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Killer Newsletters From Cover to Cover

Killer Newsletters From Cover to Cover Joni M. Brady, MSN, RN, CAPA Matthew D. Byrne, MS, RN, CPAN 2006 ASPAN Component Development Institute Outline Editor as Administrator Writing an Influential President’s Message Effective Membership Communication

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Killer Newsletters From Cover to Cover

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  1. Killer NewslettersFrom Cover to Cover Joni M. Brady, MSN, RN, CAPA Matthew D. Byrne, MS, RN, CPAN 2006 ASPAN Component Development Institute

  2. Outline • Editor as Administrator • Writing an Influential President’s Message • Effective Membership Communication • Using Layouts and Design to Enhance Communication • Web Translation • Editorial Pearls of Wisdom / Discussion

  3. Objectives Upon completion of this session participants will be able to: • Discuss editorial and organizational strategies to produce an effective publication • List the basic layout elements essential to all newsletters • Identify elements of style and design that help to draw readers in and give the newsletter a professional look • Draw parallels between Web site and newsletter layout, style, and design

  4. Editor as Administrator “A goal without a plan is just a wish.” ~ Antoine de Saint-Exupery (French writer, 1900 - 1944) (http://www.quotationspage.com/quotes/Antoine_de_Saint-Exupery/)

  5. Planning for Success • New editor training and mentorship • Define goals • Establish objectives • organizational goals • Identify audience • Determine quality • paper, color, printing • Budget development Mankoff, B (Ed.) (2000). The New Yorker Book of Literary Cartoons. New York: Pocket Books.

  6. Staying Organized • Editorial calendar • Identify regular features/columnists • Set up a documentation system to track edition inclusions • Avoiding deadline dilemmas • Send early reminders and pad deadline dates • Excel file example

  7. Working with a production firm vs. a “Party of One” • Production strategies to accomplish desired product

  8. Staying Organized • Dissemination methods • Copyrights and permission

  9. Encompasses organization’s strategic plan Primary goal of communiqué educate membership motivate and inspire participation recruit membership into service Writing an Influential President’s Message “This is easy…” “This is… AGGGHHHHH!!!”

  10. Effective Membership Communication • Newsletter content supports organization’s strategic plan • Readability • Edit and review process is critical • Good grammar and sentence structure • Catchy titles, teasers, callouts • NO TYPOS!

  11. IMPACT “We learn by example and by direct experience because there are real limits to the adequacy of verbal instruction.” ~ Malcolm Gladwell (Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, 2005) (http://www.quotationspage.com/quotes/Malcolm_Gladwell/) MPACT MPACT Volume 1 Issue 1 Volume 1 Issue 1 Maximizing Membership Communication Maximizing Membership Communication Most Important Story Placed Here! ASPAN’s 2006 CDI Rocks Minneapolis Most Important Story Placed Here! ASPAN’s 2006 CDI Rocks Minneapolis Matthew D. Byrne, MS, RN, CPAN The most important news or story in the newsletter should be on the cover. Many people read only the front and back page without ever reading the inside contents. Adding a bold font to the opening paragraph of a story may also draw the reader in. Most newsletters follow a two or three column format. There are many variations on this theme which make it simple to use. This text is Arial 10 point, with Arial Black 10 point used in the opening paragraph. The other fonts used are Bodoni MT or Bodoni MT Black. Check out the story on page 4 to learn more about fonts. Keep in mind that readers look at individual pages in a very specific pattern. Read more about this concept on page 6. Watch what happens next to help our readers and make them not feel that the story will go on forever... Paragraph Breaks are Important A break in the reading between paragraphs or major content areas is very important. Breaks can help the reader pick up where he or she left off, or to skip to a section they find most interesting. Paragraph breaks also make a long story less intimidating and much easier to read. Matthew D. Byrne, MS, RN, CPAN The most important news or story in the newsletter should be on the cover. Many people read only the front and back page without ever reading the inside contents. Adding a bold font to the opening paragraph of a story may also draw the reader in. Most newsletters follow a two or three column format. There are many variations on this theme which make it simple to use. This text is Arial 10 point, with Arial Black 10 point used in the opening paragraph. The other fonts used are Bodoni MT or Bodoni MT Black. Check out the story on page 4 to learn more about fonts. Keep in mind that readers look at individual pages in a very specific pattern. Read more about this concept on page 6. Watch what happens next to help our readers and make them not feel that the story will go on forever... Paragraph Breaks are Important A break in the reading between paragraphs or major content areas is very important. Breaks can help the reader pick up where he or she left off, or to skip to a section they find most interesting. Paragraph breaks also make a long story less intimidating and much easier to read. What’s Inside? President’s Message 2 Photos $ Clip Art 3 Fountain of Fonts 4 Web Hints 5 Include the most important contents. No need to list everything! What’s Inside? President’s Message 2 Photos $ Clip Art 3 Fountain of Fonts 4 Web Hints 5 Include the most important contents. No need to list everything! “Use Pullouts to Pull Readers in and to Accentuate Important Points or Quotations” “Use Pullouts to Pull Readers in and to Accentuate Important Points or Quotations”

