1. Lodge newsletters

2. How are you involved?
Who here is responsible for producing a lodge newsletter?
Who here today wants to join a lodge newsletter team?
Who here today has a lodge newsletter, but it needs a major redesign and new energy?
Let’s talk about what experience you have today with lodge newsletters. [Ask the following questions and ask session participants to raise their hands]
Who here is responsible for producing a lodge newsletter?
Who here today wants to join a lodge newsletter team?
Who here today has a lodge newsletter, but it needs a major redesign and new energy?
Lodge Newsletters

3. Session objectives To learn the purpose of lodge newsletters.
To learn about all aspects of lodge newsletters including layout, design, content, building a team and distribution.
To learn about developing a year-round lodge newsletter communication plan.
When you leave here today from this session on lodge newsletters, I want you to be able to understand why we have membership newsletters, how to build a newsletter team, and developing a yearlong content plan. After today’s session, you should be prepared to return home to your lodge ready to assist and work on your lodge newsletters.
Lodge Newsletters

4. Why lodge newsletters?
To share information with the lodge membership including the
Lodge calendar
Leadership messages,
Lodge updates
To serve as a way to record lodge history
To allow youth interested in communications to learn relevant skills
Journey to Excellence requirement #9 for lodges.
Here in the Order of the Arrow, we have newsletters at the different levels of the organization including lodges, sections, regions, and the national level. Together each of these newsletters share relevant information with the membership providing content on events, programs, and leadership messages, but why do we do it? Teams across the nation spend a lot of time ensuring that the correct news is reported to the correct audience.
[Ask the following question.] Why do lodges use lodge newsletters?
TRAINER TIP: For this part of the session, be prepared to write down responses on a flip chart. Highlight any answers that the session participants did not respond with. Sample answers may include: to share information with the lodge membership including the lodge calendar, leadership messages, and lodge updates, to serve as a way to record lodge
Lodge Newsletters

5. From the beginning Developing a team
The layout and key parts to a newsletter
Developing a yearlong plan
Newsletter distribution
The next part of this training session is going to focus on print newsletters. We are going to look at developing a team, the layout and key parts to a newsletter, developing a year-long content plan and newsletter distribution.
Before we jump in to these topics, it is important to note that your lodge newsletters need to be a part of your overall lodge communication plans. Newsletter need to tie into your website, social media and other communication tools that your lodge uses to communicates to your membership.
Lodge Newsletters

6. Your team members Editor-in-Chief Content Editors Layout Editor
Staff writers
Staff photographers
Advisers
Lodge officers / Lodge Executive Committee
Contributing writers
Your team is going to be one the most crucial parts to a quality and effective lodge newsletter. What are some key members you will want to have on your team? [Solicit answers from session participants. Sample answers may include lodge officers/advisers, editor-in-chief, content editors, layout editors, staff writers, photographers, advisers.] Let’s talk about your key youth who are going to be on the lodge newsletter team.
Lodge Newsletters

7. Editor-in-chief
The edition-in-chief is the lead youth and oversees the lodge newsletter team. He is appointed by the lodge chief and provides direction for the team including recruiting youth editors, developing a storyboard, reviewing content, and making decisions regarding the newsletter.
Lodge Newsletters

8. Content editors
Content editors help lead a section of the newsletter team. This can be compared to a news editor or a sports editor for the local newspaper. Content editors will oversee the content that is assigned to them by the editor-in-chief. The editors work with staff writers and photographers.
The newsletter team can determine the number of content editors. Examples include events and programs editor, people and recognitions editor, chapter news editor photography editor.
Lodge Newsletters

9. Copy editor
The copy editor works with the Editor-in-Chief to proof each article prior to publishing. The copy editor also ensures that the style guide is followed.
What is a style guide?: A style guide is a tool for newsletter teams to ensure that names, punctuation and capitalization is consistent throughout a publication. An example would be Arrowmen and Scout.
Lodge Newsletters

10. Layout editor
The layout editor is responsible for the actual layout of the publication. He works with the editor-in-chief in publishing the newsletter.
Lodge Newsletters

