Revamped Case Daily to launch February 12
After requesting reader feedback, Case Western Reserve University is unveiling a new version of its daily e-mail newsletter to internal audiences. The office of University Marketing and Communications will launch a sharp and swift version of Case Daily February 12.
Nearly 600 members of the university community responded to a survey of Case Daily readers conducted by University Marketing and Communications. Of those responding, nearly 50 percent were students—undergraduate, graduate and professional. About 44 percent were staff and more than 10 percent were faculty. Respondents were asked to designate all university affiliations, which created some overlap in the total.
In addition to questions about content, readers were asked about time spent reading the daily. More than two-thirds (67 percent) of respondents said the current Case Daily is "just the right length," while 29 percent said it was too long. Forty-four percent said they skim the entire publication.
New format speeds up read, offers more art
More than half of all respondents said most sections of Case Daily—special university announcements, security advisories, campus news, and sections for faculty and staff and for students—always or usually contain useful information. Two-thirds (76 percent) said student information is important and should continue to be included in Case Daily.
In terms of readability, about two-thirds, or 63 percent, said they prefer html-enhanced e-mail rather than plain text.
In response, Case Daily is becoming a two-column newsletter with photos, enhanced graphics, a news sidebar, plus access to a more robust calendar section. This format allows readers to more quickly scan university news and information. In addition, individual entries will be streamlined to accommodate a quicker read.
Media summaries to be shorter, off to the side
More than half of respondents to the reader survey also ranked the "Case In The News" and "Higher Ed News" sections as always or usually useful. On the other hand, several people who shared additional information—responding to open-ended questions—suggested the oftentimes long lists of media stories make the newsletter too time-consuming.
Because of this feedback, both news sections will be included in a sidebar of media summaries that link to full articles. Periodically, the section still will include links to online articles that require a paid subscription, but when possible, Case Daily can make full text of these articles available to interested readers upon request.
Access to events augmented
The majority of those who completed the Case Daily reader survey—78 percent—said the Events section always or usually contains useful information. As a result, Case Daily will have a visual, monthly calendar that will appear in every issue of the newsletter.
The Event section will highlight select activities with university-wide appeal and link to the Web event calendar where readers will find a more comprehensive list of campus and community events.
By using and referencing the Web event calendar—on which members of the university community enter their own event information immediately— Case Daily readers do not have to wait for the information to appear in the newsletter. With the online calendar, events can "run" as often and as long as the submitter designates, and events posted on the Web event calendar will be considered for use on the university's main homepage for heightened visibility.
Top story to spotlight, showcase
Based on feedback from the survey, two kinds of information previously included in Case Daily will be "replaced" with a new section. Sixty-one percent of respondents said they rarely or never found useful information in the personnel section, and 50 percent said the accolades section rarely or never contained useful information.
The new top story spotlight section gives space for articles that elevate the university's profile or advance the university's mission and offers the opportunity to feature profiles on faculty, staff, students and alumni—in addition to special announcements.
Other features, as suggested by the reader survey, to appear in the top story spotlight section may include when appropriate:
- Energy conservation information
- Human resources programs
- Kelvin Smith Library workshops and classes
- University job opportunities
- Varsity athletics
Extras to be included
Time-sensitive special announcements and audience-specific communications will continue to be provided through separate, single-message editions of the newsletter referred to as the Case Daily Extra. The Case Daily Extra will feature some of the new visual enhancements as well.
As appropriate, security alerts and obituaries will continue to be included in Case Daily.
Case Daily guidelines for submissions and FAQs are available online at http://blog.case.edu/casedaily/faqs.html. E-mail specific questions to case-daily@case.edu.