Why Create a NEWSLETTER? And What Makes It Effective?

You might be wondering, what is an effective newsletter?

For that answer, let me walk you through a useful framework and some key insights (or watch the video above).

We'll set the foundation by clarifying my favorite version of the buyer's journey. There are three stages of the sales process (from Blair Enns of Win Without Pitching.

Below is how we facilitate the buyer through the three stages of this journey.

1. We educate the unaware
2. We inspire the interested
3. We reassure the intent

To be successful in sales, we need to meet the person where they are and then respond accordingly. So, the goal is NOT to sell people something they don't think they need... It's to help them move through the three stages (facilitate) and find out if they have a problem we can solve (and whether we're the ones to help them solve it). You can dive deeper into the Win Without Pitching Manifesto, by Blair, here.

For this section of this newsletter, I want to dive into Blair's article about effective newsletters: Quit Selling & Start Helping.

You'll want to read the whole article, but to expedite some of the lessons, here are a few things worth noticing about creating an effective newsletter.

Let's start with the core dynamic

"The unaware prospect does not see that he has a problem that you are able to help him with. Notice that our perspective here is the prospect’s and not yours. Either he sees a need, and your ability to help, or he does not."

That's a key idea we want to dive into.

The right perspective.

Cognitive empathy.

"You do not create need, nor do you tell someone their need. Your job is to uncover it."

Uncover the need.

This makes us all story architects, revealing the mystery so our client can discover the revelation and experience the transformation it brings. When they see the problem, and you as the trustworthy one to help solve it, working together will simply be a natural development.

Once the prospect is aware of their need, we move to the next step...

"Inspiration – your objective once someone acknowledges their problem but prior to them forming intent to act on it – is a powerful tool for helping to form that intent, but it is rare that you can inspire someone to see their need."

Inspiration matters, but we must not move ahead of ourselves if they have not discovered the need. Until they're ready to be inspired, we have something else to do.

And it's vital to remember, if they're not ready now, it doesn't mean they won't be willing to buy later. Blair continues.

"The second mistake made after hearing no is to cross the prospect off the list and discard them. This is a symptom of the hunter mentality that characterizes the common business development approach of shoot, miss, and move on."

When I first started selling, this is how I approached selling. You can listen to me tell the hunter story of my first website project in the video below, where I simply called a business directory until I found someone who needed a website.

This approach has its benefits, but it loses sight of the bigger, more important (and sustainable) game. If the target is someone who would benefit as a client, they should stay a prospect. They just may not be ready at this time, or we may have failed to uncover that they are not yet ready to act.

Either way, the uncovering is the focus of our newsletter.

"While most unaware prospects will not be sold to or inspired, the majority will accept helpful, unbiased fact-based information on their situation, and one of the better vehicles for such information is a newsletter... newsletters that position you as an expert and provide valuable information, in your area of expertise, to the prospect."

Helpful.

Fact-based information.

In a newsletter.

This newsletter becomes the tool to stay connected with our prospects.

In one case, I had a client on my newsletter for a year before he contacted me about working together. In another case, he was on my list for over a decade. It's pretty wild when you don't hear anything from someone, and they tell you this!

So, when we get a no, we have a way forward, which is not cutting off a prospect entirely, but inviting them to receive a helpful newsletter.

Blair continues.

"So what do you do once you’ve heard no? Three things. First, thank the prospect for his time. Second, tell him you will follow up down the road... Your third point is a request to help between now and then."

Ultimately, what Blair talks about at the end of the article is a farmer's approach (in contrast to the hunter), everyone is a potential future client, even when they say no today. The metaphor I use in my book (Path of the Freelancer) is a crockpot. We want to add everyone into the crockpot until they are ready to get out 😜.

With a LinkedIn newsletter, this is even easier.

If these insights intrigue you, go read the rest of Blair's article here.