Create and Send Newsletters

How to Create and Send Newsletters

NonprofitsHQ includes a powerful, built-in email newsletter builder designed to help you stay connected with your community - from donors and volunteers to staff and Board members.

With an intuitive drag-and-drop editor and thousands of ready-made templates, you can start designing beautiful, professional newsletters in minutes - no extra accounts or integrations required.

Everything you need to create, personalize, and send engaging emails is all in one place: NonprofitsHQ.

Requirements

Before you can send bulk email newsletters through NonprofitsHQ, make sure your account meets the following requirements:

1. Verified Sending Address

   You must have a configured and verified Sending Address under your organization’s email settings. This ensures your messages are delivered securely and comply with anti-spam standards.

   
   

2. Proper Permissions

   You must be logged in as an Administrator, or as a user with the newsletters_create_newsletter   permission.

Creating a Newsletter

Creating a newsletter in NonprofitsHQ is simple and intuitive.

Our built-in editor makes it easy to design professional emails without any technical experience. You can start from a blank canvas or choose from thousands of beautiful templates to match your organization’s style.

To get started:

1. From the main dashboard navigation, hover over Marketing and click Emails.
2. Click New Newsletter in the top-right corner.
3. Enter a name for your newsletter and choose whether to start from a template or a blank design.
4. Click Create to open the drag-and-drop editor.

Use the Newsletter Builder

You should now see a list of all the newsletters that have been created in your organization’s account.

From this page, you can view existing drafts, check their status, duplicate previous campaigns, or create a new one from scratch.

Next, click the ➕ New Email button on the right side of the page.

This will open the Newsletter Wizard, where you can choose from thousands of professionally designed templates — or start from scratch to create your own custom design.

Choose a Template

Browse through the thousands of ready-made templates included for free with NonprofitsHQ — each professionally designed and fully customizable to fit your organization’s style.

Or, if you’re feeling creative, start from a blank template and build your own email from scratch using the intuitive drag-and-drop editor.

After you’ve selected a template and clicked Use Template, a popup will appear asking for some basic details about your email campaign.

• Name – Enter a clear, readable name that helps you identify the email later (for example, Fall Donor Update or Volunteer Newsletter – March).

• Description – Add a short summary to help your team remember what this email is about.

  
  

These fields are for internal use only — your recipients will not see them.

Once you’ve completed the required fields, click Save & Continue.

The Email Editor will now open, allowing you to design and customize your newsletter before sending or scheduling it.

Design & Send Your Email

Once the Email Designer loads, you’ll see a live preview of your email.

From here, you can customize the selected template or start from scratch to create the perfect design for your audience.

Use the component panel on the right to drag and drop text blocks, images, buttons, dividers, and other elements directly onto the canvas — giving you full control over the look and layout of your newsletter.

Send Your Email

Once you’ve crafted the perfect newsletter, click the Send Email button in the right-hand action bar.

This will open the Send Email slide-out panel, where you can review your campaign details and choose your recipients before sending.

The Send Email form collects key details about how your newsletter should be delivered and who should receive it.

• Subject: Enter the subject line for your email. This is what your recipients will see in their inbox when the newsletter arrives.

  
  
• Select Contacts: Choose which contacts in your NonprofitsHQ CRM will receive this newsletter. You can:
  • Search for and select individual contacts, or

  • Send to groups of contacts based on their CRM labels (for example, Donors, Volunteers, or Board Members).

    
    

• From Address: This is the email address your newsletter will appear to come from. It must be a verified sending address within your NonprofitsHQ account.

  
  

Once you’ve completed all required fields, click Send to deliver your newsletter immediately.

If you’ve chosen to schedule it for a future date, the button will display Schedule instead.

Send Your Email

Your email has been queued or scheduled to send to your targeted recipients. 🎉

Remember - with NonprofitsHQ, you get unlimited campaigns, recipients, and deliveries, all included in your plan.

After sending, you can track engagement in real time - including who opened your email and who clicked on any links.

These insights help you understand what resonates most with your audience and improve future campaigns.

That's all!

You now know how to create new newsletters, design the perfect message, and send to a targeted list of contacts right from your NonprofitsHQ CRM.

This is just one of the many powerful tools included with NonprofitsHQ - all at no extra cost. With everything built in, you can focus on what matters most: engaging your community and driving your mission forward.

If you run into any trouble or need any additional support, please reach out to your account manager if you have one, or email our support team directly via help@nonprofitshq.com