Newsletter

Jubenville, J.*¹,
¹ Extension Floriculture & Greenhouse Educator, Michigan State University Extension, Kalamazoo, MI, 49007

Consistent communication is one of the best ways to maintain stakeholder engagement. Efficient communication methods are also a necessity with a multi-county coverage area and statewide responsibilities. "Southwest Michigan Greenhouse News and Notes" is a digital newsletter distributed to a list of greenhouse growers, allied industry representatives, and protected agriculture enthusiasts. I use Mailchimp to send out email campaigns every 7-10 days during spring production season (December through June) and every 2-3 weeks during the slower times of year. Each newsletter contains news and announcements, insect and disease reports, upcoming events, and links to information resources.

 

I sent a total of 36 email newsletters in 2019 (Mailchimp) to recipients in 18 Michigan counties. I started the year with 166 recipients and ended the year with 170 for a net gain of 4 new recipients. A grand total of 6090 email newsletters were successfully delivered over the course of the year with 2309 unique opens -- an increase of 18.3% over the previous year. The open rates ranged from 32% to 50% with an overall average open rate of 37.9%. There were 5526 total opens, which suggests that recipients came back to the emails for reference at a later date.

 

The attached files are two examples of my newsletter converted to pdf format. Archived newsletters, designed for viewing on traditional computers and mobile devices, are available online. The May 21, 2019 newsletter can be found here: link to May 21 newsletter  and the February 7, 2020 edition can be found here: link to Feb 7 newsletter.