How to Design a Beautiful Missionary Newsletter in 5 Steps

Rachel McDonald • Jul 21, 2016

In a previous post, we shared our 10 step process to writing a memorable missionary newsletter. Now, your polished copy deserves a design that’s just as clean and appealing.

Thankfully, with email services like Mailchimp or Constant Contact, sending a beautiful missionary newsletter is easier than ever. With those resources in hand, here are my favorite tips for creating a delightful email newsletter.

How can they read it, if they can’t read it?

As a graphic designer, the biggest problem I’ve noticed with poorly designed email newsletters is that they’re just too much work to read. You might have the most captivating, well-written stories in the world, but if they are illegible to your readers, they will give up and move on to something else.

To illustrate, here is an example of a hypothetical missionary family’s newsletter:

missionary newsletter bad design

The Smiths wanted a newsletter that is more interesting than just words on a page, and they’ve done a few things to make it stand out. Unfortunately, it doesn’t stand out in a good way!

Let’s see how we can apply a few design best practices to make it better:


missionary newsletter good design


1. Stick to a one-column layout.

The first thing we will eliminate is the sidebar, making the Smith’s email newsletter one column instead of two. A rising percentage of readers use a smartphone or tablet, and a one-column layout is best for viewing on these devices. For more on this, check out “ Is Your Newsletter Mobile Ready?

2. Choose your font carefully.

Next, let’s look at font style. The folks at Mailchimp follow the mantra one eyeball, one thumb and arm’s-length” when designing emails . This is because readers on mobile should be able to read it easily with one eye, use one thumb to scroll and tap and do so at arm’s length.

To achieve this measure of legibility, you should choose a font that is simple and easy to read. Bloomberg suggests using Georgia or Verdana, as they both are easy to read on screen. They also come pre-installed on every type of computer, so there’s no risk of your reader’s machine changing the font to something else.

To keep your newsletter design looking clean, choose no more than two or three fonts — one for your main body copy and another for headlines. If you must use a “flashy” font, limit it to headlines.

In my redesigned example, I used the font Proxima Nova at various weights for the title and headings in the email. This sans-serif font (or, without feet) is a nice contrast to Georgia, but is still very easy to read.

3. Pay attention to font size and spacing.

Your newsletter shouldn’t have any text smaller than 16px. For reference, Mailchimp recommends 16px minimum, while Apple recommends 17-22px, and Google recommends 18-22px. I used Georgia at size 16px for the body of the Smith’s redesigned email.

Pay attention to your line spacing, too. Your type might be large enough, but if the lines are too close together, it will still be difficult to read. I used a line spacing of 24px for the Smith’s updated newsletter.

4. Color them impressed, not distressed.

The wrong color combinations can render a good missionary newsletter illegible. In the Smith’s first example, the dark background with the light text makes reading a challenge. Save your reader’s eyes and use light backgrounds with dark text instead.

You should also avoid using many bright colors together (never use neons!) or putting text over a busy background. Read more tips about using color in this i nfographic .

5. Use scaled and aligned photos.

Choosing engaging photos is a crucial way to generate visual interest in your newsletter. To create a powerful header image with a text overlay, you can use a site like Canva. For more info, you can check out this quick tutorial . And if you’re not feeling creative, Canva even has some pre-designed templates that you can choose from.

Once you have your images, pay attention to their size and layout. In the Smith’s first missionary newsletter, the photos are not aligned correctly or scaled proportionally (they are squished or stretched). In the redesigned letter , the header and footer images extend to the full width of the email, and the image included in the newsletter body aligns with the width of the surrounding text.

The important thing to remember is when you resize an image, make sure the “scale proportionally” option is checked . Many email newsletter services allow you to resize photos as you upload them, or you can use a free photo editing site like Picmonkey . You can also use Photoshop or download a free program like GIMP .

If you want more information about resizing and cropping, check out this tutorial from Picmonkey.

Go forth and create!

Not everyone is a professional designer, but with a little thought and effort, you can design a missionary newsletter that will draw people in to read about what God is doing in your life and on the field.




