#2: 10 Top Reasons Every Company Needs a Newsletter Starting Today!
Why a Newsletter Early in Your Startup's Life is Your #1 Business Tool
Hello New Business Friend!
Today I’m going to talk about the Most Powerful Business Tool that every Business Needs. However, only a fraction of 1% publishes a Newsletter for their business.
A Company Newsletter.
Your Company Newsletter - Your #1 Business Tool
What? A Newsletter is my #1 Business Tool. Please Explain!
Ah, I love Entrepreneurs that Challenge much of what I say to them. It shows me that you are an independent thinker. I LOVE Independent thinkers!
OK, why do I claim that your Company Newsletter is Your #1 Business Tool and that you should start writing a newsletter in month 1 of your business?
One - A Newsletter Forces Planning
Typical during the IDEA Stage, you are just a company of one - a Solopreneur. It is easy to be focussing on the wrong things early in a startup life-cycle.
Do you walk out to your vehicle before you plan where you are going to go? Not likely. Getting in your auto and starting to drive without a plan of where you are going, and the path you are going to take wouldn’t be very smart, would it?
I require my clients to take a day and write down 5 Objectives & Key Results (OKR’s) that must be accomplished each month for the next 12 months. That’s 60 Objectives & Key Results. This 60 OKR List is your first Startup Plan.
Do you want a Build a Company that runs with a Plan?
Planning Builds a Stronger Company!
Watch for the PAID version of this article for a link to “60 Startup Year One OKR’s” that PAID SUBSCRIBERS can download as part of their PAID SUBSCRIPTION.
Two - A Newsletter Forces Accountability
Writing a Newsletter every 30 days forces you to think about what you are going to tell others about what you are working on.
You know that in 30 days you will be giving your readers an update on what you accomplished the prior 30 days.
Did you do what you committed?
If not, why not?
What are you going to commit to accomplishing for the next 30 days?
Do you want a Build a Company where each person holds themselves Accountable?
Accountability Builds a Stronger Company!
Three - A Newsletter Forces Open Communication
Finding Clients is hard.
Finding Investors is hard.
Finding Employees is hard.
Frequent Open Communication help all of these issues.
A Monthly Newsletter is the critical piece to helping minimize all three of these challenges.
Employees often give the reason “I didn’t know where my company was headed” as to one reason they left. Employees are more likely to feel like they’re part of the team when they get monthly written updates from management.
A Monthly Newsletter also goes a long way to killing damaging Rumor Mills.
Do you want a Build a Company that has Open Communication?
Open Communication Builds a Stronger Company!
Four - A Newsletter Creates Visibility
When you write a Monthly Newsletter, you’re going to share these things.
Of course, you are!
You’re going to start sharing with Family & Friends, Employees, and Interns. You’re going to share it on your Blog and have any co-founders do the same thing.
Open Communication makes your Startup Company VISIBLE!
Visibility adds to you and your team's ACCOUNTABILITY!
Do you want a Build a Company that is Highly Visible to All?
Visibility Builds a Stronger Company!
Five - A Newsletter Helps Create a Better Corporate Culture
Every company has a Corporate Culture. Most Corporate Cultures “just happen without planning”.
A Newsletter helps set the “tone” of your Corporate Culture. Done right, a Monthly Newsletter shows:
1) Your Company believes in Open Communication
2) Your Company “Has a Plan - and Shares It”
3) You’re Human - You Make Mistakes and Takes Steps to Fix Them
4) What Else Do You Want to Stand for? Put it in your Monthly Newsletter
Do you want a Build a Company with a Strong, Positive Corporate Culture?
Strong Corporate Culture Builds a Stronger Company!
Six - A Newsletter Attracts Clients
When we started my first Startup, Cypress Semiconductor, we did not have a Company Newsletter.
However, we had a VP of Marketing & Sales, Lowell Turriff, who was on the road, continually talking to potential Clients. He shared our Vision. Lowell shared our Product Roadmap. He spoke to how we would work with our Clients. All of these things and more took the place of a Monthly Newsletter.
The problem was Lowell was not “scalable.” He couldn’t be in front of hundreds or thousands or millions of potential clients each month.
Imagine if we had been wise enough to write and distribute a Monthly Newsletter.
Although we were very successfully, imagine how much more successful we could have been if more Clients knew about us from a Monthly Newsletter!
Do you want a Build a Company that more easily attracts the best Clients?
Client Growth Builds a Stronger Company!
Seven - A Newsletter Attracts Investors
You may or may not have any need or desire to attract Investors.
Guess what? You’re 100% wrong if you think you don’t need to be attractive to Investors!
I’m rich and don’t need Investors to fund my Startups. But, I make dang sure that Investors know about what each of my Startups is doing.
Why?
Lots of reasons. But, the biggest one is that “I know I want to sell the company someday”.
I also know that I may need to ramp up quickly and need a business loan some day.
If your business is successful, you will also need one or both of these things.
Do you want a Build a Company that more easily attracts Investors?
Investor Interest Builds a Stronger Company!
Eight - A Newsletter Attracts Employees
Unless you plan to be a company one forever, eventually you will need to hire employees.
How do you plan to attract the “Best and Brightest” at the lowest acquisition cost and the least amount of your time?
Be known in the industry as existing and appearing as a domain space leader.
People want to work for the best companies.
People want to work for companies that have a strong corporate culture.
People want to work for companies lead by excellent leaders.
In short, they look for companies that they are proud to work.
Do you want a Build a Company that more easily attracts the best Employees?
Great Employees Build a Stronger Company!
Nine - A Newsletter Retains Clients, Investors & Employees
Retention. A Key Performance Indicator (KPI).
Client Retention. Large client loss? You’re doing things wrong!
Investor Retention. Zero or Low Investor interest in participating in the next round? You’re doing things wrong!
Employee Retention. Greater than 10% Annual Employee Loss? You’re doing things wrong!
It takes higher effort to find new Clients, Investors, and Employees than to retain the ones you have worked hard to get the first time. Why screw up and lose them?
Do you want to Build a High Retention Company?
Strong Retention Builds a Stronger Company!
Ten - Who Gets My Company Newsletter?
Short Answer - EVERYONE!
1) Family & Friends
2) Employees & Potential Employees
3) Contract Labor
4) Investors & Potential Investors (VC’s, Angels, Family Offices - Investors in your business space)
5) Customer Acquisition Heads in Local Business Banks
6) Clients
7) Potential Clients
8) Competitors (Yes, your competition!)
9) Newspaper (Local and Specialty)
10) Magazines (Writers and Editors in your business space)
11) Social Media (Facebook, Medium, Quora, SubStack, Twitter, etcetera)
12) Press Releases
Do you want to Build a Visibility Company?
A Monthly Newsletter Builds a Stronger Company!
CONCLUSION
This article is a success only if I convinced you that you need to publish your first Company Newsletter in the next 7-30 days.
In an article I’ll post in the next few days (for PAID SUBSCRIBERS ONLY) I’ll teach you:
1) The Outline of each of Monthly Newsletter
2) The Number of Pages of Each Monthly Newsletter
3) The 5 Sections of each Monthly Newsletter
4) The Team Member Responsible for Each Section
5) The Best Date to Publish Your Monthly Newsletter
That’s it for now.
I hope I’ve held up my promise to:
“Help You Build Your Business Stronger!”
Kenneth Ervin Young