When you work in internal communications and you’ve got news to share, it’s undoubtedly fun to think about all the people in your organization that are reading your words and the way you put everything together into a neat little package. But what if, as employees do in so many cases, they just skip right over it as another extraneous email in their inbox? Whether or not you want to admit it, you’ve undoubtedly run into newsletters that are boring, staid looking or just simply not worth your valuable time upon looking into their contents. Luckily, there are strategies that can help boost engagement on your internal newsletters and most importantly, get your people the information they need.

Find out what matters to your employees.

Internal newsletters are for your organization’s employees, so it should come as no big surprise that the content found within them should focus on their interests. Put simply, it’s our job as communicators to give them the vital information that will both help them perform their jobs better and make them feel like they’re part of a larger culture at work. Think about what matters to them within their role. Are there continuing education courses or seminars available that would help them become better at their jobs? Think about including links to them. Do they want to feel more connected to the company as a whole? Highlight social events the team has and work to show that there’s a positive culture they can aspire to be a bigger part of.

It’s not a tough formula — if you’re just blasting out facts and figures that don’t always apply to your team, you’re not likely to garner a whole lot of interest. If you try to personalize things a bit, your chances of success in reaching people will improve greatly.

Show off your people — and their diverse perspectives.

When employees at your company are doing special things, an internal newsletter is a great way to let the rest of the organization know about their accomplishments. One of the best ways to help build a great cultural foundation is to showcase the things they’re capable of achieving at your organization. When there are promotions earned and awards received, consider posting about them. They’ll show that the organization really cares about the advancement of career goals. Additionally, consider posting about people’s personal milestones, such as weddings or birth announcements. They’ll show the human side of the organization and create a forum for others in the company to respond with well wishes.

In addition, it’s important to consider your company’s diversity communication efforts when putting together the internal newsletter. Work to highlight potential DE&I initiatives such as Women’s History Month events or any company engagements there might be for Pride Month, for instance. Modern organizations are a rich tapestry of perspectives, and the newsletter should be a reflection of those perspectives.

Open the door to feedback and highlight resources.

One of the best ways to keep the flow of ideas going for your internal newsletter is unbelievably simple — just ask! Your newsletter should function as a resource in which employees are able to ask questions and have their concerns addressed in an ideal world. Consider adding either wording at the end of a section that directs to a response form for your readers, or just having a “suggestion box” sort of section within the newsletter itself. This way, you’re able to hear directly about what concerns your readers have and the material they want to see.

Additionally, a great newsletter will point employees to wellness resources they can use to help better themselves both inside and outside the office. Here at Ragan we’ve written extensively about the mental health impacts of the pandemic and its effects on people’s work situations have had over the past several years. Remember to include content like any access the company provides to mental health resources or other wellness programs the organization touts for its employees, as these easily slip from the minds of busy people.

While there’s no one right way to construct the perfect internal newsletter, there are certainly some guidelines that can be followed that increase the chances you’ll have of successfully reaching your target audience. When you do, you’re not only providing them with the information they need but making their workplace actively better.

Sean Devlin is an editor at Ragan Communications. In his spare time he enjoys Philly sports, a good pint and ’90s trivia night.

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George Hanley is an entrepreneur and business development specialist, who enjoys helping business owners overcome everyday obstacles. He creates valuable blog posts about his two key passions – business and travel – and always aims to inspire his readers.

Setting up a business comes with a wide range of challenges that could affect the company’s profitability and overall success. Whilst it’s not always easy, surmounting these obstacles early gives you the freedom to develop the business in whichever way you desire. 

Problems with communication can be particularly prominent when starting a business, and being able to identify these issues allows you to address them quickly. By streamlining communication and making it as seamless as possible, you can help your business become much more efficient in the process, and improve your customer satisfaction ratings. Let’s look at four of the most significant communication issues that can easily impact new businesses.

1. Communication silos

A key issue with communication for any company is segmentation – where important information stays in one department. Business leaders may be unfamiliar with communication hierarchies and deciding which pieces of information are relevant for every individual, leading to people working with incomplete data. Alternatively, a manager or executive might only talk to the people they work most closely with. 

It’s vital that you work to stop your company from succumbing to a ‘silo mentality’, as collaboration and communication is essential for success. To resolve this, you might enforce regular meetings that give the team an opportunity to discuss their work.

2. Unnecessary meetings

Though meetings can be a great way to combat a lack of communication across the company and inform team members about any relevant updates, frequent meetings with little to discuss might be a waste of time. These meetings take team members away from other duties and may affect their productivity. 

If you do decide a meeting is essential, it’s important to make the purpose clear to everyone involved. Create an agenda for every meeting with relevant discussion points which help to illuminate the importance of these topics. The agenda could also show opportunities for you to streamline these meetings to take up less employee time.

3. An inefficient communication network

The path that messages travel to reach your team and staff members can have a significant impact on the efficiency and success of your company’s communications. Without a centralized hub for communicating with employees, small or new businesses usually rely on conventional channels such as text messages and emails to conduct business. This is often a workable setup for many businesses but can be difficult to keep track of – as just one missed email can result in a serious miscommunication. 

Instead, create a policy around workplace communications, and empower your manager to enforce it, while ensuring that their team has the software and technology they need.

4. Micromanaging employees

If this is your first time running a business, you may be unsure about how to balance the right amount of guidance and freedom for employees. While you will want to regularly check in with them, it’s possible to communicate with staff too much by frequently calling to ask for progress updates and scheduling impromptu meetings during their tasks. 

A first-time business owner may struggle to let employees work independently, which might cause interpersonal conflict and productivity problems. Emailing them instead can give your employees time to focus on their duties and respond at their convenience; when it comes to communication, less is sometimes more. Make sure that you don’t micromanage your employees – trust is essential for the success of any business.

Being able to connect well with your employees improves your mutual rapport, resulting in greater levels of productivity across the business and allowing you to get their honest opinion on how the firm can improve. On top of this, working to ensure your customers are satisfied and receive excellent support from your team could lead to more sales. 

It’s common for new companies and new business owners to struggle with communication; understanding these issues and working to address them helps your firm enjoy even greater success from the outset.

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