I have always thought of newsletters to be type of communication whose effectiveness levels are at polar extremes: if it is done good it will be effective and if done bad, so will be the effect. I’ve always been rather skeptical of newsletters as a form of communication, but I now realise this is only because the newsletters I have received are not effective and do not improve my relations with the company.
Key messages from the readings this week showed the potential of newsletters as an excellent method of communication between a company and its publics and explored how to make an effective newsletter.
Looking at Smartypantz Kidz, this is one area where they could establish their company and name in the wider public. As Inga and Simon currently use little communication techniques to keep in touch with key publics and stakeholders, a simple, quarterly newsletter could easily fill this void. But as far as issues management goes, I feel the newsletter is just no use. Trying to manage a crisis means taking immediate action – definitely not enough time to produce and distribute a newsletter. This is why we have had to look at various other communication tools to be able to reach stakeholders for our plan.
Looking more broadly, the readings have reestablished by confidence in newsletters and seeing how effective they can be if managed, produced and distributed correctly. One of the key points about content would also connect with the chapter in the textbook on media releases –as far as what information needed to go into communication. It’s essential that the right information reaches the intended audience in the right way, otherwise time and money have been wasted on something that had potential to be very effective.
2 comments:
Hi Allyson!
I never really considered newsletters to be an important media device either - I normally don't even look at them. I guess there is more to creating a successful newsletter then what I first thought! Do you think they would be a good way to reach new clients or do you think that they should just be used to keep known stakeholders 'in the loop'?
-Vicky
Absolutely - newsletters could be used to reach new clients, but I guess the content would need to be different from that of ones to keep stakeholders in the loop as such. As we read, content is so important and tailoring it towards the specific audience with a specific purpose would guarantee the success of such an activity. Al.
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