AARP Reinvents Its Member Newsletters

Recently AARP began making over its member newsletters, which are customized and distributed in each of the fifty states, along with Washington, D.C., the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico. We’ve been editing and producing these newsletters for the past year and a half, and have learned our share of lessons about what works and what falls short.

The goal of the cover story, says Pete Wiley, manager for AARP state member communications, “should be to draw an uninterested member” into a newsletter “in a few seconds.” 

Based on AARP’s revamped model, here are guidelines that will help any organization craft a sharper, more sophisticated publication.

• Focus on hard news, not staff picnics. Readers are eager to learn about the ways in which often complex legislation affects them. The redesigned newsletter presents concise stories with digestible facts on long-term care legislation, tax breaks, and various programs for low- and moderate-income residents. Most important, the stories conclude with calls-to-action, including Web links, e-mail addresses, and phone numbers that members can use to learn more.
• Use quotes, and conduct interviews with third-party experts—not internal staff. If Republican and Democratic legislators have cooperated on a bill to improve long-term care, then readers will want to know what those legislators had to say—not necessarily that the organization’s state advocacy director “applauds bipartisanship.” Readers will be equally receptive to interviews with consumer advocates, television personalities, and heads of nonprofits promoting issues ranging from energy efficiency to innovative ride-share programs that encourage greater mobility.
• Pack the pub with information, not verbosity. If anything’s going to drive newsletter readers to shred their newly arrived four-pager, it’s an article that is speculative and vague, padded with lengthy official-sounding quotations, and that continues on page 3. The new AARP updates are designed to engage, with separate boxes throughout for calendar items, volunteer opportunities, local arts and outdoor events, legislative bills related to the organization’s priorities, and links to useful resources. Columns by AARP’s state officers (350 words, maximum) appear on page 3.
• Headshots beat group shots. The path to finding a decent, usable photograph among volunteers’ submissions is strewn with obstacles—including inadequate resolution, dreary lighting, and dead space. By using a little commissioned artwork and a lot of headshots, AARP achieves visual interest and variety within a nonprofit’s budget. And for small headshots, relatively low-resolution files will often suffice.

The lead story of the fall 2007 newsletter for Pennsylvania highlights an important change to the state’s long-term care system, while sidebar text provides dates to remember and contact information for members interested in volunteering.

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