  12. Layout and Design • Don’t go back and change your entire newsletter! • Suggestions, ideas & my mistakes/lessons • Novice versus expert…something for everyone • Clean, professional look enhances (not replaces) clear, powerful communication!

  13. Visual & Layout Basics • Where the eyes go • Use of white space • Use of contrasts • Color • Count your columns

  14. Style • Not a license to kill! • Makes your newsletter and your personal style distinctive • Consistency creates readability • Relates to multiple aspects of the newsletter including: Borders, headers, fonts, color, layout, columns, headlines…

  15. The Cover • Most important story and page!!! • Strongest story with broad appeal • Volume/Issue # • Index • Consistent and clean logo • Should set the tone for layout, design, fonts & tone throughout • Color

  16. Headlines • Left versus Centered • Down-style or adjust font rather than color or sensationalize • Avoid over-stacking • Follow grammar rules • Draw a reader in but don’t mislead

  17. Body of Text • Justified versus Ragged • Using bold to accentuate first paragraph • Use of paragraph breaks • Clean and aligned All the style tricks in the world can’t cover up a poorly written or unedited feature… yet …a poorly styled/designed newsletter can detract from a well-written article!

  18. IMPACT Pages 2 & 3 • Very similar style to cover • Masthead provides professional styling and expectations • Cover or Page 2 for president’s message? • Recurring content such as the information presented

  19. Clip Art • IMPACT page 4 • Avoid unless it is pertinent • Can easily distract or look amateurish • Complement not compete

  20. Photos Matt the high school graduate??? • IMPACT page 4 • Can’t touch up a terrible photo • Check grayscale first • Zoom, crop & add borders • Stage the shot & use the “mugshot” • Captions are essential • See PAGES website (http://www.pagesmag.com/newsletter.html) Color Photo Grayscale

  21. Fonts Matter… A serif is the little extra stroke found at the end of main vertical and horizontal strokes on some letterforms. Serif type makes reading more efficient and is best used for body text: Goudy Old Style/Garamond/High Tower Text         San Serif type has a strong geometric form and is appropriate for headlines, charts, and tables: Verdana / Tahoma / Frutiger Linotype Lupton, E. (2004).Thinking with type. New York, NY: Princeton Architectural Press.

  22. Newsletters and the Web • Almost all of the same rules apply!!!! • Keep content current • Follow your newsletter • Parallel, expand and complement print • Accommodate and communicate with your audience • Shop around • Have an expert advisor or consultant • Make sure someone oversees all pubs!

  23. Editorial Pearls of Wisdom • Build an edition template • Schedule/ rotate features • Build into BOD responsibilities • Solicit far in advance • Verbal contract with those who submit • Never, ever completely trust spell check • You can never be too anal about proofreading!!!

  24. Discussion ~ Questions? Mankoff, B (Ed.) (2000). The New Yorker Book of Literary Cartoons. New York: Pocket Books.

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