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Determine what you what to accomplish (your goals and objectives) and who you want to reach (your target audiences). |
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Include valuable information that readers cannot easily find elsewhere, and make the text personalized and timely. |
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Use brisk and informal text, reflect natural speaking and avoid big words and jargon: Simpler is better. |
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Keep paragraphs and stories brief, and try not to use “jumps” (stories that continue from one page to another) in print newsletters. |
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Use headlines with an active verb to grab your readers’ attention. |
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Think of captions as an opportunity: Use them to get your key point across, because they’re the first text most people read. |
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Limit the number of fonts in your newsletter: One or two work great, and still give you variety when you use bold-faced and italicized text for various items. |
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Use graphics elements like subheads (a small heading within a story) and pull quotes (key words/quote from an article, placed in large type and used like an illustration) to break up long blocks of text and more effectively present your information. |
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Ensure recipients opt in to receive an e-newsletter, and always offer them the ability to opt out. |
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Provide an ongoing feedback mechanism for readers, and periodically conduct more thorough assessments (such as surveys) to evaluate the newsletter’s effectiveness with your audiences and obtain information needed to make improvements. |
