NSW SES Member Connect  Guidelines

Here are a few tips for you as a content provider and a reader to make the most of Member Connect:

Why is it important to read Member Connect? 
NSW SES Member Connect is a fortnightly e-newsletter issued every Friday as a single point of truth for the Service including both staff and volunteers. It was introduced to reduce email traffic and provide easy access to important information. Information in Member Connect may relate to your safety, how you work, the equipment and vehicles you use, and opportunities such as courses and employment. That’s why EVERYONE needs to read it.  

How do I find the information I’m looking for? Where will the content I submit appear? 
There are 4 tabs for easier navigation and quicker access to the type of information you are looking for. When you are submitting your content, please tick which tab you want it to appear in: 

‘Commissioner’ includes the weekly message from the Commissioner and any stories emerging from the Office of the Commissioner. This tab of the newsletter is sent to your email and it includes other tabs that take you via your browser to the other parts of the newsletter. For optimal results (= all links opening) make sure you are logged into EOS and use the most updated version of your browser (Chrome preferred).
‘Priority’ has all the important updates to be read out at muster and team meetings. We realise everyone’s information is important, but please be mindful that not everything can be read out at muster meetings, and reconsider if your content is not a genuine ‘priority’.
‘News’ includes other current topics of a general nature. This section also has the Recruitment and New Appointment notices plus information on Commissioner’s Awards and links to the Member Connect Content Submission Form and these Guidelines.
‘Stories’ tab brings good news stories from around the state. This is where you will find volunteer profiles, photo stories and events coverage. If something exciting happened at your unit/section, please proudly share your ‘story’ with the rest of the NSW SES family.

How do I submit my content?
Please usethis formonly. Remember that attaching a photo or a graphic is necessary. Any non-confidential information that is relevant to all members can be submitted by any NSW SES member providing it delivers an important and appropriate message. The deadline for content submission is every second Tuesday midday. Please refer for details to the publishing calendar on EOS - in the main menu on EOS home page, click on e-newsletter and select Member Connect. Submissions received past deadline will be included in the following edition.

How can I make sure people read my content?
 - All content submissions appear in Member Connect with a 2-3 sentences long ‘teaser text’ followed by a ‘Read More‘ button that expands to the full view. This means that the beginning of your text is key – it has to be engaging and interesting, so it triggers the readers to click the ‘Read More’ button and read your entire story.

 - A catchy title is helpful too! If you want the readers to provide feedback, participate in a survey or share your content, it is especially important to start on an interactive note. 

 - Less is better, so keep your story within the 1000 characters with spaces limit. If it is absolutely necessary to provide a longer text, make sure it is saved as a pdf (after running a spell-check!) and stored on EOS in a Public Documents section so that all Members have access to, and that you have ‘checked in’ the document.

 - Illustrate your text with an interesting photo or graphic (650 pixels wide maximum) to make your story stand out.

Oops… I submitted my content but now I’m concerned if it should be published?
Be mindful that once the newsletter is out, we have a very limited scope to make any changes. Therefore before hitting the ‘Submit’ button on the Content Submission form, make sure that your content:
• will be relevant when the newsletter is released on Friday
• is not confidential, publicly or politically sensitive
• has been approved/authorised by your supervisor.

Where can I find Member Connect?
It is available to all members by an email sent to their email addresses every second Friday, and can also be found on EOS - click on 'e-newsletter' in the main menu on EOS home page and select 'Member Connect'.  A link to the most recent edition appears fortnightly on EOS home page reel and on Facebook NSW SES Members Communication Group.

How can I print Member Connect content?
In the new format you can print individual articles by clicking on 'Print this article' under each text. To print the entire Member Connect, you need to print each of the 4 tabs separately by clicking on 'Print this newsletter' at the bottom of each tab. Some find this inconvenient, but we introduced the 4 tabs in response to the survey results showing that tabs are preferred over scrolling down through one very lengthy document.

How can I promote Member Connect as a Zone Commander or Unit Controller?
Zone Commanders are requested to display the e-newsletter on their noticeboard and encourage all staff to read it. Unit Controllers are requested to read out the information included in the Priority section of the newsletter at the muster meeting, and to print the newsletter and put on the notice board, to allow members without computers to access it easily.