How to Judge a Newsletter Competition
The best newsletters have appealing layout and design and easy-to-read content. Content is most important, but your audience won't read anything if the layout and design are wanting. For the newsletter competition, begin with a thorough review of established criteria. Develop a scoresheet that adds or deducts points accordingly, perhaps 20 percent for the basic criteria, 40 percent for design and layout and 40 percent for content.
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Instructions
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Cutting Losers and Ranking Winners
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Discard entries not in conformance with the criteria, such as: a nameplate with the logo, title, date and origin of the newsletter; no headlines or page numbers, or those that otherwise do not conform.
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Focus on design and layout for the next cut, looking for good design elements, including nameplate, headlines, department areas and graphics. These all work together to give a good newsletter a unified appearance, according to Linda Benedict and Jan Colbert of the University of Missouri Extension Service and the School of Journalism. Add or subtract points accordingly. Also make sure the newsletter publisher is clearly listed on the nameplate or front page along with address and date. Look critically at the content's type size and style. Both should be consistent from page to page, easy to read, not over-decorated and framed with adequate margins on each page and between columns. Consider the headlines and judge whether they are well-written and bold. Check whether the newsletter includes "department" areas such as table of contents, calendar of events, or a boxed area such as contributors list or organization officers.
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Assess the newsletters, adding or subtracting points for graphic design. Award points for art and photos that add interest and draw you to the text. Deduct points for random graphics that don't communicate a message or enhance content. Add points for good use of appropriate photos---and make sure each has an explanatory caption that names everyone identifiable and includes a photo credit. Pay close attention to the use of clip art---it's often overused in newsletters. Consequently, it leaves an amateurish overall impression and adds no interest for the reader. Deduct points anytime clip art is used for filler.
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Deduct points anytime the basic rules of newsletter layout are violated. These include nameplate clutter (unnecessary words, logos and seals) and typographic effects such as stretched or distorted type, according to Roger Parker of graphic-design.com. Watch out for overuse of graphic accents (decorative borders and backgrounds) and the overuse of uppercase text or underlining.
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Sort finalists by the most important criterion---content. Return to the newsletters discarded earlier. If any included terrific content, but scored poorly on design, put them back into the running. Rank the finalists for content appropriate for the target audience, and whether it is current and newsworthy and offers something for everyone.
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Tips & Warnings
Include at least one professional among your judges, if possible. An experienced journalist or graphic designer can easily sort the winners from the losers. Consider adding a "bonus points" possibility of about 10 percent of the score for newsletters including some facet the others did not, such as an excellent photo page or uniquely superior graphics.
Don't let prize-winning design sway you if the content is just fluff. Why, then, judge design first? If the design is amateurish and unprofessional, the content will seem unreliable or unimportant.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit Reward image by Ruslan Khabirov from Fotolia.com
