​Neighborhood newsletters (2019) Block Club Chicago

As the newsletters and reporting intern at Block Club Chicago, I curate and build twice-weekly neighborhood newsletters that are sent out to our paid subscribers in collaboration with reporters. Block Club Chicago is a nonprofit news organization that covers hyperlocal news in the Chicago neighborhoods. Reporters live in the neighborhoods they cover and are often the only members of the press covering important community matters. These newsletters take that coverage and deliver it straight our readers' inboxes.

Each newsletter consists of a reporter-written introduction, the top stories — both Block Club stories and non-Block Club stories — for those neighborhoods that day and an events/meetings list. I coordinate with reporters to organize the stories they've written since their last newsletter, identify the strongest one and find a way to write an introduction about it. We found that some of the best intros came from reporters giving readers a behind-the-scenes look at a story. These intros allow reporters to create more of a connection with readers, and subscribers are encouraged to simply hit "reply" to start a conversation with their neighborhood reporter. I also often find non-Block Club stories for the newsletter and curate the list of events in order for these newsletters to be a one-stop-shop for the neighborhood. Click each screenshot to see the full newsletter.
Weekly newsletter relaunch (March 2020) Switchyard Brewing

I redesigned and relaunched our two weekly newsletters: our general Switchyard newsletter and our weekly Mug Club member newsletter.

I did so to further align them with the marketing and branding of the business. The new format is clean, simple and easy to read/engage with.

The newsletter includes tailored introductions with inside looks into the brewery, beer releases and highlights in the taproom. It can also include community featurettes, recipes — food or homebrew — and anything else that might spike reader interest. The main purpose of these newsletters is to engage with subscribers.
Looking for newsletter feedback (July 18, 2019) Block Club Chicago

When a reporter was out of town, I took advantage of the empty space her introduction would normally fill. We had been sending out her newsletter twice a week for more than a month at that point, and I wanted to see what people thought of it so far. I wrote this intro to hear from readers about their thoughts on the newsletters, and then took the time to respond to those who emailed us their suggestions.

One of the things we heard frequently was that people loved the events and meetings section. That section often takes the most time to build for each newsletter, but it seems to be a huge draw for our readers, so we know it is worth the time and energy.

Click the screenshot for the full newsletter.
Engagement initiative: Ask IDS (Spring 2019) Indiana Daily Student​

As the managing editor of digital last semester, I helped oversee the start of an engagement team and new initiatives with the social media team. Ask IDS is an initiative where readers can send in questions they wanted our staff to report. Our first Ask IDS story had over three thousand page views — many from search — in less than a week after posting, and we’ve continued to receive more submissions from readers.
Engagement initiative: The Hub (Spring 2019) Indiana Daily Student​

Another initiative from my time as managing editor of digital was this Facebook group for fans of the Little 500, the iconic bike race in Bloomington. This group is a place for readers to engage with our race reporters, ask questions on race day and go for updates and stories throughout the season. We launched the group the weekend of a qualifying race and saw more than 100 people join within 48 hours. A former MED and social team had launched one Facebook group before this, which is where the rules came from. The header image was created by a digital editor and designer on staff.