I’m thrilled by the responses we’ve received from the reader survey we sent out on Sunday asking for your thoughts on our newsletter. The feedback has been incredible, and some of the numbers humble me.
A remarkable 70% of you have made our daily newsletter a regular part of your routine, and over half of you are “very satisfied” with it. Plus, more than half of you find the content highly relevant to your lives.
Since August 2024, Potomac Local News has seen significant growth in our email newsletter readership, with our audience expanding from 14,747 subscribers in August to 18,252 subscribers in February 2025. This growth highlights the increasing value of our content, and we’re thrilled to see more readers engaging with our daily updates.
Our newsletter performance has been strong, with impressive open rates and engagement. In January 2025, our newsletter reached over 758,000 subscribers, achieving an open rate of 29.3%, with more than 227,000 readers opening the newsletter. This follows a trend of consistent growth, as seen in previous months, with strong open rates in December and November 2024.
I also want to take a moment to thank our dedicated contributing editors and reporters. Their tireless work ensures we cover the stories that shape our neighborhoods and impact our daily lives. Some of their incredible efforts are highlighted in our list of 2024’s most-read stories.
To my surprise, every single one of this year’s most-read stories comes from Stafford County. This signals something exciting: Stafford County is a fast-growing area and a community eager for reliable news and information. In response, we will continue to focus on Stafford County while maintaining strong coverage across Prince William County and the cities of Manassas, Fredericksburg, and Manassas Park.
At Potomac Local News, we’re working around the clock to bring you the stories that matter most to your community. From Dale City and Fredericksburg to Stafford and Manassas, our dedicated team keeps you informed, engaged, and connected to your hometown.
We invite you to become a member and support our local journalism. Your membership helps us dig deeper, ask tough questions, and shine a light on the issues that impact your life.
Thank you to our newest members, Dr. Jack, Gina, and Bethany, who became members over Thanksgiving weekend and took advantage of our discounted annual membership special offered as a Black Friday special.
We could use your support to bring you crucial local news about our communities.
The latest: We’re working on bringing you more details on a person who was struck by a train at the Fredericksburg station.
Kick Off December with Holiday Cheer: December is here, and the holiday spirit is in full swing. Start the month with these exciting local events happening on December 1, 2024.
Thanks for reading via email (please subscribe for FREE if you have not already done so). It’s the simplest way to receive our news and ensures social media algorithms won’t prevent you from seeing our local news.
I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving.
Happy Thanksgiving Eve. If you’re one of the 44 million travelers hitting the road for Thanksgiving, VDOT has a tool that shows you when to expect the biggest delays.
Small Business Spotlight: We’ve started receiving responses to our survey of small businesses in the area. We’ll use the responses to create news stories about small businesses, which are the lifeblood of our local economy.
Aya and Jazbia, our student interns from Stafford and Prince William county schools, respectively, have been hard at work keeping you updated this weekend with the latest news and events.
Upcoming weekend events: See our list and post yours to our community calendar so that we may share it with our readers!
Santa arrives: Join us for fun and games at Potomac Mills mall tomorrow at 2 p.m., when Santa will arrive. I’ll be there to capture photos. Please say hello!
