Social media and mobile technology have fundamentally changed the way nonprofits communicate with their supporters. It has also changed the way supporters use email, and thus how nonprofits publish e-newsletters. Below is a list of e-Newsletter Best Practices for nonprofits to consider and integrate into their website, social media and mobile technology campaigns.
Please Note: Three new best practices are added each month. Please subscribe to DIOSA Communication's Best Practices e-newsletter to be alerted when new e-Newsletter Best Practices have been posted.
1. Keep your e-Newsletter design simple.
Five years ago three-column e-Newsletters loaded with graphics and 4-5 stories were the standard best practice. Not anymore. People are inundated with information all day long from a variety of sources and too much content can be both a visual and mental distraction. If you want to get the attention of your readers, keep your e-Newsletter design simple. Single column, black text on white, and a subtle color for your background with a bright, colorful header at the top. Oceana was a pioneer in utilizing e-mail newsletters and their current design is great example of how to successfully design an e-Newsletter in an age of social media.
2. Keep paragraphs short, color links, and use bold headlines to make it easy to skim.
Web writing 101. Keep paragraphs short. Put line breaks between paragraphs. Color your hyperlinks to make them stand out. Use bold headlines to make your e-newsletter easy to skim. People are very busy these days and bombarded with information. They need to be able to digest to gist of your e-newsletter in 5-10 seconds and understand quickly what they need to click on to take action, learn more, make a donation, etc. See a recent CARE e-Newsletter for an example.
3. Publish e-Newsletters that are 500 words or less that focus on 1-3 stories.
Before blogging, Facebook and Twitter, one of the primary purposes of e-Newsletters was to distribute a lot of information about what was happening with your organization. Now there are numerous channels where your supporters can get that information. Too much information in your e-Newsletter will overwhelm your readers. Keep it on the shorter side. Focus on one to three stories in 500 words or less. A good example is the Oceana e-Newsletter. It is 263 words and focuses on one story - a pitch to take a quiz.
4. Follow the CAN-Spam Laws.
Following the CAN-Spam Laws are crucial for nonprofits. People must opt-in to receive your e-Newsletter. You can't subscribe them just because you think they would like to receive it. You must also clearly have unsubscribe instructions at the bottom of each e-Newsletter, as well as snail mail address. Nothing is more annoying to potential supporters than subscribing them to an e-Newsletter without their permission, then making them jump through hoops to unsubscribe. Most web-based e-Newsletter vendors (like Constant Contact) will automatically prompt you to do this before you send out your first e-Newsletter. If you are managing your e-Newsletter in-house, whatever you do, don't break the CAN-Spam Laws.
5. Add a "Donate Now" button to your e-Newsletter.
Not every e-Newsletter should include a pitch for your supporters to donate, but every e-Newsletter should include a "Donate Now" button. See an Amnesty International e-Newsletter for an example.
6. Add a social networking icons to your e-Newsletter.
Like "Donate Now" buttons, not every e-Newsletter should include a "Follow us on Twitter!" or "Friend us on YouTube!", but every e-Newsletter definitely should include social networking icons. Again, see the Amnesty International e-Newsletter for an example.
7. Add an e-Newsletter "Subscribe" button to your Facebook Page.
Using the Static FBML App on Facebook, you can add a "Subscribe" button to your Facebook Page. With just a little bit of html know-how, you can easily add a "Donate Now" button to your Facebook Page that links directly to the donate page on your website. See the Facebook Page of Independent Diplomat for an example.
8. Add an e-Newsletter "Subscribe" button to your Blog.
Blogging is one of the fastest ways to grow your e-Newsletter. Prioritize allowing people to subscribe to your e-newsletter over subscribing to your blog via RSS on your organization's blog. See Greenpeace's blog as an example.
9. Ask people to subscribe to your e-Newsletter via Tweets and Status Updates.
The day before you send out an e-Newsletter, post a Tweet/Status Updates asking people to subscribe to your e-Newsletter. Let them know that the can expect the e-Newsletter within 24 hours. It builds anticipation and increases your opt-in rate. Example Tweet/Status Update:
Sending our my Web 2.0 Best Practices e-Newsletter tomorrow. To receive a copy, please subscribe! http://conta.cc/2VeW7A
10. Keep e-Newsletter "Subject" lines on the short side.
Short subject lines tend to result in the highest open rate. Thus, limit your subject lines to 60 characters or less. Examples of good subject lines:
What you are doing is working (Personal)
Wow (One/Two Word Statements)
Help shut down puppy mills in Missouri! (Call to Action)
Save the Date: 8th Annual Winter Gala (Informational)
URGENT: Haiti needs our help (Motivational)
http://www.diosacommunications.com/enewsletterbestpractices.html
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Are Bad Schools Immortal?
The Scarcity of Turnarounds and Shutdowns in Both Charter and District Sectors
December 14, 2010
by David A. Stuit
Foreword by Chester E. Finn, Jr. and Amber M. Winkler
This study from the Thomas B. Fordham Institute finds that low-performing public schools—both charter and traditional district schools—are stubbornly resistant to significant change. After identifying more than 2,000 low-performing charter and district schools across ten states, analyst David Stuit tracked them from 2003-04 through 2008-09 to determine how many were turned around, shut down, or remained low-performing. Results were generally dismal. Seventy-two percent of the original low-performing charters remained in operation—and remained low-performing—five years later. So did 80 percent of district schools. Read on to learn more—including results from the ten states.
Read full report:
http://www.edexcellence.net/publications-issues/publications/are-bad-schools-immortal.html
The Scarcity of Turnarounds and Shutdowns in Both Charter and District Sectors
December 14, 2010
by David A. Stuit
Foreword by Chester E. Finn, Jr. and Amber M. Winkler
This study from the Thomas B. Fordham Institute finds that low-performing public schools—both charter and traditional district schools—are stubbornly resistant to significant change. After identifying more than 2,000 low-performing charter and district schools across ten states, analyst David Stuit tracked them from 2003-04 through 2008-09 to determine how many were turned around, shut down, or remained low-performing. Results were generally dismal. Seventy-two percent of the original low-performing charters remained in operation—and remained low-performing—five years later. So did 80 percent of district schools. Read on to learn more—including results from the ten states.
Read full report:
http://www.edexcellence.net/publications-issues/publications/are-bad-schools-immortal.html
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