Email Communications Report

Folk Project Email Communications

Ad hoc Committee Report

Robin Schaffer, Lori Falco, John Lamb, Mark Schaffer, Mike Agranoff

September 6, 2011

Background

The Ad hoc committee was formed at the request of President Roffman to review the current state of Folk Project Email policy and make recommendations.

Objective

Establish an email communications policy and practices that promote the Folk Project and increase engagement of members and other participants, while abiding by participant preferences and privacy/spam regulations.

Current State

The Folk Project’s formal internal policy on email usage is as follows:

The FP email list can be used by FP directors for FP business only, any director can use the list using his or her common sense to decide if a mailing is for FP purposes, and all such email should contain information about how recipients can be removed from the email list should they wish.

The current practices for email are as follows:

· The FP has multiple email lists, covering the various venues and processes:

o Membership

o ENewsletter list (subset of membership list)

o Minstrel

o Swingin’ Term

o Special Concerts

o Festival

o Volunteers

· These lists have been created in a variety of ways:

o Sign ups at the venues

o Via request from the FP website

o Past participation in events, such as festival

o The Membership process

o Volunteer sign ups.

· While emails are collected in Member registration, the only way these are regularly used is to send the Enewsletter (if selected) or for renewal messages. The list has been used occasionally for emergency and special mailings, based on the current policy.

· Until recently, each committee managed their own list and sent email independently.

· Starting in 2010, The Folk Project began using the Constant Contact email management platform. It was first used for Festival, and now is being used to send Swingin’ Tern, Special Concert, and Membership emails.

o Minstrel communication is currently managed separately, but we will be testing the Constant Contact process with Michael and are fairly confident we will be able to support his needs and consolidate.

· Constant Contact provides the following capabilities:

o Manages information by user, with preferences defined (which type of information they want to receive)

o Provides Templates to provide a consistent look and feel for the FP

o Manages the changing of preferences, including the “opt out” option.

o Provides reports to better manage our communications programs.

Concerns with Current State

· Quality and timing of the messages is not managed today, resulting in lack of cross-pollination of information and uncoordinated timing of messages

· The FP website has various places to sign up for email, and no single place to manage one’s communication preferences.

· Sign ups are managed at each venue, only for that venue.

· We have no published privacy and spam policy. This is a standard practice on all websites that collect emails.

· The policy itself is not clear and comprehensive:

o Does not specify what is mean by the “FP email list”. It is assumed that this means the Membership list, however all email addresses collected on the behalf of the FP should be considered The FP Email List.

o Should indicate that designees (such as Lori and John) can distribute email on behalf of the Board and Committees. .

o The statement about usage is not specific enough and doesn’t take into consideration our ability to target mailings by interest.

o It probably should include a provision that use of email for non- Folk Project purposes must go to the board for approval.

Recommendations

1) Change the internal Policy as follows:

The FP email list is defined as all email addresses collected for the purposes of communicating about the Folk Project. The interest and preferences of each individual is maintained in order to send the information they are interested in. The list is to be used by FP directors and their designees to communicate about FP business, according to the type of communication requested by the subscriber.

All emails must provide a simple way for recipients to change their preferences., The Folk Project will abide by standard privacy policy and Email addresses and all other personal data will not be shared with 3^rd parties. Any use of email addresses outside of these guidelines needs to be presented to and approved by the board

2) Create and publish a simple external policy regarding privacy, non-use of data by 3^rd parties, spam.

The Folk Project values your privacy and security.

· We will not sell, trade or give away the names, email addresses, or contact information of our subscribers or anyone else with whom we correspond, without their permission.

· We will do our best to make all our correspondence reflect the permission and consent you have given us.

· At your request, and at any time, we will remove you from our lists

If you have any comments or questions for us regarding this policy, please feel free to Contact Us. You can also use this form to bring any concerns you might have to our attention.

3) Establish Constant Contact as the platform for all Folk Project communications.

· Manage all lists within the Constant Contact database (exceptions – Membership will be managed separately and imported to Constant Contact. Volunteer lists will be maintained separately at this time)

· Manage by identity. Each person is identified once in the database, with their preferences defined.

· Use Templates within CC to ensure brand and visual quality is maintained. Establish templates for each committee/function.

· Structure the templates to automatically include feed of other Folk Project coming events as secondary information

4) Improve processes to maintain all of our email lists.

· Establish a single location on the website to sign up, with selections for the type of information the subscriber is interested in

· Upon addition of a new contact from any venue or source, send a common welcome letter, introducing the FP, acknowledging what they signed up for, and directing them to the Constant Contact profile where they can indicate other interests.

· Send a one-time message to all existing contacts and invite them to update their preferences. Provide a link where they can select the type of email communications they wish to receive. .

· Every outgoing email will include an “Opt out/update preferences” allowing the recipient to change their options. (Add or subtract interest areas)

· Membership enrollment will enable multiple emails for each household, along with an automated way to elect e-newsletter.

· At this point Volunteer emails will not be included in this process.

5) Establish email standards -- consistent, interesting, and supportive of the Folk Project brand and overall mission

· Template with visual and content standards (banner, pictures, etc.) to increase effectiveness and reinforce the FP.

· Main message block for primary topic, with secondary message block to promote other FP activities.

· Establish standard distribution schedules to serve as a general guideline and help gauge quantity, frequency, timing and better sync messaging.

6) Continue the Ad Hoc committee to develop and execute the new email communications practices.

· Develop and implement the new internal guidelines and external policy

· Develop standard template and communication standards

· Support Board and committee members with effective communication and use of Constant Contact.

· Manage Communication platform (Constant Contact) and the integration with the web processes.

· Review social media practices such as Facebook and Twitter.

7) At such point as the Ad Hoc Committee is no longer needed, establish a permanent position to manage Constant Contact and support the Board and Committee members in its use.