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Do you ever procrastinate? (And don't tell me you'll get back to me later with your answer!) It's easier than ever to brush work aside during the warm, lazy, summer months. The basis for my observation is that as soon as September 1st hit, I ended up getting several calls for writing jobs. Since August was relatively slow, I was, of course, grateful for the work. I guess a lot of folks decided to put off beginning (or finishing) projects as vacations and sunny afternoons took priority-I'll admit to being guilty of this on occasion myself! It's good to be busy. After all, we need to work to put food on the table and to keep a roof over our heads. But don't forget to take a moment to notice the beauty of the new season: the brightly colored leaves, the crispness in the air, the creatively carved pumpkins that appear on the neighbor's porch. Share these moments with your family and friends. They'll appreciate your company and enjoy the break from their own work, too! All the best, Cassie Hart Newsletters and you Perhaps you've been asked to contribute to your company's newsletter. Researching and writing articles, editing text, and assembling content into a template for publication are all important--and time-consuming-- tasks involved with producing a newsletter. Being in charge of putting a publication together is a big job. But the benefits of producing a good newsletter are definitely worth the effort. Newsletters are powerful communication tools: they are used to inform, educate, and motivate customers and clients. If you're trying to find a way to improve the quality of an existing newsletter--or if you're considering starting one from scratch--these tips will help put you on the right track. Determine what type of newsletter best suits readers' needs. Are your readers Internet savvy? Perhaps an online publication will hold their attention better than a paper version. You'll save on printing costs, too. Set a publication schedule. How often to you distribute your newsletter? If the publication schedule is monthly and you constantly scramble to find enough content to fill each page, consider shifting to a quarterly schedule instead. Likewise, if you end up cutting quality content every issue due to space constraints, it may be a good idea to publish more frequently. Understand the purpose of your publication. Why have you decided to publish a newsletter? Are you trying to motivate employees? Are you keeping clients updated about your company's expanding services? It's necessary to understand exactly why you are directing your time and effort towards this important project. Knowing "why" will help keep the focus of your newsletter in check. It will also help you to produce a publication that your readers will find valuable. Know your audience. If you want readers to take an interest in your newsletter, it needs to contain information they'll want to read. For example, while a newsletter for a college arts program might contain information about National Public Radio's budget cuts, it's probably a safe bet that the World Series results don't need to appear here. Ask for feedback. Not sure readers are getting as much out of your newsletter as you think they should? Invite them to provide feedback. Create an online survey or ask for specific advice about how to improve the publication. What sort of information would readers like to see addressed more often? What information can they do without? Have someone proofread the text. When you're very familiar with a piece of writing, it's tough to see errors that may be glaringly obvious to everyone else. Ask a co-worker to proofread the text before sending it to the printer or, in the case of an online publication, before hitting "send." Catching typos and misspellings before distributing your newsletter to the masses will save money and embarrassment.
Take a look at some newsletters I've been responsible for producing.
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email: cahart@att.net voice: 309.454.1908 web: http://www.cassiehartwriter.com |
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