Newsletter Editor, MedShadow
About MedShadow
MedShadow is a nonprofit foundation that focuses on the often overlooked side effects of over-the-counter (OTC) and prescription (Rx) medications. We are dedicated to empowering people and reforming processes to ensure that we are all better protected.
Our mission is to provide accurate, independent, evidence-based service and investigative journalism that people can trust.
We currently reach millions of people via our website, social media, e-newsletter, videos and podcasts. In the interest of reaching as many people as possible, our website content is free to all; we do not have a paywall. We do not receive any financial support from the pharmaceutical or supplement industries.
We also advocate to improve drug safety for all and therefore use our content to stimulate public discussion about changes needed to drug research, manufacturing and distribution.
Job Description
The Newsletter Editor, a newly created position, will oversee and expand our flagship newsletter as well as create and launch an offering of new paid MedShadow-branded newsletters aimed at specific audience interests and needs. The goals are to boost audience engagement, grow our email subscriber list; communicate MedShadow’s unique value, and drive donations. Subscription revenue from these will support MedShadow's infrastructure and advocacy work.
This remote role requires NYC metro area residency for occasional in-person meetings. The editor will report to the Head of Content to optimize the existing newsletter and launch new ones based on audience data.
The winning candidate is a well-regarded health or science journalist who is comfortable working on content that cites clinical trials and drug research and that will be medically reviewed by doctors. Experience covering RX and OTC medication side effects or the business or consumer side of pharmaceuticals is a particular plus. Equally important, the winning candidate will be very familiar with competitive health and medical newsletters.
The role is two pronged: you’ll grow email sign ups and improve the metrics of the existing flagship newsletter, improving open rates and click through rates, optimizing subject lines, employing A/B testing, and experimenting with delivery options, formats, franchises, themes and templates. You’ll suggest upgrades to the newsletter templates on laptop and mobile and seek ways to make all visuals compelling and engaging. You will use the newsletter to help define and refine audience insights.
The second is to launch a suite of high-potential newsletters informed by audience data and opportunity, with a close and analytic eye on existing competitive newsletters. Drawing from deep knowledge of best newsletter practices, you will build a strategic project plan showing targets for number of newsletters, number of subscribers, publication frequency, price variations, and writer fees, ultimately showing the ROI.
You’ll be responsible for recruiting a variety of voices and experts to write these new newsletters, working with a modest budget; these can include doctors, pharmacists, researchers, nutritionists, health journalists, advocates or “real people” with a strong voice and compelling personal experience. You will vet them to ensure that they align with MedShadow’s mission. You will work closely with these writers to generate ideas and formats, manage their deadlines and edit their work.
The role requires someone who has a track record of growing email signups and growing newsletter audiences. You will employ best practices for this, including choosing authors/experts with large followings or email lists of their own, and creating relationships with partner organizations who are willing to cross promote our newsletters.
What You’ll Do:
Newsletter strategy and development:
- Improve the performance and boost metrics for our current flagship newsletter with learnings from ongoing A/B testing, content formats, and visuals, thereby creating effective new iterations that are repeatable.
- Build a strategic newsletter launch project plan with clear goals and ROI tracking, including targets for numbers of newsletters, their frequency, pricing, and volume of paid subscriptions.
- Define the scope and tone of each newsletter, including creating Style Guides.
- Optimize the newsletter experience for mobile.
- Stay current on evolving newsletter best practices, as well as new digital tools.
- Stay current on competitive newsletter offerings.
Newsletter performance tracking and audience insights:
- Analyze newsletter metrics and interpret the results in order to create useful experiments with a variety of approaches.
- Use metrics to create audience segmentation and propose new newsletter offerings targeted to specific interests.
- Create and implement subscriber surveys to embed in the newsletters to achieve deeper audience insights.
- Provide regular updates to the team on newsletter metrics, including open rates and CTR, as well as insights from A/B testing.
Newsletter growth and engagement:
- Grow and manage the email subscriber list to ensure it represents an active and engaged audience.
- Suggest effective ways to promote the newsletter on the site and in social media in collaboration with the marketing team.
- Build strategic partnerships within the health and medical sector to expand our newsletter audience through cross-promotion.
Fundraising integration:
- Incorporate fundraising messaging into newsletters, where appropriate, in collaboration with the marketing team’s call-to-action campaigns.
Content creation and management
- Identify and recruit compelling experts and writers, including medical and medication experts and advocates to author premium newsletters for specialized segments.
- Write and edit newsletter content, including curations or introductions to newsletters.
- Create a newsletter content workflow
- Manage the email subscriber lists for optimal health according to best practices.
- Continually recalibrate the project plan to maintain declared revenue goals.
- Manage the newsletter budget and meet deadlines.
About You:
- A strong track record of metrics improvement on existing newsletters (open rates, click through rates, and retention) as well as growth of subscriber lists of active and engaged readers
- Successful track record of launching newsletters from scratch
- Deep facility with email marketing platforms such as Mailchimp or Hubspot, including advanced functionality best-in-class tools that enhance insights
- Familiarity with best practices for email delivery and audience journeys that leads to conversions
- Strong fluency in audience and newsletter metrics and using them to experiment and generate improved performance
- A strategic thinker who is bullish on the role of newsletters in creating reader engagement
- A creative and entrepreneurial mindset
- Comfort level working with IT to facilitate any required technical integration
Qualifications:
- At least 4 years of success in newsletter strategy and content creation in a health/medical/science area; a longer tenure is also welcome
- Comfort level working collaboratively with a compact, agile team
- Proficiency with SEO related to audience growth and retention
- Proficiency with Google suite and Wordpress
- Commitment to and respect for the MedShadow mission
- A degree in journalism or communication; focus on science, medicine or health is a big plus
To apply, please submit a cover letter along with your resume to angela@medshadow.org, telling us why you are a great fit for this position. Please also include in the letter links to newsletters you've worked on. Applications without a cover letter and links to newsletters will not be considered.
