We've recently had an influx of new customers, which has resulted in a new round of feedback about TroopTrack. One of the common complaints was that the newsletter didn't work well on phones and was unattractive.
So I redesigned the newsletter template. I didn't make any changes to the content yet - I just ported it to a template that looks much better on a mobile phone. I'd like to take some time to collect feedback on how to make the newsletter content better next - in an upcoming product update I'll include a survey to collect feedback about the newsletter.
Hello and Happy Monday!
Just stopping by to say a massive THANK YOU for the effort to redesign the newsletter.
Looks amazing. Huge improvement, especially on mobile.
Really appreciate how active and responsive you and the team have been!
Hi Dave,
Am I doing something wrong? My newsletter has disappeared. I still see the checkbox/frequency options at the top of that web page, but the newsletter preview itself is gone.
@JenniferGeisick To preview the newsletter, click the “Send me a Preview Email” in the button group. We are sending the previews via email now so you can see how they look in various devices.
The new formatting - and inclusion of event details - is great.
Custom Message
I like that the custom message is at the top. I had found it odd that in the old format, my message was in the middle of the page and off to the right - as if in another column. (even though I had Single column checked.)
Content Order
The one big difference is the order in which things appear. The Money Accounts were at the top of our newsletters in the past. Now they are at the bottom. Could there be an option to order content?
I will look for the survey. We have a few other requests (for example, a check box to include all future events - not just the next 30 days…that way we can do a “Send Now” once a year after our Annual Planning meeting - once the calendar has all major events. Then turn back to 30 days out for our auto-monthly newsletter…)
Most events are placed in their own box in the Newsletter. We have one exception, where two events are in the same box - and they are not even occurring on the same day.
The first one listed in the box does not have the link to get additional information. The second one does
If you want to look at it, we are BSA Troop 46 in Twin Bayou District in Sam Houston Area Council.
The events are on 5/28/23 (Houston National Cemetery…) and on 5/30/23 (Troop 46 Weekly Meeting)
Hi @dave , Is there a way to exclude certain events from the newsletter? for example, we have “Roundtable” events on the calendar to remind our adult leaders attending these district meetings, but they really are of no interest to most Scouts and families. The newsletter will pull them in regardless, making it less relevant to readers. Maybe an event type like “for info only”, so it doesn’t get pulled into the newsletter? thanks.
Alex
Hi @dave , thanks for your follow-up. I tested unchecking the “Include events the recipients are not invited to”. I found that for an event to appear on my personal newsletter, I not only needed to be invited, but also RSVPd.
I frankly would find the newsletter more useful if it include events I was invited (regardless of my RSVP status). After all, if I’ve confirmed, the newsletter reminder is not as relevant to me. Below is a snapshot of the newsletter preview.
We probably need to remove less useful events (district or council events) to reduce clutter, and just leave the “include events not invited to” on.
Hi @AlexMcKenzie I think I will change the list to show the status in the invitee list in parenthesis, like this: Alex McKenzie (Going), Andres McKenzie (Hasn’t Responded) and then include everything you/your family members are invited to.
Hi @dave , that would be fantastic! and would really make the newsletter more useful. I appreciate your openess to feedback, and willingness to make sensible adjustments. When do you think these changes will be implemented? Thanks,
Alex
Hello @dave , I was hoping we could start using the newsletter with the improvements discussed above when we start our school year in early August, but they don’t seem to be implemented yet. Do you have a timelime for implementation? Thanks.
