- Load content into MailChimp template and proof (Login in the INN 1password vault)
- Send test email from MailChimp to [email protected] and any apprentices not on the [email protected] list.
- Make sure at least two other team members read through the test email for style, grammar, link checks and gut checks about any questionable content choices.
- Check each link and confirm it works
- Run images and GIFs through an optimizer
- Proof subject line(s) with extra care
- Check for any exclusionary language ("guys" "dudes" "ninjas" etc.) or potentially offensive content
- Do a final call for newsletter sign ups on social media
- Create blog post and publish. This is the link to share.
- Tweet the nerds.inn.org link from the @INNnerds Twitter account. Don't just stick to the subject line. Emoji, images and/or the newsletter GIF will generally make your tweet more effective
- Notify the rest of the team to share the link (or retweet the @INNnerds link) with their followers.
- Consider scheduling some more tweets (using Tweetdeck or Buffer):
- If there was a guest, make sure to thank them. This can either come from your personal account (for the personal touch) or from @INNNerds. @tag the guest if they're on Twitter themselves.
- Schedule ICYMI tweet for Sunday evening catchup time (4-5 PM PT / 7-8 PM ET)
- If we made a thing, tweet that thing! Give 15-45 minute padding from other scheduled tweets. If it was a Largo thing, you'll likely want tweet from @LargoProject and then retweet that tweet from @INNNerds.
- On writing... less is more.
- On MailChimp... be careful when copying and pasting from the newsletter draft to the MailChimp WYSIWYG editor. Check mode or edit raw code. You don't want to wipe out existing styles.
- On GIFs... Keep the gif between 400-500 wide, shorter than 3.33 seconds. Resize and optimize it.