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National RTAP eNews Survey 2021 Results

June 17, 2021

In an effort to improve National RTAP’s newsletter (eNews) and make it as useful as possible, we conducted a survey during the Spring of 2021 to better understand how subscribers read the newsletter and learn which sections are the most valuable. The survey was disseminated through eNews itself and through National RTAP social media. Nineteen people responded to the survey. Thank you to all who assisted us with this endeavor.

Highlights from the survey results:

  • 95% read every issue and 5% read it 1-2 times per year. 
  • 10% read it for less then 5 minutes, 69% spend 5-15 minutes reading it, and 21% read it for longer than 15 minutes. 
  • 84% feel the length of the newsletter is just right, while 11% feel it is too long. Nobody said it was too short. Note: we will try to shorten the stories and the newsletter when we can.
  • 42% sometimes click on at least one article when they read eNews, and 57% always click on at least one article.
  • The most valuable sections to readers were webinars and training (95%), National RTAP articles (79%), calendar of events (73%), and opportunities (63%). Three survey respondents asked to remove sections: National RTAP news, U.S. DOT and FTA news, and calendar of events (each chose a different section), but after consultation with our Review Board, none of these sections were removed.


The following actions will be taken in response to the survey:

Survey Participant Recommendations National RTAP Response
Go back to more than one column. We changed to one column because our newsletter platform automatically clips the newsletter and was clipping more than half of the second column, which made it hard to read. We will retain the one column format.
Include a shorter amount of text. We will do so whenever possible.
Remove the grey background. We changed this to a very light version of “National RTAP blue.”
Improve the Upcoming Events section. We are using different fonts, colors, and sizes for selected events.
Include a bulleted list of new National RTAP Resources in each issue. Highlight two things that are the most important. The newsletter now contains a “Newsletter Highlights” section at the top that features 4-5 new National RTAP and partner events and/or resources listed in the issue. These will be different in every issue.
Add a section with Tribal Transit highlights: Successful Initiatives in Indian Country, Meet a Tribal Bus Operator, A Day in the Life. This will be launched in 2021 as a periodic column.
Add a Spotlight on RTAP staff and Review Board members. This will be launched in 2021 as a periodic column.

We also asked what other newsletters the respondents read, and will look to those for ideas for improvements to ours too:

  1. APTA
  2. CTAA
  3. FTA newsletters, including FTA's TSO Spotlight
  4. Mass Transit
  5. NADTC
  6. N-CATT 
  7. NCMM
  8. NTI
  9. SURCOM
  10. State RTAP newsletters
  11. State Transit Association newsletters
  12. SWTA
  13. TRB 
  14. WSTA


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