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By Suzanne Pearson 19 Mar, 2024
Previously on the TEAM blog, we sat down with Justin Burkholder (pictured above at left, with TEAM's Executive Director of Communications, Aaron Catlin). Justin will become TEAM’s next International Director on July 1, 2024. Justin shared about his background, family, and the journey that led him to TEAM. Check out that interview here . Today, we pick up the conversation as Justin shares how God called him to the role of International Director, and what he sees for the next chapter in TEAM’s work in the global Church. Q: How and when did you first consider applying for the position of International Director? How did the Lord reveal Himself to you as this opportunity presented itself? A: For some time, I have been evaluating how God wants me to use the gifts He has given me. Jenny and I have had a fruitful ministry in church planting in Guatemala and would happily continue doing so as God leads. However, as God blessed my efforts in TEAM leadership, there were friends and family who expressed that I should consider using my gifts in the International Director role. I don’t believe that everything necessarily rises and falls on leadership, but I do believe that it is a core component in the body of Christ. Using the gifts God has given me is a way that I want to bless the body of Christ in TEAM, making my contribution to the global purposes of God’s mission. Jenny and I spent a lot of time praying about this and decided that I should put my name in for consideration, trusting God’s guidance. We had a tremendous amount of peace throughout the entire process and were blessed by the prayer-filled process that the board undertook. Q: This is a key role in a large and complex organization, and I’m sure this was a big decision for you and your family. What were your fears or concerns? Why did you ultimately decide to accept the position? A: You say “were” like the fears have passed! I still am quite aware of my youth and inexperience - of the responsibility and weight of this role. Mostly, I’m afraid of leading an organization like TEAM in the flesh. Many of the fears that I have faced have been fears rooted in fleshly desires and concerns. I have no desire to succeed in the world’s eyes and fail in the Kingdom of Jesus. Why did I ultimately decide to accept the position? I’m convinced that the Good News about Jesus is true. The tomb is empty, Jesus is King, and the world needs to know, because Jesus is coming back. He will put things in order. He will establish righteousness, peace, and justice for all mankind, and He has commissioned His Church to proclaim and demonstrate His rule and reign. I want to use my gifts to do whatever I can to amplify the proclamation of this message and the multiplication of His Church around the world. Q: What are your goals and vision for the future of TEAM? A: This is something that I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about. I’m certainly not ready to present a fully-shaped vision and goals for TEAM’s future without the input of other people in different contexts in TEAM. But, I will share a few things that I think are important: First, we need to model God-Dependence . I am hopeful that as leaders in TEAM, we can continue to model God-Dependence. As Hudson Taylor said years ago “…God’s work, done in God’s way, will never lack God’s supplies.” I am hopeful that we can increase our sense of faith in God, prayer, and seeking direction from the Spirit. Secondly, we must strengthen our relational fabric . Due to the changes that we have experienced by decentralizing our home office functions, and the challenges from the pandemic, we have experienced a loss of relationships. It is imperative that we intentionally prioritize the building of relationships with one another. I plan to visit our workers and staff, and I am expectant that other key leaders and staff will be doing the same. Third, we must pursue the greater presence of the global Church. The Kingdom of Jesus Christ doesn’t look like any single geopolitical, ethnic, or racial culture. If we want to truly see the Kingdom of Jesus come on earth as it is in heaven, then we as citizens of this Kingdom must learn from one another, submit to one another, and grow with one another. The missional potential of the global Church has been unleashed by God’s Spirit since Acts 1, and we have an opportunity to learn from many brothers and sisters in Christ who can help us to better model and proclaim the Kingdom of Jesus to those who have yet to believe. Lastly, we must increase our Gospel boldness . There are still many places of great spiritual blindness and spiritual brokenness around the world. The apostolic impulse of cross-cultural organizations should call us to the to the edges of where the Kingdom of Jesus is not penetrating. Whether spiritual blindness and brokenness exists because of lack of access, idolatry, injustice, or any other myriad of reasons, I prayerfully hope to see more and more TEAM workers continue to move into spaces of great Gospel need.
By Suzanne Pearson 08 Mar, 2024
Through God-ordained partnerships and creative connections, TEAM worker Keith Moore sees the global Church advancing in amazing ways. In the global missions landscape, a phrase that comes up often is “from everywhere, to everywhere.” God is calling His global Church in literal new directions, as He raises up cross-cultural workers to be sent from places that were once on the receiving end of missions work. We call this movement “polycentric sending.” TEAM workers Dawn and Keith Moore have seen first-hand this transition taking place. Their story involves the unlikely but beautiful intersection of Charlotte, North Carolina; Tegucigalpa, Honduras; and Memphis, Tennessee...and beyond. The Path to Honduras Keith and Dawn joined TEAM in 1991 and served as church planters for nine years in Bogota, Colombia. After safety concerns precipitated their return to the States in 1999, they knew they wanted to continue serving in Latin America. The Moores felt called to Honduras but wanted to connect with a strong missional church to help send them. The Lord orchestrated a collaboration with Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee. “Some people asked, ‘Why Honduras? Missionaries have been there for 100 years. It’s already reached,’” Keith says. “But there’s a whole section of Latin America that had not been reached - the upper crust.” Keith goes on to explain that he and Dawn felt called to reach college-educated professionals in Honduras – a ministry vision that resonated with the missional goals of Bellevue Baptist. Impact and Growth With the support of this new church partnership as well as another sending church in Birmingham, Alabama, the Moores embarked on their next adventure. Keith and Dawn started Impacto Honduras Church from scratch, and in less than 20 years, the church grew into four locations with 1600 total members. The Moores and other TEAM workers also created a “Bible school” type training program to help professionals who feel a call to ministry to make that transition. Throughout this period of explosive growth, church partnerships played an integral role. “It’s such a different vision when you have a church that says, ‘OK, this is our deal, we want to make this happen,’” Keith explains. “They helped us with everything. They took away every single obstacle to growth. Every time we needed something, they were there.” In 2017, the Moores once again found themselves on the verge of another decision. Was it time to leave Honduras? “I had no desire to leave,” Keith recalls. “People were coming to Christ every week! It was just so amazing.” However, back in the U.S., Keith and Dawn’s parents were in their 80s and would soon be in need of more care. “We realized that either we would leave in a crisis, or we would leave strategically,” says Keith. The couple began to implement a careful succession plan. By the time they left, the four churches were established with strong, Honduran leadership ready to carry on the work of the Gospel.
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