Your chamber newsletter may be one of the best communication tools you have. It’s an effective way to share information and reach people’s inboxes, a more likely way that they will see your content instead of taking a chance on an algorithm. Newsletters can also be monetized through ads and paid editorials for a source of non-dues revenue.
However, creating a robust and engaging newsletter can be a bit of a time suck. And you need good clicks and open rates to command a price for advertising with you.
If you want to streamline your newsletter process and increase your open rate, AI can help.
AI is an efficiency tool that when used well can shave hours off of the administrative processes behind creating and sending a newsletter.
But first, let’s talk about engagement.
Chamber Newsletters: Your Secret Weapon for Member Engagement
As a chamber pro, you know the value of effective communication. But let’s be honest, chamber newsletters can sometimes feel a bit stale. These tips will help turn your newsletter into a must-read for your members and your community.
Content That Clicks
Before deciding which of these things you want to incorporate into your chamber newsletter, decide what your goal for it is. Are you telling the larger community what you’re up to, keeping your members in the loop about upcoming events, or using it as a vehicle for additional non-dues revenue? Maybe a little of everything.
Some chambers include everything in one email send, while others divide them up. The Alameda Chamber & Economic Alliance, for instance, has a Chamber Alert that curates business-important information for the entire community AND a magazine-style event newsletter that goes out every Friday that covers chamber and community events.
Engaging content ideas for your newsletter:
- Local Business Spotlights: Showcase your members’ successes, new products, or upcoming events. This builds community and fosters pride in the local business landscape.
- Upcoming Events: Highlight both chamber-hosted and community events. Don’t just list them; create excitement with enticing descriptions and eye-catching visuals.
- Member Benefits Reminders: Refresh members on the perks they’re entitled to. Highlight a new one in each newsletter to remind them of the value you offer!
- Advocacy Updates: Share your chamber’s work on behalf of local businesses. Highlight legislative victories, ongoing efforts, and ways members can get involved.
- Industry Insights: Curate articles or provide analysis on trends relevant to your local economy.
- Behind-the-Scenes Glimpses: Give members a peek into your chamber’s activities. Share photos from events, introduce new staff, or highlight a volunteer (board member or ambassador) of the month.
- Call to Action: Don’t just inform; inspire action! Include clear calls to action, whether it’s registering for an event, renewing membership, or participating in a survey.
- Share Valuable Tips and Advice on topics like marketing, finance, operations, HR, etc. that can help members grow their businesses. You can excerpt blog posts, recap event speakers, or write original content. Provide a line or two in your newsletter and link back to your chamber website to drive traffic.
- Add fun content: Even magazines and newspapers aren’t all news and articles. Include things like local (or member) trivia questions, brainteasers, image quotes or inspirational messages, historical facts or “on this day” segments, cartoons, or memes. You can even put a call out for member-submitted photos (e.g. from events, the local community, etc.)
- Polls and Surveys: Get members engaged by including short polls or surveys about topics of interest. This provides valuable feedback while also making the newsletter more interactive.[2][3]
- Member Offers and Promotions: Dedicate a section to highlight special offers, sales, or promotions that members are running. This adds value for readers while also benefiting participating members.
- Contests and Giveaways: Engage your audience with fun contests or giveaways related to local businesses. If you have some leftover swag, why not use it to get your newsletter audience excited?
- Member-Generated Content: Invite members to submit articles, photos, or testimonials to foster a sense of community and ownership.
- Partner with Other Organizations: Collaborate with other local organizations to cross-promote events or share valuable content.
The key is to strike a balance between promoting members, providing educational value, and incorporating fun, visually appealing elements to keep readers engaged.
Frequency and Format of Your Newsletter
So, how often should you send it? And what other best practices should you be aware of?
- Consistency: Use a regular schedule, whether it’s monthly, bi-weekly, or weekly. This sets expectations and helps members anticipate your newsletter. It also helps you create a deadline-driven environment with ads.
