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Email Newsletters

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Matt Smith, MBA

FOUNDER

Faith Bublitz

PROJECT MANAGER

Liam Kowalczyk

DIGITAL MARKETER

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Problems / Challenges for Directors of Communication

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Communication Tools

Magazine /

Print Newspaper

Social Media

Websites

Email

Newsletters

Parish

Comms

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Email Newsletters

😃	😐	🙁
Reach a lot of people Promote Diocesan Initiatives Get demographic data on your readers. Drives traffic to your website	Lotta work. Worth it? 🤷‍♂️ Tension with other diocesan leaders who don’t understand deadlines. Internal Miscommunication	So much work, stressful lead-up to deadlines� People give you bad graphics, fliers, and half-complete information to promote their event. � Open Rates? CTRs? 📉� Send too much? People unsubscribe. � Done? Now start again. 🔁

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Send too much? People unsubscribe. 🙁�

Done? Now start again. 🔁 🙁

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Huge impact in a little time.

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Huge impact in a little time.

	Minimal Impact	Huge Impact
	😐	😄
	☠️	😮‍💨

Little Time

Lotta Time

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Huge impact in a little time.

1️⃣ - Using AI to make your newsletters about the reader, not the diocese.

2️⃣ - Tools of the Trade

3️⃣ - Segmenting, 4 Buckets

4️⃣ - Next Level Analytics

5️⃣ - Q & A

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Using 🤖 AI to Upgrade Newsletter Messaging

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Took 3-4 minutes to speak into ChatGPT:

Context:

“This is a diocesan newsletter sent to parishioners across multiple parishes (40–60+) in our region…�
“Content includes diocesan news, local events, school updates, bishop initiatives, and Vatican coverage…�
“Goal: Encourage engagement beyond the parish, drive traffic to diocesan articles, and deepen connection to the wider Catholic community.��

Current Challenge:�

Articles are written from an institutional or reporting angle (focused on what is happening.)
Language often includes jargon or assumes insider knowledge (e.g. "interreligious dialogue").�
The writing doesn’t always speak directly to the reader’s daily life or interests.

Target Audience:�

Everyday Catholic parishioners — e.g. a 35-45 year old parent, a 65-year-old retiree.
They may not be familiar with theological or Vatican-specific language.
They want relevance, inspiration, and practical insight — not just information.

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Took 3-4 minutes to speak into ChatGPT:

Rewrite Goals:

Make headlines and excerpts reader-first, not just event-focused.
Emphasize why the story matters to the average Catholic.
Use clear, friendly language — avoid jargon and abstract phrasing.
Ask engaging, positive questions that prompt curiosity or reflection.
Highlight personal relevance: parenting, faith life, community, hope, tradition, service.
When applicable, show how the story can be a teachable moment for families or teens.

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BEFORE

AFTER

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BEFORE

AFTER

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Tools of the Trade 🪛

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Platforms & Tools

	Mailchimp	Flocknote	Constant Contact	Virtuous
Automations 🪛	Automations / Journeys	Automated Notes	Automation Series	Workflows / Auto Journeys
Tagging / Labels 🪛	Tags, Segments	Groups	Tags, lists	Tags, filters, smart lists
A/B Testing 🪛	A/B Testing

✍️ Note:

“All in one” tools vs. dedicated email tools

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🪛 Automations, Journeys

What it is:�Emails that auto-send based on certain activity.

Where it Gets Fun 😎
Welcome Emails	Personalized touch, important to greet new contacts. Why not from the bishop himself?
Milestones	Birthdays, Anniversaries - “At this morning’s Mass, Bishop John prayed for all those born this month…
Activity-based reminders	Sending targeted emails to those who haven’t opened, clicked
Retargeting	Sending a follow-up email to people who opened / clicked but didn’t sign up.

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🪛 Tags, Labels, Segments, Groups

What it is:�Tags are quick ways to organize contacts. Where they came from, groups they’re in, events, etc.

Where it Gets Fun 😎
Email Activity Tags	Contacts who opened an email about Catholic Education
Event Tags	Contacts from last year’s event
Vocation, Family Tags	Catholic School Parents, Families with Kids under 12, interested in Vocations
Regional Tags	Contacts near “big city”

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🪛 A/B Testing

What it is:�Testing certain parts of an email against each other.