11. Staff writers
Staff writers work with their editors in covering assignments for articles in the lodge newsletter. This could include writing about a lodge event, interviewing a lodge officer, or covering a lodge program. Staff writers also either work with a photographer or get a photo to go with their story.
Lodge Newsletters

12. Staff photographers
Staff photographers work with the editors and staff writers to ensure photographs are taken at lodge events to go along with articles in the lodge newsletter.
Lodge Newsletters

13. Advisers
Advisers work with the youth team helping where needed and supporting the team. Advisers play an important role in helping to approve/edit content. The adviser is appointed by the lodge key 3.
Lodge Newsletters

14. Lodge officers / LEC MEmbers
Lodge officers and member of the LEC also can serve on the team helping to provide content and support where needed.
Lodge Newsletters

15. Contributing writer
Contributing writers help support the newsletter team by writing articles when needed. The writer may have a special expertise in a topic or is covering a special topic on behalf of the newsletter.
Lodge Newsletters

16. Layout and key parts Key parts of the newsletter layout:
Articles
Leadership message
Calendar
Officer contact information
Social media/website links
Awards/recognitions
Council news
Lodge program updates
Chapter news
Event reviews
Adviser’s minute
Burning issues
Section/regional/national news
Arrowman highlight
Service project information.
Next, we are going to look at what makes up a lodge newsletter. Here we are concerned with what type of content you are going to put on each page of the newsletter. Part of this discussion will tie into the storyboard and year-long planning that we will talk about later in this session.
What are some key parts to your lodge newsletters?
TRAINER TIP: For this part of the session, be prepared to write down responses on a flip chart. Highlight any answers that the session participants did not respond with. Sample answers may include: articles, leadership message, calendar, officer contact information, social media/website links, awards/recognitions, council news, lodge program updates, chapter news, event reviews, adviser’s minute, burning issues, section/regional/national news, Arrowman highlight, and service project information.
When working on the design of the newsletter, you want to be able to grab the reader’s attention. You want your newsletter to look professional and for each part to be consistent with the layout. This means that you are looking for consistent fonts, photo boxes, body text, the same column widths, and article alignment. This will only help your layout editor with making the layout easier to complete, but it will also look better.
Lodge Newsletters

17. Newsletter layout
Masthead
Headline
Byline and text
Lodge Newsletters

18. Newsletter layout
Staff box
Quote
Photo with caption
Lodge Newsletters

19. Storyboard and yearlong plans
Helps a newsletter team establish newsletter priorities
Organize content
Assign article responsibilities
Allows editors to set deadlines for content.
What to include:
Article topic
Which content editor is responsible
Staff writer who is responsible
Deadline
Purpose of the content
So far in our discussion regarding lodge newsletters, we have looked at the purpose, the team, and the layout and key parts. This leads us into the storyboard for the newsletter.
Who wants to describe and explain the purpose of a storyboard? [Solicit responses.]
A storyboard helps a newsletter team establish newsletter priorities, organize content, assign article responsibilities, and allows editors to set deadlines for content. If you were serving as an editor-in-chief, the storyboard would allow you to delegate certain responsibilities to your content editors to help oversee getting completed content. It will also help track your articles with your staff writers.
A well run storyboard will include article topic, which content editor is responsible, the staff writer who is responsible, deadline, and the purpose of the content. I include the purpose because with newsletters, you have limited space. If you cannot find a reason to publish an article or photo in your newsletter, you may consider finding content in its place.
Lodge Newsletters

20. Tie into the yearlong plan
The storyboard you develop for each edition also needs to tie into your lodge’s yearlong plan and goals.
Your lodge is going to have events throughout the year, meetings, programs, summer camp opportunities and annual dues payments.
The best way to do this is to take the storyboard and the lodge calendar and go event by event to determine what and when you will communicate to the lodge membership in each edition.
The storyboard you develop for each edition also needs to tie into your lodge’s yearlong plan and goals. Your lodge is going to have events throughout the year, meetings, programs, summer camp opportunities and annual dues payments. As the lodge newsletter team, you need to develop a plan of when you will share each relevant message based on the lodge’s annual calendar. The best way to do this is to take the storyboard and the lodge calendar and go event by event to determine what and when you will communicate to the lodge membership in each edition.
Lodge Newsletters

