If you’re looking to enhance the sense of community, consider starting an HOA newsletter. Sending out a monthly or quarterly newsletter will help to spark member involvement in the community and keep all members informed of important news. Keeping members in the loop with any community issues and what’s being done to resolve them will help to reduce the number of calls and emails to HOA board members, making management easier.
Here are several tips to follow to create an effective newsletter for your HOA community:
- Know your readership.
If the majority of the residents in your community are internet users, emailing a digital newsletter will save you money and may be more likely to be read by recipients. A printed newsletter will resonate better with an older demographic that is not as reliant on technology. If you go the hardcopy route, prevent your newsletter from being categorized as “junk” by placing it in an official HOA envelope.
- Keep your newsletter short and to the point.
Most residents are too busy to read more than a couple of pages and may be put off by a lengthy newsletter. Provide updates from each board member and share upcoming HOA community events. Keep in mind that 90 percent of your newsletter should provide information to cooperative residents and 10 percent should be supply rules and potential sanctions for residents that create problems in the community. Your HOA newsletter should be a positive force for the community.
- Give credit to board members and volunteers.
Be sure to give praise to board members and volunteers that work hard to serve the community in your newsletter. Sharing these names will give credibility to your newsletter, encourage community involvement, and make residents aware of key points of contact for the HOA. Never include names of residents that violate HOA rules in your newsletter.
- Include graphics and photos.
Incorporating visual content into your newsletter will make it more appealing to residents and bring human interest into play. Use charts or diagrams to help readers digest more complex content. Include images from the latest social events to help foster a sense of community. Be sure to include captions with your visuals.
In summary, if you want your HOA newsletter to be a success, it needs to be more than just a page of text in a conventional business letter format. Use the tips outlined above to create an appealing and informative newsletter that your residents will actually want to read.
Our team at Vesta Property Services offers more than 25 years of experience in managing residential communities in Florida. Contact us to learn more about how we can help you with superior amenities programming and lifestyle curation to create a desirable community to live in.
