Nonprofit Newsletters Tips and Inspiring Examples

Lisa Hirst Carnes | August 2021

nonprofit-newsletters

Having the email addresses of your audience gives you a great deal of influence and power.

You can contact them proactively whenever you want, without having to rely on them to visit your website. Rather than just sending out messages when it suits you, it can be more impactful to create a regular newsletter for your organization and weave it into your overall marketing strategy.

This article explores the nonprofit newsletter benefits and what makes them so valuable, along with a few tips on getting the most out of your newsletter. We’ll also share some inspiring examples of organizations with exceptional nonprofit newsletters.

Newsletter Benefits

There are several key advantages to creating a newsletter for your current and potential members and donors. Here are a few:

  • Helps you stay in front of your audience.  Every time you send out a newsletter, you’re reminding your subscribers about your goals and the amazing work your nonprofit does. 
  • It’s a low-cost promotional method. The cost of sending emails is minimal. The larger your list, the lower the cost per subscriber. You’re not paying for advertising, postage, or any fees beyond any email software or service you might be using.
  • A way to send visitors to your website. You can use your newsletter to direct people to your latest blog post, event page, or anything you want them to know about.
  • It’s a powerful fundraising tool. Remind people of why it’s so important to donate. Let them know about upcoming fund drives. 

Tips to Make Your Newsletter More Engaging

Here are some ways to make your newsletter a more powerful tool for engagement and fundraising.

Meet the Needs of Your Audience

Consider the topics that your audience cares about. Don’t make the whole newsletter about you. Make sure you provide value, which can be tips, news, and links to information that will help your subscribers. Here are some possible topics to cover:

  • Suggestions on how people can make a difference in their everyday lives (shopping, energy conservation, contacting local politicians, etc.). These suggestions can be especially valuable for people who may not be ready to make a financial donation yet. 
  • Stories focusing on ways you’re helping. You can also feature specific volunteers or staff members. While statistics and facts are useful, turning the spotlight on specific individuals and places is often more compelling because they’re generally more emotional. 
  • Polls and questions. Reaching out to your audience for feedback encourages them to engage. It also provides you with valuable data about your members.
  • Photos, images, and infographics. Images capture people’s attention and bring issues to life.

Increase Open Rates With Compelling Subject Lines

The first challenge with any email is to get the recipient to open it. The subject line has a lot to do with your open rates. Make sure the subject line is relevant and gets across the importance of your topic. At the same time, using hype such as all caps or exclamation points is off-putting. It’s important to strike a balance.

Find the Ideal Schedule

When is the best time to send out your newsletter? How often should you send it? If you email subscribers too often, they get annoyed. If you only contact them rarely, you don’t stay fresh in their minds. You want to identify the “Goldilocks” schedule, not too much and not too little. There’s also the question of when to send your emails. Experiment with different hours and days of the week. You can adjust your mailings based on open rates and engagement.

Segment Your Audience

Segmentation is the process of dividing your audience and sending the most relevant information to each subscriber. Depending on your needs, you can segment your audience by location, interests, or issues. For example, if your organization works on multiple issues, you can create two or more newsletters that address the interests of each group.

7 Inspiring Examples

If you want to learn more about creating an exceptional newsletter, it’s a good idea to learn from groups that are already doing this. The following are some organizations with, especially compelling newsletters. You may want to subscribe to some of these for inspiration.

American Red Cross — ARC is known for its blood drives and disaster relief efforts. The newsletter highlights recent efforts, reminding people of the urgency of their work. It also encourages subscribers to become volunteers and donors.

Super Majority — An organization for women’s activism covering news, events, and important issues. The newsletter keeps members updated on the most urgent issues and events.

Human Rights Campaign — HRC is dedicated to creating a more just world for the LGBTQ community. They inform members about local as well as national issues and events.

Charity: Water —This organization is dedicated to providing clean water to people all over the world. Their newsletter exemplifies the power of simple storytelling, with accounts and images of the people they help with their efforts.

Minneapolis Institute of Art — The MIA informs subscribers about the latest exhibits and other events. The newsletter, in addition to attracting visitors, is useful for reaching people, including potential supporters, all over the world who may not be able to visit the museum in person. In 2020, when public buildings were closed, many museums, including MIA, increased their virtual offerings.

Habitat For Humanity — Habitat For Humanity is a global organization that connects with members locally. In addition to an international newsletter, they publish many local ones, such as Habitat For Humanity Los Angeles. This allows them to inform subscribers of local events and issues. For example, the LA branch has many events addressing issues such as homelessness and affordable housing.

Women’s March — A feminist organization that encourages digital as well as traditional activism. Through the newsletter, they help to organize local circles and mobilize members on issues.

Nonprofit Newsletters Help You Grow Your Organization

When you run a nonprofit, you have ongoing challenges such as building your membership, minimizing churn, and soliciting donations. You need as many tools as possible to reach out and connect with your audience. A newsletter is one of the best ways to engage with people. The great thing about a newsletter is that it helps boost all of your other promotional strategies.

You can use your newsletter to publicize news and send traffic to any of your content. As you gain more subscribers, you can also increase traffic to your website and social media pages, get more attention for your events and increase donations. Make your newsletter an ongoing project that gets more effective with time. As you test your results, make changes as needed, and grow your email list, you’ll find that it’s one of your most powerful outreach tools.

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