21. Story ideas Where can you get story ideas? Lodge leadership
Order of the Arrow websites
Scouting websites
Social media
Council website
Council staff
Lodge executive committee members
Lodge officers
If your team is looking for some new story ideas for the next edition, where do you think you should look? [Solicit responses.]
TRAINER TIP: For this part of the session, be prepared to write down responses on a flip chart. Highlight any answers that the session participants did not respond with. Sample answers may include: lodge leadership, Order of the Arrow and Scouting websites, social media, council website, council staff, lodge executive committee members, lodge officers.
Reach out to your lodge leadership and lodge executive committee members to get ideas for content. You can also ask for your LEC members to help contribute content too that falls under their area of responsibility.
Lodge Newsletters

22. Special inserts
Another way to distribute information to your lodge members:
This can include:
Special flyers
Registration forms
Annual dues membership forms
Another important part of your newsletter can be special inserts. You can include a special flyer to draw attention to an upcoming OA/Scouting event or could include the registration form for the next lodge event.
Lodge Newsletters

23. The storyboard: timeline
Example based on 4 quarter editions per year:
Day 1: Organizing conference call
Day 28: Articles due to content editors
Day 35: Articles due to copy editor/editor in chief for review
Day 50: Articles/photos sent to layout editor
Day 75: Layout complete and sent for final approval
Day 89: Edition approved and prepared for distribution
Day 90: Printed and distributed to lodge members
Within the storyboard, build in your publication deadlines too. This includes when articles are due, proofed by, the layout process is complete, the final approval, printing and distribution.
TRAINER TIP: Share a sample timeline with the training session participants. The timeline will depend on each lodge’s newsletter team and can be adjusted to meet the lodge’s needs.
Day 1: Organizing conference call
Day 28: Articles due to content editors
Day 35: Articles due to copy editor/editor in chief for review
Day 50: Articles/photos sent to layout editor
Day 75: Layout complete and sent for final approval
Day 89: Edition approved and prepared for distribution
Day 90: Printed and distributed to lodge members
If you are the editor-in-chief, one special tip is to get your entire team together on a conference call to review the storyboard for each edition before staff writers begin writing articles. This will help the team fully understand the upcoming edition and to submit any ideas for content.
At this point, you have a storyboard and articles are assigned. Soon, staff writers will begin sending in content before the deadline hits. Your team will want to begin reviewing the submitted content and proofing the articles for spelling and grammar. Depending on the size of the team, this may be done by a copy editor, the content editor or the editor-in-chief.
When the editors are ready, send all of the content and photos to the layout editor so that he may complete his job. Once he is done, the layout editor should share the draft layout with the rest of the team and advisers for feedback. This should also include another review of the content. When ready, share the layout with the lodge chief, lodge adviser, and lodge staff adviser for final approval, printing and distribution.
Lodge Newsletters

24. distribution
Mailing hard copies through the United States Postal Service
Posting to the lodge website
ing the link to the lodge membership
Post a link to Facebook when ready
Send a tweet for each article in your newsletter edition over a 7 day period:
Include the title of the article and the link to your online edition
Share copies with your council staff and volunteers
Lodges may choose different ways to distribute the lodge newsletter. These can include:
Mailing hard copies through the United States Postal Service.
Posting to the lodge website.
ing the link to the lodge membership.
Lodges should also use social media to distribute the lodge newsletter. In a Facebook post, highlight the main articles in the edition and include a download link. For Twitter, use multiple tweets and send a tweet about each main article in the edition over a period of time. Also include the download link.
Also, distribute copies to your council staff and leave a few copies for the public to review while waiting at the council office. This is a great way for people to learn about the OA who are not members of the lodge. Lodges may also decide to distribute copies to Scoutmasters or to summer camp leaders.
Lodge Newsletters