Guest Post: The Newsletter Business Booms. Are Colleges Watching From The Sidelines?

Today’s Guest Post is by Dave Siroty. You can reach him at dsiroty@frontporchathletics.com.

In recent years, newsletters have emerged as a powerful medium for delivering specialized content directly to readers. They are no longer just simple email updates but have evolved into rich, focused publications that serve niche audiences with depth and personality. This shift marks a significant change in how people consume information.

If you didn’t believe in their power and importance, take a look at the banner of Monday’s prolific Yahoo Sports AM with Kendall Baker newsletter. It wasn’t the coverage of the Knicks ending the 53-year drought, the Hurricanes winning the Stanley Cup or the US Soccer dominance on its World Cup opening day that drew my attention. Instead, it was the Pepsi logo and their subsequent ad. One of the world’s top marketing machines invested it’s time and energy into a newsletter.

While I may be late to the advertising industry’s foray into newsletters, this one really caught my eye! One of the biggest of the big boys is here!

Immediate Measurement

If you look at the newsletter and scroll down, you will see the ad, “Soccer Deserves Pepsi.” And while you’d think it was a simple branding ad, Pepsi went way further! Not only do they want you to buy Pepsi on the spot and give you multiple ways to do it, but no doubt the Pepsi marketing team will learn how Yahoo Sports Newsletter readers engage and if they actually buy Pepsi. And because I’ve opted into Yahoo AM, Pepsi can target me by zip code, age, household income, etc. I’m curious to see what happens next now that I clicked on the ad. (Note: I’m a Coke Zero drinker so I didn’t purchase).

Newsletter

Newsletters Every Morning

Having been in public relations and marketing for decades, I’ve seen the evolution of newsletters. They first sprung up largerly to inform internal audiences about what was happening in a company. They are a great way to foster a corporate culture.

Then, as companies began collecting emails, consumer-focused newsletters came about with articles (now called “content”) used to engage with “raving fans” who opted in.

Publishers, forced to deal with the end-of-print and the challenge of attracting readers, took it to the next step. They began sharing pertinent content with specific audiences hoping to grow on-line circulation. Fast forward to today and newsletters are now mainstream sharing content from around the web as they target niche audiences.

I’m hooked! Each morning, my newsletters come from:

• ADWEEK
• Yahoo Sports
• Sportico
• Entrepreneur Daily
• Morning Brew
• Marketing Brew
• The Rundown AI
• Sport & Story Daily
• Extra Points
• Status
• Poynter
• 1440 Daily Digest

Journalism, marketing and sports. All in a few minutes of skimming.

But Where are the Schools?

My main passion for years is college sports. I went to Syracuse, worked at the BIG EAST, Seton Hall and the Northeast Conference. I’ve visited all but 7 of the power schools (Kansas State, Mississippi State, Missouri, Tennessee, Virginia Tech, Cincinnati and Texas Tech).

Many many schools have my email. BUT…guess how many newsletters I get directly from schools?

ONE! Rutgers.

In this age of content, where schools are desparate to engage and increase audiences as they strive to grow revenue, I find it hard to believe newsletters are not athletic department staples.

Belileve me, I know they aren’t easy to produce. Schools need a team to create the weekly content – written and video – covering teams and hundreds of athletes, let alone the different copy writing and design needed to connect with audiences. Add in the multiple newsletters needed for each sport and the challenge grows.

But, the audience already exists.

Schools already have tens of thousands of emails. They can target market to students and their families, alumni, faculty and staff, the local community and fans using the newsletter as the hook. They can tell the right story to the right audiences as they enhance the culture and create greater connections.

This is a trend I don’t think the schools can afford to miss.