campaign.
