An employee newsletter is a regularly published internal communication tool designed to keep your team informed, engaged, and connected to the company. Think of an employee newsletter as a companywide digital bulletin board: It's a space to share important updates, recognize achievements, and foster a sense of community.
Employee newsletters are great tools for bringing your company culture to life. In this guide, we break down the benefits of an employee newsletter and how to create one for your small business.
What are the benefits of an employee newsletter?
The biggest benefit of an employee newsletter is that it can help keep your team informed. Nearly 75% of employees say they miss out on important company news. With more team members working remotely or in a hybrid setup, it can be easy to miss important announcements. An employee newsletter is a simple yet effective way to make sure everyone is on the same page about company happenings.
Employee newsletters also help reduce communication overload (and meeting fatigue). A newsletter circumvents the need for an all-hands meeting, providing the information your team needs in a convenient format.
"You don't want to hold a meeting or even show a video that runs too long. You'll run the risk of having a restless bunch who don't even remember half of what you've shared," wrote MailChimp.
A newsletter allows employees to read and revisit the information when they have time to focus and digest the important points.
Finally, an employee newsletter can also be a tool for reinforcing your company culture. Newsletters can clearly communicate your company's vision and values, fostering a strong employer brand. Not only can you use content to highlight achievements, but the design elements also reinforce your branding.
"Unlike plain text email, an employee newsletter conveys employer brand both visually and textually. Your company brand and values shine through visual cues like internal newsletter design, colour schemes, and embedded media," wrote Contact Monkey.
[Read more: 5 Elements of a Great Small Business Newsletter]
Experts recommend keeping your newsletter content 80% educational and 20% entertaining to get the best value for your investment.
What should you include in an employee newsletter?
An effective employee newsletter is both engaging and informative. Aim to strike a balance between fun, culture-building highlights and mission-critical news that can help your team work collaboratively.
"One of the missions and benefits of sending employee newsletters is to help them feel connected, so make sure the email content is fostering that goal. Share fun facts about employees, higher-level leadership included," wrote MailChimp.
The best employee newsletters include information such as:
- Industry news and events.
- Company announcements and updates.
- Employee recognition and success stories.
- Upcoming internal events and social activities.
- Employee benefits and perks.
- Job openings and career development opportunities.
- Fun and engaging content (such as puzzles, quizzes, employee-generated content).
You can also use your employee newsletter to conduct surveys, onboard new employees, and host giveaways. Experts recommend keeping your newsletter content 80% educational and 20% entertaining to get the best value for your investment.
Best practices for creating an employee newsletter
Starting an employee newsletter is more straightforward than creating one for your customers. For internal communications, less audience segmentation is needed: Ideally, you're sending one message to everyone.
[Read more: 4 Steps to Starting an Email Newsletter for Your Business]
Nevertheless, you want to make sure your email is fun to read and engaging. Include images, video, and other design elements. Make your template mobile-friendly for staff working in the field or reading on the go. Write an engaging subject line and use customizable fields so that it looks like your emails are addressed to each individual.
Use formatting to highlight different sections and make your emails easily scannable. Bullet points and text formatting help employees access critical company resources quickly. Keep an eye on your analytics and be willing to experiment to find the best way to deliver information while still engaging your team.
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