The Surprising Truth About the Wellness Newsletter Youre Creating

If you try to launch a wellness newsletter, the enthusiasm you now have should build and spread. You need this publication to become a beacon, not just a burden.

Your wellness newsletter can be the driving force of inspiration - a primary way to show and tell the power of your program. It can entice and enlighten, helping employees realize the worthiness of participating in the program and encouraging them to embrace healthy choices.

YOU'RE Now a Publisher. Think Like One.

Your publication will not be any of those ideas - actually, the newsletter could easily get your organization into some legal trouble and certainly would weaken your program's overall credibility - if you don't think and act like a publisher. Your organization card doesn't say "publisher," but the surprising truth is you now are.

You need to be.

A smart publisher is concerned concerning the integrity and visibility of her or his material. That means this content in your wellness newsletter should be right in addition to being noticed and used. The correct philosophy isn't "send and hope." It's "plan and know."

A smart publisher understands that reliability - especially when the topic is a person's health - often requires expert review, in addition to individuals who are experienced in the best practices of writing, editing and designing communication pieces.

Is the content credible? Does it stick to copyright and "fair use" laws? Do your images match the voice of your copy? Those along with other publishing questions need to be answered.

4 What to Care About

As you put on your publishing hat, focus on these basic questions:

? What does your audience want and need to find out?

? What do you wish to tell employees (current wellness program participants and/or perspective ones) about your program?

? How should they receive the publication (print, electronic or both)? How often should website deliver it?

? What resources must you complete the job? What other ones should you make the project run smoothly and impressively?

1. A publisher cares about readers. Treat employees just like a high-quality trade magazine views its readership. Discover what topics are likely to resonate with them, and tailor your messaging and content to support those needs, wants, and interests. A good first move: Send employees an instant survey. The information you get can fuel your publication plan and help you set the newsletter's goals and expectations.

2. A publisher cares about categories. Many health, wellness and benefits experts feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of what they could communicate. Steal a page from newsstand publications, and categorize your thinking into sections that match your mission and your employees' needs. Think about USA Today. World events are ever-changing, and the way to obtain human interest stories is endless, yet each issue is segmented and presented in four easy-to-find, color-coded sections: main news (blue), Life (purple), Sports (red), and Money (green). This structure enables readers to form expectations - people "know w [1] here you can turn" for information that counts most to them.

? What regular "departments" is it possible to create?

? What special issues might you plan?

? What could your "cover stories" be about?

? Will you segment your content by topic or by theme (inspiration, values, humor, etc.)?

3. A publisher cares about brevity. Stick with an eye-friendly, simple design. Same goes for the copy - short, poignant, and scannable is the right recipe. Also, ensure that your content pays to, timely, and relevant. A good idea is to monitor some newsletters, magazines, newspapers, and Websites you respect (especially publications pertaining to your industry), and apply their good content and design ideas to your publication.

? Arrange for short articles. Your employees probably is only going to scan snippets and brief articles that catch their attention. Should you choose include longer stories (more than 350 words), break them up with graphics, white space, pull quotes, and short paragraphs.

? Entice readers with compelling "blurbs." Lists work.

? Write a punchy Table of Contents to improve the amount of pages and stories your staff reads.

4. A publisher cares about scheduling. You will need a structure. Building an editorial calendar and production task list will keep your messages in constant motion - employees will receive relevant, consistent communication at when you need. From our experience, it's best to start at the end and plan backward from your final publishing dates. The main element would be to deliver what's specified on the plan instead of what happens to be on your mind.

Set target dates for the following tasks:

? Choosing story ideas and assigning them

? Completing first drafts

? Editing for length, grammar, and clarity

? Dropping copy into an HTML template with placeholder titles (if it will be emailed) or into graphical design software for layout (if it'll be printed)

? Revising and finalizing content

? Checking links to make certain they're active and correct (if emailed)

? Sending to employees

Publishers Also Turn to Experts for Help

If you have an interior marketing or communications team, you might have ample resources for creating a newsletter's content and design. But many businesses assign the project to clerical staff and receive unprofessional results.

Partners can bring valuable experience, infrastructure, technology and new suggestions to your wellness communication. You call the shots, but a skilled, creative partner can make sure your audience receives top-quality messaging.

Shawn M. Connors, President & Founder, Hope Health

Shawn has more than 30 years of workplace communications experience. He founded Hope Health in 1981 to create and sell one of the nation's first Health Risk Assessments. Today, Hope Health is really a business-to-business, health-based communications company focusing on producing information distributed at workplaces. It offers a multitude of lifestyle-related information in various formats including newsletters, brochures, booklets, posters, calendars, and electronic media. Shawn is an accomplished author, speaker and communications expert. [2]