Hollyhock Leadership Institute is able to update their website and publish content for their email newsletter in one fell swoop -- and get statistics that helps them improve the reach and impact of their writing. Here's how.

The Challenge

Hollyhock Leadership Institute runs a busy schedule of training workshops for the BC environmental movement.  They needed a website that lets them publish their fast-evolving workshop schedule.  They also needed to regularly blast out emails that include the schedule and useful articles.   Hollyhock Leadership has a staff of three, and zero computer nerds, so they needed tools that were fast and easy to use.  They also needed systems that would let them evaluate and improve their online communications over time.

The Solution

ONE/Northwest delivered a simple website powered by Plone, the powerful and friendly open-source content management system we like to use.  We connected the website to an email newsletter system powered by WhatCounts, our preferred provider of email newsletter tools.

The combination of Plone and WhatCounts allows Hollyhock Leadership staff to publish information about their workshops on their website.  Then, their email newsletter automatically fetches their event listings from the website.  Hollyhock Leadership can also write newsletter articles on their website, and have them automatically brought into the email newsletter.

The WhatCounts email newsletter system provides detailed statistics on email newsletter open and click-through rates, which allows Hollyhock Leadership to tweak their content and give readers more of what they're most interested in.

The Results

In the first year after launching their site in January 2005, Hollyhock Leadership signed up over 1000 new email newsletter subscribers, nearly doubling the size of their list!  Hollyhock Leadership Operations Manager Natalie Fitz-Earle reports, "The content of our newsletter has been commented on over and over again.  We put a lot more time into the content because we spend a lot less time on the logistics."

"We have been able to increase the quality of our content because we are tracking our statistics and then adjusting our content," says Fitz-Earle.  "We looked at which articles had the highest click-through rates and we tried to create more of the same style of article."

Fitz-Earle also reports, "We also found that certain types of content in the 'Director's Welcome' column have been really well received.  That particular column has developed a larger readership that seems to really engage with the bi-monthly column.  We now have an ongoing dialogue between our Executive Director, Karen Mahon, and newsletter readers. "

"We've managed to find a formula for both the style of our articles and for our content, now that we know what really works for our readers," concludes Fitz-Earle.

More Information

Check out the Hollyhock Leadership Institute
website -- and subscribe to their email newsletter "Change Makers" at:
http://www.hollyhockleadership.org

Or find out more about...

ONE/Northwest website services

ONE/Northwest email newsletter services