- Theme: Each newsletter could have a central theme, tying together the content for a more cohesive and engaging experience. For example, you could create “the workforce issue” featuring workforce development, programs, job openings, and legislation that impacts the workforce.
- Design: Break up text with images, use an eye-catching header, and ensure your layout is easy to scan on desktop and mobile devices and that the branding is identifiable as the chamber.
Finally, subject lines matter. Craft compelling subject lines that entice recipients to open the email. Be specific, create urgency, or tease the content inside.
Best Practices in e-Newsletters
Personalization
Segment your email list and tailor content to different member groups for a more personalized experience.
A/B Testing
Experiment with different subject lines, and content formats, or send times to see what resonates best with your audience.
Data and Metrics
Monitor open rates, click-through rates, and other metrics to gauge the effectiveness of your newsletters and make data-driven improvements.
Feedback
Encourage members to share their thoughts and suggestions. A feedback loop can help you refine your newsletter strategy.
That sounds like a lot, right?
AI can help you do much of that with good prompts and a few clicks.
How to Use AI to Make Chamber Newsletters Less Time Consuming
AI can be a game-changer for streamlining your chamber newsletter process. Here are a few ways to leverage its power.
- Content Generation:
- Idea Brainstorming: Use AI tools to generate content ideas based on your target audience (for the best results explain who that is for your chamber) and chosen themes. Simply input a prompt like “Newsletter ideas for June highlighting local businesses and Pride Month” to get a list of creative suggestions.
- Drafting Articles: AI writing tools can help you quickly draft articles, event descriptions, or industry insights. You can then refine the output to match your chamber’s voice and style. If you’re writing a member highlight, grab copy from their website and plug it into AI. Tell it how long you want the spotlight to be and Voila!
- Social Media Snippets: Repurpose newsletter content by having AI generate engaging social media captions or tweets to promote your newsletter across various platforms.
- Personalization:
- Segmented Content: AI can analyze member data to identify different interest groups and automatically generate tailored content recommendations for each segment. This ensures your newsletters are more relevant and engaging.
- Personalized Subject Lines: AI tools can suggest subject lines that are more likely to resonate with individual recipients based on their past engagement with your emails. This can significantly boost open rates.
- Data Analysis and Optimization:
- Performance Tracking: AI-powered analytics platforms can provide in-depth insights into newsletter performance, including open rates, click-through rates, and subscriber demographics. This helps you understand what works and what doesn’t.
- A/B Testing: AI can automate A/B testing for subject lines, content formats, and send times, allowing you to quickly identify the most effective combinations for your audience.
- Predictive Analytics: Use AI to predict which members are most likely to disengage with your newsletter and proactively address their needs with targeted content or offers.
- Campaigns: ConstantContact (and many other email services) offers an AI-driven campaign builder that allows customers to specify a targeted audience and creates content across channels with it in mind. That way, your newsletter can be part of a branded marketing strategy.
- Visual Enhancement:
- Image Generation: If you lack original photos, AI image generators can create custom visuals that align with your content and branding.
- Graphic Design: AI-powered design tools can help you create visually appealing layouts, infographics, or headers for your newsletters, even if you don’t have design expertise.
By integrating AI into your workflow, you can save time, improve engagement, and deliver more personalized experiences to your chamber members. Remember, AI is a tool to enhance your capabilities, not replace them. Use it for administrative tasks and add your own creativity and flair to make your newsletter even better.
Your Chamber Newsletter: A Powerful Tool for Connection and Sales
Your chamber newsletter is more than just an informational bulletin. It’s a platform to build relationships, nurture future members, foster community, and showcase the value your chamber brings to your area. These tips can get you started but it’s knowing what your target audience wants and leveraging that to inject your own unique flavor, that will help you create a newsletter members genuinely look forward to receiving.
Want more newsletter tips and to see what other chamber pros are doing? Take part in the conversation here.
