5 Things You Could Take Out To Make a Better Newsletter

Sometimes it's not what you put in your newsletter that makes it good, but what you leave out. We tend to add so many things into our publications that they get crowded and complicated, when simple is much better. There are many things that could be listed, but here are my top 5 things that you should consider eliminating to make a better newsletter.

1. Boxes
We box things because we think they are important. But if you put a box around everything, then nothing is important. Its like taking a beautiful piece of classical music, with it's dynamic contrasts, and playing everything double forte, or really loud. If you must, choose one or two items that need to be highlighted and bring attention to them.

Boxes are also used to help with the layout of text. If you do not get the boxes lined up correctly, the mismatched lines are more distracting then helpful.
If you still use the boxes, take off the outline so that it is not as noticeable. Better yet, use columns to help guide your layout.

2. Fonts
One font is boring, two fonts are good, three fonts is pushing it, but four or more is just plain wrong. Too may fonts makes it too hard to focus again on any one thing. If everything is different we get tired trying to see what's important. Choose 2 fonts. Use one for body text, and the other for headers, callouts etc. To add a little variety you can use things like Bold, Italic, and Underline.

3. Links
Does your newsletter go online? If so, you need to either make an separate print, and online version, or make sure your one version is compatible with both. If you want to link to a specific page, do not just go to the page, copy the link and insert it into your text.

If you are directing your reader to a site like www.forkintheroadmusic.org and your program recognizes links that might be ok. However, if you are linking to a page within a website sometimes the addresses are not that clear, like www.forkintheroadmusic.org/home/songs/10-03-10/mymusic/angelise.mp3, it's not so easy.

Make it easy. Tell them in print like you were speaking to them in person. For example "go to 'www.forkintheroadmusic.org', click on 'my songs', and then find 'angelise'." Better yet, create a link to the file on your website either on your home page or under links, and say "the link is located on our website under links. For your online version you can make a hyperlink directly to the text.

4. Word Art
Nothing screams "the 90's called and want their newsletter back" like a newsletter filled with Microsoft Word Art. I know it's so easy to do, and looks so cool. Granted, use it once and you might could get away with it. But it's like pistachios, you can't just have one pistachio,and the little button that makes cool Indiana Jones 3D letters is addictive. So just don't do it!
Instead, use a logo or the 1 font you have chosen to use for headlines.

5. Clip Art
The same problem that exists with word art, exists with clipart. Every article or announcement does not need a cute graphic to go with it.

If you are taking a logo from a website, make sure you get the entire logo. Often websites put their logos up in pieces to help them load faster. If you right click and save the first part, you won't get the whole picture. Check first, a lot of sites may have a logo page. If that doesn't work, send an email to the webmaster and see if they can send you a logo.

Use photos instead of clipart. If you have an article about an coming bible study grab a photo of a bible, instead of the clip art version. They will both print just as well, but the photo will say a lot more about the quality of your publication, and organization.

Why?
I believe that your newsletter is a great opportunity to reach out into the community and tell others about your church. It is often the first impression that person will have about your church. What impression about your church do people get from your church newsletter publication.

Want to see how your newsletter stacks up? Download this Newsletter Quiz. from the Alabama West Conference Communication Website.

What do you think? Are these important? What would you add to the list?

Information or Inspiration

One communication blog I almost always open comes from Kem Meyer. In her most recent post, Revamping Communication Arts Volunteer-ism she shares some information about the Communication Arts and Tech Ops Teams at Granger Community Church. I invite you to read the full article for yourself.

I wanted to point out one line in the "Communication Arts Teams" page that I think is often overlooked, yet vitally important.

Ready?

Here it is...

Transform content from “information” to “inspiration” through clever copywriting and editing.

Did you catch it? How many times do we spit out information without it being inspiration? Why is it so easy to print information instead of inspiration? How can we turn information into inspiration?

So what do you think? Let me know in the comments section or on Simple Church Communication Facebook Page.

Church Signs?

I was driving down to Houston a few months ago and I was looking out the window when I my eyes started catching church signs. A few advertised an upcoming revival or pot luck dinner, and a few had such sayings like "There's no A/C in Hell." 

A quick google search came up with a few clever sayings like "There's some questions Google can't answer" and the ever famous "Sign Broken, Message Inside."

My favorite are always the ones that don't quite say what they may have intended. "Don't Let Worry Kill You, Let the Church Help"

After reading all the variety of signs I began to wonder what is the purpose of the church sign, and how best can we use it to communicate? What kind of message can you send in only 5 lines of 20 letters each?

The folks over at "Church Marketing Sucks" (reason for name) posted about this a few years ago when Joel Bezaire wrote "When Church Signs Suck"  After his top ten list of things not to put on your sign he writes this:

"Most churches would admit that their church signs serve one of four purposes. First, the church sign can encourage current members to attend. Second, it can encourage non-believers or those who currently do not attend church to attend. Third, a church sign may improve the church’s image in the community. Fourth, a church sign can be another outlet for a church to glorify Christ and make Him known."