Where it Gets Fun 😎
Print vs. Email / Digital	Does your messaging from printed campaign still work in digital?
Image Testing	Does a certain graphic perform better than another? What about its position in the email?

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What can we A/B test?

🤔 Subject Lines (Use of emojis vs. no emojis)

🖼️ Hero Images

🔀 Structure / Order of things

📲 Call-to-Action

📝 Messaging / Tone

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Segmenting: 4 Buckets 🪣

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Goal 1: Segment these people into interests

Everyone in Your Diocese

Segment for Catholic Education

Segment for Fundraisers

Segment for Seminarians / �Priest Stories

Segment for Events

👨🏾👩🏻👨👩🏾👩🏿👨🏽👩🏼👨🏻👨🏿👩👨🏼👩🏽

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👨🏾👩🏻👨👩🏾👩🏿👨🏽👩🏼👨🏻👨🏿👩👨🏼👩🏽

👩🏽👨🏻👩🏻👨🏿👩🏼👩🏾👨👨🏽👩👨🏼👨🏾👩🏿

👨🏿👩🏻👨🏽👩🏾👨👩👩🏼👨🏼👩🏿👨🏻👩🏽👨🏾

👨👩🏼👨🏿👩👩🏽👨🏻👨🏿👩🏼👩🏾👨👨🏽👩👨🏼👨🏾👩🏿👨🏿👩🏻👨🏽👩🏾👨👩👩🏼👨🏼👩🏿👨🏻👩🏽👨🏾👨👩🏼👨🏿👩👩🏽👨🏻

👩👨🏻👩🏻👨🏽👩🏼👨🏼👨👩🏾👨🏻👩🏿👨🏽👩👨🏿👩🏻👨🏾👩🏼👩🏽👨👩🏽👨🏼👨🏾👩🏻👨🏿👩🏼👩🏾👨🏽👩🏿👨👨🏻👩

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Segment for Seminarians / �Priest Stories

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More Buckets

Family Life / Parenting

Young Adult Ministry

Helping Others / Service

Daily Prayers and Reflections

Receiving Sacraments

Ways to Donate

Messages from the Bishop

Events

Pilgrimages and Travel

Mental Health

Job Openings

Faith in the Workplace

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Discussion

What would your buckets be?

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Email Newsletter Schedule

Big Emails to Large Audience Every Tuesday		“Bucket Emails” on Thursday
Week 1	Big Email Tuesday	“Vocations Bucket” on Thursday
Week 2	Big Email Tuesday	“Fundraising / Donors” on Thursday
Week 3	Big Email Tuesday	“Events” Bucket on Thursday
Week 4	Big Email Tuesday	“Catholic Education” on Thursday

*Bucket Emails take less than 30 minutes, have extremely high open rates and click-thru rates.

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Open Rates for Bucket Emails 😲

Typical emails range from 15 - 25% open rates, 2-5% CTR

“Bucket Emails” we sent for our clients
Live Speaking Event - 65% Open Rate, 8% CTR
Watch Video Series - 60% Open Rate, 10% CTR
Fundraising Campaign - 80% Open Rate, 45% CTR

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Bucket Emails

👉 Better Conversion - Higher Open Rates, Higher CTR

👉 Require Less of Your Time to Create

👉 Can send multiple emails (e.g. leading up to an event)

👉 Low unsubscribe rates

👉 Aligns with organizational goals.

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Next Level Analytics 📈

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Email Analytics

How do you use them? How can they help decision-making?

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Next Level Analytics

Metrics, What They Might Mean
Open Rate	Low Open Rate: Poor subject line, preview text
Click Through Rate	Does your email have a clear call-to-action?
Unsubscribes	Is your email relevant to your audience? Are you sending too many, low-value emails?
Click Maps	Do readers make it far enough into your email? Could you move content around?

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Analytics: Quick Ways to Level Up 🚀

Scenario	Ideas to Address
Open Rate ⬇️	Use eye-catching emojis to stand out Speak on your reader’s terms, not yours Previewed your subject line in multiple places (mobile)
Click Through Rate ⬇️	Does your email have a call to action? Does it have too many? How good & clear are your graphics? Text formatting, design, emojis Text links: surprisingly powerful
Unsubscribes ⬆️	Are you sending emails to the right audience?

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Q & A 🙋‍♂️

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Let’s talk more—we’re here to help.

calendly.com/SmithHouse

Exhibit Booth #15

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