A good digital newsletter provides value for your school community. Relevant, up-to-date, high-quality content will ensure readers keep coming back. Here are some content ideas to include in your school’s digital newsletter.
Regularly Updated Content
Sending out your newsletter via email is a good way to encourage readership. If you also host it online, people can view it as they wish.
Readers will only visit the online newsletter if they can expect new, up-to-date content. There is no reason for them to read old updates that could be irrelevant or incorrect. Let your audience know when to expect the newsletter, whether it is weekly, monthly or quarterly.
A Message From the Principal
A good newsletter begins with a friendly welcome message. It is nice for the introduction to come from a trusted, head figure at school like the Principal. They can relay important updates and set the tone for the rest of the newsletter.
Highlight Prefects & Personal Stories
Feature your new school prefects in the newsletter. Run Q&As or Get To Know Me stories so that students can familiarise themselves with the school leaders.
You could also extend this to include other high achievers or role models at your school. Your school community will feel more connected and it may inspire younger students.
Upcoming School Events
Your digital newsletter is a great place to post important dates for the upcoming year. Include school camps, term dates and Teacher Only Days. While simple, this feature is popular and relevant to the entire school community. Place this somewhere easy to find like the home page so your audience doesn’t have to go searching for it. This way, there is no excuse for students to miss important events!
Exam Timetables & Study Prep Tips
Use the newsletter as a bulletin board for upcoming school exams and tests. A newsletter is a convenient place to post exam timetables, locations and remind students what to bring.
Or why not go a step further and include study prep tips from teachers or senior students? This adds value to your newsletter, motivates students and shows community spirit.
Something for Everyone
Make sure to post about a wide variety of subjects. Include stories on academics, sport, culture and school life to feature a wide net of students. This is a good way to increase readership, as many will only be interested in stories relevant to them! Encourage staff from each faculty to share successes and updates worthy of the newsletter.
Include Lots of Photos
Use your newsletter as a place where people can find photos from events. Display images from camp, the ball or sports games directly on the site, or share links to the full albums.
Posting lots of photos is a sure way to increase traffic and get people looking at the newsletter!
Focus on International Students
A lot of newsletter readers are parents who want to feel involved in the school community. It can be difficult for parents who live overseas, especially this year with limits on travel.
Create a newsletter section to highlight international students, sharing stories from school life. Include interviews with students, articles about camp and lots of photos!
Community Achievements & Activities
Show interest in what students achieve outside school hours! Share sporting success, volunteer work and awards by students out in the community. Sharing these successes is also a great way to shake up your content, as no two stories will be the same!
It is also nice to include updates and stories from your local community. Perhaps there is a volunteer opportunity available, or a family event worth visiting. Encourage students to connect to the world around them, whilst cementing your school’s place in the community.
Plug Your Publications
The newsletter is the perfect place to advertise the yearbook or fundraiser book! Write a piece on the yearbook, with photos of contributors putting it together. Or share details of your fundraiser book and the intentions of the proceeds. For something more simple, include a clickable link on the homepage or a banner at the top of the newsletter.
Keep Them Clicking!
While it’s good to get newsletter views, it’s even better to have engaged readers who want to stick around! Adopt newsletter design that entices readers to keep clicking new articles.
A bright Trending Now banner on the homepage is a sure way to grab attention! Highlight new or popular articles that readers will want to click.
Don’t make it difficult for your audience to find more content. At the end of each article, include links to the next article, or other relevant stories.
Learn about the benefits of a digital school newsletter.
