Here’s how to make editor and publisher letters more useful for your audience 

Are editor and publisher notes to readers still effective?

They have been around for years and really had become a staple of the first few pages of magazines — both in local and national publications — but, are they still working?

The answer could be yes, but it all really depends on the approach.

In today’s newsletter, we’ll go through ways to make letters to readers really effective, whether you’re a magazine, a newspaper or a digital-only publisher.

1. Talking to readers is obviously a good thing

The spirit behind the idea of letters to readers is solid. It’s an opportunity for an editor and/or publisher to connect with the audience in a very direct and personal way.

They serve as an opportunity to learn about the leader of the publication, how the journalism is created, decisions that you had to make and personal stories about you, your staff and even your family.

I consume a lot of magazines, special sections and guides and I can tell you that there are great examples of letters that do all of these great things I noted above, but there are too many that basically regurgitate what is in the edition. It’s almost like reading an index.

2. How to make your letters great

Letters to readers don’t necessarily have to follow the theme of every edition. Creating some surprises for readers on what you might tackle is a good idea. Here are a few ways you can do that:

• Share the story behind the story: Let readers in on how a cover story or major feature came together. Explain why it was important to write or what surprised you or the writer in the reporting process. This helps readers feel like insiders.

• Be honest about tough calls: Talk about a difficult editorial decision you had to make. Maybe there was sensitive material you were grappling with or a photo that might be touchy for people. Explain what the issue was and how you came to the decision.

• Make it personal: Draw on a personal story or experience that ties into a theme or article in the issue. For example, if a health story touched you because of a family experience, share that. Readers will appreciate seeing your vulnerability.

• Connect to the community: Use your letter to share what you’re hearing from readers, whether it’s a response to a story or something you’ve observed in your audience’s lives. You can also use this as an opportunity to ask readers to write in and share their own content. I also have found it incredibly useful to use the space to share what your organization is working on (new initiatives, changes) and make sure your most loyal readers are in the loop.

3. This is what worked best for me

When I was a newspaper editor, I always made time for a weekly column to readers. Many of the things noted above made my list but a few very specific approaches really worked:

• How me made the sausage: I often would explain — not just how we made decisions — but our processes. That included our rules for letters to the editor, how we made coverage decisions (how we would decide what would go on the front page and what wouldn’t) and our policies for things like crime stories.

• About my family: Readers loved learning about my family. Sometimes those stories had nothing to do with the newspaper, but rather an event we attended or a funny experience we had together. Readers stopped me often to tell me just how much they appreciated those columns.

• Seeking feedback: If you had an advisory group that you work with or you host a focus group, these make for great letters to readers explaining what was discussed. I often found these as great opportunities to seek even more feedback from readers.

• Video messages: Talking to readers in a narrative format is great, but being able to do things like a 2-minute message to readers on any of those topics above or even hosting a Facebook Live event with readers, can be incredibly effective.

There are lots of ways to make letters to readers work. They just have to really center on what is going to be engaging and interesting to your audience. Try a few different approaches. Your audience will be able to tell you what they like and don’t.

Let us help with your content strategy

We’d love to help you craft a great content strategy that connects with readers in meaningful ways. Email me at david@davidarkinconsulting.com or call/text me today at 832 407 0188.