So what should you put up on your sign? Here's his suggestions:

• Bible verses. (Note: Please choose Bible verses that make sense on their own and do not require a theology degree and three chapters of context.)
• Service times.
• News of how the church is working in and with the community. As a special bonus, not taking the time to think up these slogans actually leaves time for a church to work in and with the community.
• General church news (new pastors, exciting growth, new programs, new buildings, etc.)
• Upcoming sermon titles, provided they do not breach any of the above 10 categories.

So what do you use your church sign for? Do you think it's a good way to communicate? Share some of the best, worst or funniest church signs you have come across...

Before You Click Send or Print

It is almost time to leave the office, but you have stayed to finish up a flyer or postcard that had to be done today. So you add the text, pick a background and format it on the right size of paper. Time to print? Not so fast. Pressing print may cause you to waste time and money, and it could have been avoided.

Here is a list of 5 things to check before you press print :

1. Is everything spelled correctly?

Remember that spell check does not catch everything. The computer does not know when I mean "First Untied Methodist Church." Get someone else to check your work. Also read your publication from the bottom up. This way you will not be reading it the same way you have been for the past hour, and may catch something different.

2. Do you have too many fonts?

One font is great, Two fonts are better, Three fonts are pushing it. Think about using one font for your text and one for titles.

3. Is everything formatted consistently?

Are your times 3:00 p.m. or 3:00 pm or 3:00 PM? Are you going to list phone numbers like this 903-555-1212 or (903)555-1212 or 903.555.1212? It does not matter as much which is technically correct as you are consistent. 

4.Is the information clear and complete?

If you are telling people to contact someone, do you include the contact information? When I duplicate information from the web to a flyer I have to make sure that I remove web only text like "Click Here" for more info. Also do you have all the room numbers, dates, locations and directions?

5. Are your graphics the right size?

Luckily the printing requirements for most church office printers are not as strict as those for commercial printing. That being said I am always amazed at the number of pixelated, grainy, distorted images that appear on flyers everywhere. Remember, if a photo is too large it can always be made smaller. However if a photo is too small it cannot be made larger without losing quality. Also, when resizing your graphics make sure and keep the proportions the same.

Checking these 5 things will help to insure that you do not have to re-do and print again. It may take a little extra time initially, but will definitely save you time, money, and embarrassment in the end.

Which of these do you tend to overlook most?

What would you add to the list?

5 Steps to a Better Church Website

There are a lot of great church websites out there. That being said, there are a lot of not so great church websites out there. No matter where you feel your site is on that spectrum, the fact is we always need to be looking for ways to keep our site relevant, fresh and updated.

I ran across a post from communicorps.org which lists 5 quick tips to improve your church website.

They give 5 suggestions but my favorites are:

(1) Keep it updated. No website is better than an old website. Make sure your information is always current. Only add areas to your site when you know you can keep them updated. A visitor browsing your site and finding details about last year's summer programs will not speak well of your church.

 (3) Skip the cheesy junk. That MIDI file that plays "How Great Thou Art" on your home page? Ditch it. Also get rid of those spinning GIF crosses, the animated metallic fish picture and the tiled stained glass window background image. In web design, less is more. Look at what the best sites do (Amazon.com, Yahoo.com, msn.com)--they're colorful, organized, legible and at the same time they're all business. With each site feature, ask yourself, "Is this what I go to a website for?" If you're unsure whether something is a smash or just trash, ask others for their opinions.

I encourage you go head over and see what numbers 2, 4, and 5 are. While there you can check out some free logos, and graphics plus tons of other great articles regarding communication.

What do you need to change about your church website?

Food for Thought: The 40 Hour Work Week

Worship Leader Carlos Whittaker does a great job of writing posts that make you think. Sometimes it's just a photo with "Caption Please", and sometimes it's a quote or a short story.

Here is a clip of what he posted today:

Before the church had “offices”, which was not very long ago, the ministers were out in the community doing “church”

He goes on pose the question of how much ministry opportunities are we missing outside our walls, in the community, while we sit in our church offices planning "ministry?"

He also has an interesting proposal on how to fix it.

I'm not going to tell you everything, I just wanted to bring it to your attention, and encourage you to go read the whole post for yourself. While you're there go ahead and check out some more of his posts.. and his music

Where to Find Free Graphics?

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then you need a place to find the perfect photo for your screen, video or print publication. So what are some free resources for finding graphics for print and screen productions? I'll get the list rolling with a few that I use:

Flickr- I search for photos which are posted under creative commons license. This basically means you can use them but you need to give credit to the owner. Flickr is an only photo community where members post their photos for others to comment on, view and use. You may have to do a little searching for the right photo, but I have found some good ones. Flickr also has groups where you can find graphics uploaded by people with similar interests. For example the Church Marketing Lab is a group where church communicators post their publications for feedback and critique. 

Creative MYK- This site is a christian community of talented people who want to share their work with others. You can find many different formats of graphic materials. This includes not only photos, but adobe photoshop files, illustrator files, and screen graphics. Many of these files are editable so you can customize them for your own use.

Stock Exchange- Stock exchange is another photo and graphics community that is more regulated than flickr. Photos available are more by serious photographers, which means you don't have to filter through a ton of snapshots to find the photo you want. It also means there are not quite as many photos available, but it has been one of my go to sites for a long time.

Those are just three places of the places I go to, but there are many more out there. So what about you? Where do you go to find graphics? Share in the comments below or on the simple church communication facebook page.