Comms
How to Send Newsletters Your Members Actually Read
A practical guide to writing and sending member newsletters for Australian community groups — structure, frequency, subject lines, and what to include.
How to Send Newsletters Your Members Actually Read
A good member newsletter keeps your group connected between events. A bad one trains people to hit delete. The difference usually comes down to structure, subject lines, and frequency — not production quality.
Here is a straightforward framework for newsletters that members actually open and read.
---
How often to send
Monthly is the right default for most community groups. It is frequent enough to stay top of mind but not so frequent that members start filtering you out.
If your group is less active, quarterly works fine. If you have a busy stretch — event season, a membership drive, an AGM — you can send more often for that period, then pull back.
Whatever you choose, be consistent. Members who expect your newsletter on the last Monday of each month are more likely to open it than members who have no idea when to expect it.
---
What to put in it
Keep it focused. Five to seven items is plenty. More than that and people skim past the important bits.
A simple structure that works:
- Short intro — one or two sentences, conversational, not corporate.
- Upcoming events — dates, one-line descriptions, link to register if relevant.
- Recent highlights — what happened since the last newsletter. Photos if you have them.
- Member or volunteer spotlight — a short paragraph about someone doing good work. This is the section people forward to friends.
- One important notice — AGM date, fee changes, a call for volunteers. Just one.
- One clear call to action — register for the next event, renew membership, fill in a survey. Pick one.
---
Writing subject lines that get opened
The subject line is the most important part of your newsletter. A bad subject line means a low open rate regardless of how good the content is.
Avoid vague subjects like "June newsletter" or "Update from the committee". These tell the reader nothing.
Better: name what is inside.
- "Annual dinner bookings open + volunteer call"
- "Your August events + a note from the president"
- "3 things happening this month at [your group name]"
Test different approaches. If your open rate is below 30%, the subject line is usually where to start.
---
Keep it short
Members are busy. Most will read your newsletter on their phone between other things. Long newsletters get skimmed or abandoned.
Aim for something a person can read comfortably in two to three minutes. If you have more to say, link to a longer piece on your website rather than putting it all in the email body.
Short paragraphs. One idea per paragraph. No jargon.
---
Send to the right people
Not every message needs to go to everyone. A newsletter that goes to your whole list is fine for general updates. But for specific notices — a call for volunteers, a message to members who have not renewed — segment your list and send only to people it is relevant to.
This reduces noise for members who do not need certain messages, and it improves your open rates because recipients know your emails are worth their time.
If you are looking for practical help with recruiting, the guide on recruiting volunteers covers how to run a volunteer call that gets results.
Swoop's comms tools let you filter by member status, role, or custom tags before you send. See the Swoop comms docs for the detail.
---
A note on unsubscribes
Always include an unsubscribe link. This is a legal requirement under Australian spam law (the Spam Act 2003). It is also good practice — people who unsubscribe were probably not engaging anyway, and a smaller engaged list is more valuable than a large uninterested one.
---
Making it look decent
You do not need a designer. A clean, plain-text or lightly formatted email reads well on any device. If you use a template, keep it simple — one column, your logo at the top, body text, a footer with your contact details and unsubscribe link.
Avoid heavy image use. Some email clients block images by default, and image-heavy emails can trigger spam filters.
---
Quick checklist before you send
Before hitting send, run through this:
- Subject line tells members what is inside?
- Content fits on a mobile screen without too much scrolling?
- All links work and go to the right place?
- Unsubscribe link is present?
- You have sent a test email to yourself first?
That last one matters. Things look different in an actual inbox than they do in the editor.
---
If you would like help setting up a newsletter workflow for your group, book a yarn and we can walk through it together.
Common questions
- How often should a community group send a newsletter?
- Monthly is a solid default. Quarterly works for smaller or less active groups. More frequent than fortnightly usually leads to lower open rates.
- What should a community group newsletter include?
- A mix of: upcoming events, recent highlights, a member spotlight or volunteer story, any important notices, and one clear call to action. Keep it short — five to seven items is plenty.
- What makes a good email subject line for a community newsletter?
- Be specific. 'June update' is weak. 'Bunnings BBQ this Saturday + AGM notice' is much stronger. Tell people what is inside before they open it.
- What is a good open rate for a community newsletter?
- Anything above 30% is solid for a community group list. Above 40% is excellent. Below 20% usually means the subject lines are vague or you are sending too often.
- Do I need a professional email tool to send newsletters?
- Not necessarily. For a list under 50–100, your regular email client might work. For larger lists or anything you want to track, a dedicated email broadcast tool will handle unsubscribes, formatting, and open rates for you.