Going Digital with the NFWI

NFWI IS GOING DIGITAL

From 2022 onward, NFWI Mailings will move from being physical paper copies to
digital copies, sent to WI Secretaries via email rather than via post. The one
exception will be the March mailing which will continue to be sent as a paper copy
via post. In 2022, the March mailing is the first one of the year, so the first digital
mailing will be in July 2022.
Currently there are 4 mailings sent out by the NFWI each year, with an extra one
sent during NFWI Board election years.

Why are these changes being made?
The two factors which have led the NFWI Board of Trustees to make this decision
are financial and environmental. Paper NFWI Mailings cost the NFWI up to £45,000
per annum; therefore switching to digital mailings with one paper mailing per year is
a huge saving for the organisation. With the decision to freeze membership fees in
the year ahead, the NFWI is continually looking for ways to reduce central costs. For
comparison, the cost of a digital mailing sent to all WI Secretaries is approximately
50p and the cost of a single physical mailing is around £9,000. Including the modest
one-off MCS development costs to enable this functionality we could send digital
mailings for the next 2,600 years at today’s pricing, for the cost of a single hard-copy
mailing.

With 4-5 mailings per year each containing several different papers and booklets,
going out to 6,000 WIs, this is a huge amount of paper. The NFWI has several
mandates on protection of the environment and tackling climate change has been a
commitment of the organisation for a number of years. We have to consider our own
actions when addressing the problem and what we can all do to reduce our carbon
footprint. With this in mind, we believe switching to digital mailings is a necessary
and feasible change for the organisation.

How will the mailings be sent out?
We will utilise the MCS for these mailings. The MCS already sends out hundreds of
emails a day, so we know it is capable. It also means WIs will continue to only have
one system to keep up-to-date.
As long as the WI has an active Secretary, and that Secretary has a valid email
address listed, it will be included in every mailing.
When a Secretary receives the email, it will contain introductory text outlining the
content of a mailing and a clear link to click. The link will download the mailing.
Each email will also include clear instructions on opening the mailing on your device
– desktop computer, iPad, Android phone etc.
Unless stated otherwise, WI Secretaries will be free to forward the email on to any
members also wishing to receive it.

The MCS indicates that approximately 8% of WIs do not have an email
address listed for their secretary, which will be addressed before this change is
implemented to ensure that no WI is left out of receiving the digital mailings.

If you do not have an email address for your WI Secretary, please contact the Federation Office for the next steps.