Resources → The Newsletter • 6 min read

🏘️ Knowing your neighbors

You are what you eat and also where you live. Your community wouldn't be the same without you, and you wouldn't be the same without it. If you've always wanted to get more involved and show more appreciation for where you call home, starting a local newsletter may be for you. This week's newsletter is about basing your publishing business around your neighborhood, connecting with your community, and sharing local events with your readers. Let's go!

In this week's issue 📨

Starting a local newsletter
Getting involved with your community
Spotlighting local events

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Hi, neighbor

Keeping things small and local doesn't mean you can't fulfill your big dreams. There's lots of life in your community, and starting a newsletter that spotlights your friends, neighbors, and town is a fulfilling way to connect to the world around you while making a living. If you've always wanted to start a local newsletter but never knew how, we've got you covered.

Let's break down how you can create a local newsletter so you can serve your community as a local publisher.

Start small

Local interest in your newsletter starts local. Don't worry about numbers yet, just start sharing your newsletter on social media and get in touch with your friends and family who will be happy to subscribe. You can easily get your first 100 subscribers this way.
Early growth comes from people you already know, and maybe some people they already know. Word-of-mouth marketing, starting with those who already love you, is an organic way to get your message out. Personally reaching out to people will give your local newsletter that personal touch it needs to succeed.

Get out there

You need to be embedded in your community for your local newsletter to flourish. If you don't know what's going on in your neighborhood, you won't have much to write about. Start getting to know your neighbors, town politics, and what keeps your area thriving so you can create content from it.
If you need help, don't be shy about hiring an editor who's already plugged into your locale. This can improve your newsletter's voice and help you stay consistent with your publishing schedule. Your readers expect quality and consistency if you want them to stay subscribed.

Bryan Collins used Ghost to build his local newsletter.

Excelerate

Once you have a solid content foundation with a few hundred subscribers, you can start growing your follower count by leveraging different marketing strategies, like expanding your social media presence and using paid ads. You never want to rely on one channel. Use them all!
Also consider partnerships with local businesses, SEO-driven content, and even tactics like flyers or QR codes at hosted events. Unlike newsletters that are more global, growth for local newsletters is slower, but your followers tend to be a lot more loyal and long-lasting.

Sustainability

While building your local newsletter, keep in mind that you don't need a huge audience to succeed. As long as your members are engaged, you can easily sustain your business using paid memberships with platforms like Ghost. As long as you make relevant content, your publication will stay relevant.
To be sustainable, you have to be engaged with both the local happenings and your dedicated subscribers. You're all part of the same community, and as long as this comes through in your publication's message, your members will always open your emails, even if they move two towns over.

Interesting stories & ideas 📚

Paying attention to AI – Jodie Cook
Getting creative work done – Oliver Burkeman
How to help AI write like you – Every Media
Creators should host events – Creator Spotlight
Developing your creator identity – Michael Nielson

Join hands

If you want to start a newsletter about your community, you have to be part of it. Readers who love the town they're in will be able to tell if you're truly one of them, or if you're only saying the right things to get subscribers. If you want people to care about your local newsletter, you have to care about them first. It's time to get involved so you can make a genuine impact with your content.

Carolyne Cole, a writer for the Jackson Association of Neighborhoods, offers surefire ways to get involved in your community.

#1 Volunteer at local organizations like food banks, shelters, and animal rescues. This helps those in need and gives you a bright opportunity to meet people who share your values.

#2 Join a community cleanup for parks, streets, and public spaces to help maintain the beauty of your town. You can start networking with other volunteers to find the next community event to participate in and keep the ball rolling.

#3 Attend local government meetings to familiarize yourself with what your neighbors are passionate about. This is a great place to nab some quality content for your newsletter to help spread the political word.

#4 Donate to causes you care about if you don't have time to volunteer. You can then advertise these causes, like neighborhood funds, arts endowments, and disaster relief, in your local newsletter.

#5 Host community events like charity runs, block parties, or local concerts. This is a nice way to get the word out about your publication, let your neighbors meet you, and connect with each other.

#6 Serve on local boards to get firsthand experience on how your community is run. You'll also have a direct impact on decisions about schools, parks, and libraries. This can shape your newsletter in incredible ways.

Step right up

If you want to make your local newsletter more specific, focusing on local events will help you attract a broader audience. Who doesn't want to know all the fun happenings in their neighborhood? You could be the publication people read to know the 411, the hot gossip, and the cool jams. If you're looking for a straightforward newsletter angle, local events are your ticket.

Claire Zulkey, managing editor at Inbox Collective, explains why a local events newsletter has huge potential.

‣ A local events newsletter can be as wide or as specific as you'd like it to be. Want to help parents find fun things to do with their kids? Advertise low-cost events for young people? What about the arts, like concerts or theater? Highlight what speaks to you and what's fruitful in your community.

‣ A newsletter's value isn't always obvious to the reader, but for local events, the importance is plain and simple. You're making sure your subscribers never miss out on what's going on around them. This helps both you and them get better connected to the community by making participation easy.

‣ This type of newsletter has promotion built right into its content, so connecting your publication to what's happening around town is automatic. When readers think of events, they'll think of you and vice versa. Be sure to explain who the newsletter is for, when they'll get it, and why it's so valuable.

A **streamlined** example of an events newsletter from City Cast Salt Lake.

‣ Monetization of a local newsletter is a no-brainer using ads, event sponsors, and paid memberships. You can also include giveaways for the events you're highlighting or hand out discounts on tickets to your paid subscribers. Start networking with local event coordinators to see what's possible.

‣ Be sure to send your local events newsletter consistently and plan your sends around the local event dates. The last thing you want to do is showcase an event that's about to start or already over. Make your readers feel VIP by ensuring that they know what's what before anyone else.

‣ Last but not least, keep your design simple and clean. Think about how you want to organize the information you're putting out there. Should it be based on the day of the week, the specific neighborhood, event type, or season? The choices are yours, but monitor what your readers are loving and gather feedback often.