This month, we’re discussing e-mail newsletters and how they can be customized to meet your organization’s needs. Through technology research studies and reports, we’re seeing that e-mail marketing is perhaps the most cost-effective way to influence people, gain and retain new customers, and build brand loyalty. This can be true for churches, ministries, and nonprofits as well; e-newsletters and e-mail communication can be a powerful way to communicate with members, reach people with news of events and happenings, and go beyond what typical print communication tools can offer.
Paul Braoudakis is the communications director for the Willow Creek Association. The Willow Creek Association was founded in 1992, and works to link like-minded, action-oriented churches with each other and with strategic vision, training, and resources. Paul uses the EventU e-newsletter feature to deliver the Willow News—the Willow Creek Association’s monthly email newsletter. He agreed to answer a few questions on the topic.
Paul, tell us about your purpose for the Willow News
e-mail newsletter:
We have more than 12,000 churches in our network and I needed a way to communicate with all of them. We created the WILLOW News e-newsletter to keep folks informed of what's happening at Willow Creek and in WCA Member Churches worldwide.
What advice do you have for churches that are not currently using e-mail newsletters?
“E-mail newsletters are the most economical and expeditious way to get your message into the hands of many people quickly. If your church is not fully utilizing this resource, it's time to look into it now!”
What advice do you have for churches that are currently using e-mail newsletters?
“The biggest lesson is to learn is the discipline of proper frequency. People's e-mail boxes are inundated on a daily basis with lots of stuff. If your church sends out e-mails with great frequency (ie. every day, or every other day), people will begin to tune you out. We try to send the Willow News about once a month. That way people don't feel like it's a great intrusion, and they actually look forward to receiving it because we're able to pack a lot into it.”
Like the Willow News, this very newsletter, the ServiceU News utilizes the same powerful concepts.
Carl Fox, marketing director for ServiceU notes, “E-mail marketing is a very cost effective way to reach your target audience and get big results. E-newsletters are a necessity to reach the people that we want to reach; we can instantly involve them and create a common ground to begin and continue a conversation.”
Fox concludes, “It’s not so much about selling your organization
and what it provides; it’s about fostering open communication and
getting people involved in that.”