E-Mail Services

E-mail-based event notification, newsletters, and discussion groups complement and extend web sites through low-cost delivery of information to users' desktops.

Need/Opportunity

• Stakeholder notification of news, events, or data/document updates
• Facilitate discussion groups for geographically distributed stakeholders
• Supplement and extend web site capabilities

A major thrust of EVS's Internet applications involves the use of web sites for managing environmental data and communications. Project teams and stakeholders need timely notification about updates to on-line data sets and documents, upcoming events, and news. When project teams and stakeholders cannot easily engage in group discussions because of schedule conflicts or geographics, e-mail provides a low-cost solution that meets all of these needs.

Approach

• Automate compilation and delivery of e-mail messages
• Expand web site content through e-mail
• Database-driven personalization of e-mail
• E-mail-based discussion groups

EVS extends its sophisticated e-mail production and management services by actively building e-mail capabilities where commercial solutions are unavailable. Commercially available software and hardware is used for e-mail delivery, bounce handling, discussion list management, and other basic tasks. Customized, database-driven tools automate the production of e-mail communications for event notification, and allow customization of message content, delivery date, and format. Newsletters and other broadcast communications extend the resources available on project web sites and e-mail discussion lists are used for project management and stakeholder discussions.

Results

• Event-driven e-mail notification in use at three sites
• Six e-mail discussion groups hosted
• One e-mail newsletter in production
• Two e-mail application tools completed

EVS has successfully employed e-mail services on more than 15 web sites in the last several years. The use of e-mail applications to supplement web sites within the Division is rapidly expanding, driven by the availability of better commercial software and development of customized tools specific to project needs.

Benefits

• Low-cost, automated communication development and delivery
• Proactive stakeholder communication
• Facilitates discussion for geographically dispersed participants
• Enhances web site information resources
• Drives traffic to project web sites

E-mail is a low-cost tool that extends the capabilities of web-based environmental information management and communication programs. Production, management, and delivery of e-mail messages are easily automated. E-mail is timely and convenient, widely available, and its operation is well understood by most users. E-mail delivers information directly to users' desktops and drives traffic to project web sites.