Paper or email newsletter? Pros and cons
I've had some questions recently about newsletters, and I have a few thoughts. I hope you already have a regular newsletter that you send to at least your partners, and maybe a larger list of supportive friends. It's a key part of your engagement with your partners and the best way to share updates and testimonies. It's also the best way to keep in touch with people who said "no" or "not now" to partnership; you never know what may change in the future!
These days, most people do email newsletters, but the old school paper version has its merits too. Which should you choose? Both have pros and cons when it comes to keeping your partners informed and engaged. Here's a breakdown of each:
Paper Newsletters
Pros:
A physical newsletter can feel more personal and significant, providing a tangible connection between you and your partners. Recipients can keep it as a reminder to pray or give.
Physical mail tends to have higher open rates than email. People are more likely to read a paper newsletter since it doesn’t get lost in a cluttered inbox.
Older partners or any who may not be as tech-savvy or who prefer traditional communication might appreciate receiving a physical newsletter.
If you want to get creative, paper gives you more room to play. You can design a layout in more detail, and you can include hand-written notes (highly recommend), small gifts, or photos.
Cons:
Printing and mailing paper newsletters can be costly, especially if you have a large mailing list. Costs include printing, postage, and materials.
Preparing and mailing paper newsletters is more time-consuming than sending an email. Writing, printing, signing, and enveloping 50 letters takes me around 6-8 hours.
Printing paper newsletters contributes to paper waste and has a larger environmental footprint compared to digital communication.
Paper newsletters lack the interactive elements that email can offer, such as clickable links and videos. You can use QR codes, but people are less likely to use them than a clickable link.
Email Newsletters
Pros:
Email newsletters are free to send, as long as you aren't on a paid plan with your email software. What missionary doesn't love free, amiright?
Creating and sending an email newsletter is much faster than producing a paper one. You can easily update and send to a large list within minutes.
Email allows you to include links to your website, giving page, videos, and social media. You can also track open rates, clicks, and other engagement metrics.
Email newsletters don't take any physical resources and are therefore more environmentally friendly.
Email newsletters can be sent globally without the delay or cost of international postage, making it easier to maintain contact with a wider audience.
Cons:
Email newsletters can easily get lost in crowded inboxes, leading to lower open rates and engagement.
Some recipients may have issues with spam filters, email delivery, or may not check their email regularly, especially if they are not tech-savvy.
Email can sometimes feel less personal than receiving a physical newsletter. Your partners may miss seeing your real signature and holding paper in their hands.
You can do a lot with an email software, but if you have a particular creative vision, paper will probably still have more design flexibility.
What you do is really up to you!
Use paper newsletters if you want to create a personal, tangible connection with your partners, particularly if they are older or prefer more traditional communication. You'll need to budget and schedule a little more for it, but paper newsletters are a great way to nearly guarantee your newsletters will be read and appreciated.
Use email newsletters if you need a cost-effective, quick, and wide-reaching way to communicate. They’re ideal for engaging a tech-savvy audience and for using interactive content, but you'll probably see the tradeoff in your open rates.
I've done several things over the years! When I started, I would design a letter in Word, then email a pdf to my list in gmail (this is kind of a clunky solution, do not recommend!). Then I moved to a paper newsletter for all my financial partners, coupled with an email newsletter for hundreds more (this is when I was running my blog). To save time and money, I transitioned to a bimonthly schedule, and then eventually moved to a monthly email only for everyone. If you can pull it off, the hybrid approach is great (it's really my favorite), but it does require some extra effort!
MailerLite for email
I switched from a bigger email platform 🐵 to MailerLite and I love it. They're newer, smaller (but quickly growing), and more supportive, user-friendly, and competitive. They offer a lot for free, but my referral link will credit you $20 in case you ever upgrade.
Mailing Supply List
If you're a faithful newsletter snail-mailer, you'll need a lot of supplies, from envelopes to address labels. Here's my list of all the things I've found to be super helpful and the best value.