3. University Overview
Founded in 1908 as NJ State Normal School at Montclair
Today: MSU’s 250 acre campus spans into the towns of Montclair, Little Falls & Clifton
Over 19k students (15k undergrad & 4k undergrad)
5k students are residential (26% of students)
54 Undergraduate Majors & 134 graduate programs
6 Schools (Arts, Education & Human Services, Humanities & Social Science, Science & Mathematics,
Business & the Graduate School)
4. Presented Issue
Email Communication at MSU
Email is primary form of communication
Some use of social media (Facebook & Twitter)
Email distribution decentralized
No systematic collection of effectiveness
5. Presented Issue
Email Communication at MSU
Large quantity of daily & weekly emails
Targeted email messages being sent campus wide
Inconsistent formatting of emails (no branding)
Messaging is seemingly inconsistent & uncoordinated
6. Best Practices
Sussex County Community College
Communication
Centralization
Limited Access
to Campus-wide
Emailing
Use of Branding
Template as
Shell for Emails
Brevity & Clarity
Sent Emails
Weekly, Instead
of Daily
Brief &
Straightforward
7. Best Practices
California State University - Fresno
Technology & Social
Media
Email Read &
Click-through
Tracking
Campus
Phone
Application
for Students
STRONG
Facebook &
Twitter
Presence
Email Controls
Limitations
on Campus-
wide Emails
Brief &
Deliberate
Subject
Lines/Content
8. Campus-wide Survey
Emailed to all graduate & undergraduate students
Links posted on Facebook and Twitter
1,621 students responded (about 9%)
98% of respondents linked through email
Participants were entered into a drawing for $100 for participation
11. Survey - Results
69%
44%
25%
19% 17% 15%
8%
3.4
3.2
3.4
3.5
3.3 3.3 3.3
3.0
3.1
3.2
3.3
3.4
3.5
3.6
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Areas for Email Improvement
Selected Area for Improvement Group Average Satisfaction (1-5)
12. Focus Group
Quantity
“Too many emails”
“50-60 emails per day”
“Takes too long to read them all”
“Should not bombard with everything”
Coordination
“Communication between departments
seems poor”
“Multiple people sending same email”
“Emails should not be last minute”
“Should send out weekly newsletter”
13. Focus Group
Brevity
“Should be to the point, don’t elaborate”
“Keep it simple”
“Too Long”
Branding
“Branding is important”
“Should come from the department not
individuals”
“Should have department banners”
“Proofreading”
14. Focus Group
Technology
“I access my email through my
smartphone”
“Should be able to personalize which
emails we get”
“Forwarded emails can get sent to spam
folder”
“Existing phone apps not advertised”
“Want a centralized MSU phone app”
“Could have campus-wide information”
“Website needs improvements”
“Text messages should be used
sparingly”
15. Recommendations
Email Transmission
• Limitation of Content
• Subject
• Body
• Filtering/Targeting
• Redevelop
• Opt-in Functionality
• Coordination
• Advance Notice
• Chunking Similar Emails
• Masking Personal Email
Addresses (Department)
• Professionalism
• Proofreading
• Content Verification
Website Functionality
• Relocation of Event Calendars
• “Weekly Loop” Newsletter
• Links to More Detailed Event
Descriptions
• Remove Non-functioning Website
Links
• Market Existing Phone
Applications
16. Recommendations
Centralized Phone Application
• Allow for customizable
notification platform
• Events
• Emails
• Important Information
• Integrated University & Events
Calendar
• Should Interface with Mobile
Calendars
• Should Integrate Existing Red
Hawk Dinning Application
• Menus & Notifications
• Blackboard/Canvas & WESS
Integration
Branding
• Singular Department Based
Labeling Structure
• Inclusion of University Logo &
Branding on All Emails
• Similar Appearance for All
Official Emails
• Color/Shading
• Font
• Layout/Design
17. Recommendations
Communications Hub
• Adopted by Many Schools
• Creation of an Identifiable Brand for MSU
• Campus Banner
• Campus Colors
• Campus Font
• Campus Seal
• Identifying & Maintaining Communication Protocols
• Length of Emails
• Formatting
• Coordination of Newsletters
• Works in Conjunction with Other MSU Offices
• Web Services
• Strategic Marketing
• Public Relations
• Student Relations
• Communications
