Email remains one of Tulane University's most effective communication channels for engaging students, faculty, staff and other audiences. Consistent, well-designed email communications help strengthen the university's brand, improve audience engagement and ensure important information reaches the right people.
The Office of University Communications and Marketing (UCM) provides guidance, resources and support to help schools, departments and units create effective, accessible and brand-aligned emails.
Email Communications at Tulane
Every email sent on behalf of Tulane reflects the university's identity and reputation. Whether you're sharing news, promoting an event, distributing a newsletter or communicating with internal audiences, emails should follow Tulane's brand and editorial standards.
UCM works with departments across the university to support email strategy, branding, design, audience management and best practices. Teams are encouraged to create clear, concise and audience-focused communications that provide value and support university goals.
What Is Emma?
Emma is Tulane University's enterprise email marketing platform. It allows departments and units to create, send and manage professional email campaigns while maintaining consistent branding and compliance with email communication standards.
With Emma, users can:
- Create branded newsletters, announcements and event communications
- Organize and manage email audiences
- Send targeted communications to specific groups
- Access email templates and reusable content
- Review campaign performance through reporting and analytics
Emma is intended primarily for university-related communications and includes tools that support responsible list management, accessibility and email marketing best practices.
Getting Started with Emma
Departments interested in using Emma should begin by submitting a request through the UCM Support Request Form.
Please include:
- Your college, school or department
- Whether your organization already uses Emma (if known)
- The types of emails you plan to send (for example, newsletters, faculty/staff notices, event updates)
- Your intended audience (who will receive the emails)
- The approximate size of your audience (number of contacts)
The UCM email team will review your communication needs and help determine the appropriate level of access, training and support.
Once access has been granted, users can begin building campaigns using approved templates and resources while managing audience lists within the platform.
For more details about getting started with Emma, please review the Getting Started Guide in Box (must be logged in to Box to view).
Email Best Practices
Effective emails are audience-focused, concise and easy to understand. When creating emails, consider the following principles:
- Use clear and informative subject lines
- Keep content concise and easy to scan
- Include clear calls to action
- Follow Tulane brand and editorial standards
- Design with accessibility in mind
- Maintain accurate and up-to-date audience lists
- Test emails before sending
For more email guidelines, please see Email Policies, Guidelines & Best Practices in Box (must be logged in to Box to view).
Working with the UCM Email Team
The UCM email team serves as a partner and resource for schools, departments, centers and administrative units across the university. Support may include:
- Emma access and onboarding
- Email marketing guidance and best practices
- Template and design support
- Branding and accessibility recommendations
- University-wide email request coordination
- General email communications consultation
If you need assistance with an email project or have questions about Emma, submit a request through the UCM Support Request Form.
University-Wide Email Requests
Emails intended for broad university audiences, such as all students, faculty or staff, require additional review and coordination. UCM manages the scheduling and distribution of approved university-wide email communications to help maintain consistency, reduce message fatigue and avoid conflicts with other institutional communications.
Please note that not all communications are appropriate for university-wide audiences. In general, UCM limits university-wide communications to one email per topic or event. Departments should submit requests as early as possible to allow adequate time for review and planning.
Resources for Student Organizations
The Office of University Communications and Marketing supports email communications for Tulane schools, offices and departments. Recognized student organizations may:
- Publish events in WaveSync
- Submit the 5 Things TU Know Submission Request Form to be considered for the weekly newsletter
Please note: submitting a request does not guarantee publication.
