Prompt Playbook: Tribe Fundamentals PART 4

Yesterday, we covered the welcome series. Today, we're diving into the art of crafting newsletters that keep your tribe engaged and coming back for more.

You know, newsletters like this one!

Let’s get started

Newsletters

Why Newsletters Matter

Here's the thing about building a business: people take time to convert.

For Prompt Entrepreneur people either convert immediately from a tripwire sale. More on this in the next Playbook on Offer. Or they take a few months.

Your sales cycle will depend on your industry, your offer and your audience.

Regardless of specifics you need a way to keep in touch with them, to remain top of mind.

You could just hit them with sales emails, but you'll burn ‘em out

Instead, we need a regular content/value delivery device - and newsletters work really well here.

Think of it as your weekly (or whatever frequency you choose, more on this shortly) touchpoint with your Tribe. It's your chance to continue providing value, building trust, and yes, occasionally selling your stuff.

Types of Newsletters

When it comes to newsletters, you've got options. Here's the spectrum

1. Curation: This is where you're primarily sharing other people's work. You're the curator, the taste-maker, the person who sifts through the noise to find the gold.

2. Creation: This is all you, baby. Your thoughts, your content, your voice.

3. Hybrid: A mix of the above. Some curation, some creation.

Prompt Entrepreneur is 100% creation. I don’t curate. But it’s not what I’d recommend for everyone.

How to know which type to create? I’m going to be boring. If you know me you know the answer.

The question is: what helps your Tribe the most?

How to know? Ask. Email your list and/or ask your Audience too. Say something like, "I'm thinking of doing a newsletter. What would be helpful for you?" Serve them first and foremost.

Still in doubt? My personal recommendation is go hybrid. Bring them the news and updates of the week, but also provide some editorial or guidance as an expert. It's a nice balance of curation and creation.

The Rundown AI is a great example of this (an a great newsletter in general). Rowan drops the news and updates and also why they are important.

Creating Your Newsletter

Here's the basic process

Over the week, compile interesting stories, big news, etc. Get it off social media, Reddit, or blogs. As an industry expert with an Audience and Tribe you should be reading and consuming all this anyway. Chuck it in a document. Don't need to be fancy here. It could be a plain text file - it’s unimportant.

You can use AI here to curate content, but there's a risk that your newsletter will end up VERY generic. Other people will be doing this in your niche and (likely) you’ll all end up with the same boring crap.

I recommend instead noting down things you are genuinely interested in. Once you have found your sources, this becomes simple. Just check them daily or weekly and note down content you think will be handy for your audience.

Then, feed your compiled info into this prompt

You are an AI assistant specialising in content curation and newsletter creation. Your task is to help the user compile their collected news, updates, and interesting information into a structured newsletter format. Follow these steps:

1. Ask the user to provide the following information:
   a. 3-5 news items, updates, or interesting pieces of information they've collected
   b. Their area of expertise or industry
   c. Their target audience
   d. Any specific theme or focus for this newsletter issue (if applicable)

2. After collecting this information, create a draft newsletter using the following structure:

   SUBJECT LINE: Create an engaging subject line that summarises the main theme or most interesting piece of information.

   INTRODUCTION: Write a brief, engaging introduction that sets the tone for the newsletter and highlights what readers can expect.

   TOP STORY: Select the most significant or interesting item from the user's input and expand on it. Include:
   - A catchy headline
   - A brief summary of the story
   - Why it's important or relevant to the audience
   - Any potential implications or takeaways

   QUICK HITS: Summarise the remaining news items in short, punchy paragraphs. For each:
   - Provide a concise headline
   - Summarise the key points in 2-3 sentences
   - If applicable, include a brief comment on its relevance or impact

   DEEP DIVE: Choose one item that warrants further exploration. This could be an expansion of the Top Story or one of the Quick Hits. Include:
   - More detailed analysis
   - Relevant background information
   - Expert opinions or quotes (if provided by the user)
   - Potential future developments or consequences

   WHAT WE'RE WATCHING: Identify 1-2 emerging trends, upcoming events, or potential developments related to the user's industry or area of expertise. Briefly explain why these are worth keeping an eye on.

   CLOSING THOUGHTS: Provide a brief conclusion that ties the newsletter content together and leaves the reader with something to think about. This could be a question, a prediction, or a call to action.

3. Throughout the newsletter, maintain a consistent tone that aligns with the user's brand and resonates with their target audience.

4. After presenting the draft, remind the user to review and personalise the content, adding their own insights, opinions, and voice to make the newsletter uniquely theirs.

Present your response in a clear, easy-to-follow format that mimics a real newsletter layout. Use appropriate headings, subheadings, and formatting to enhance readability.

This will generate a draft of your newsletter. But here's the crucial part: You are going to rewrite/redraft in your voice.

We need to avoid just pushing out AI-generated newsletters because you'll burn all that trust you've been building.

Ask yourself if you'd read it. If not - don't inflict it on other people!

Remember, your newsletter is a reflection of you and your brand. It should sound like you, feel like you, and provide the kind of value only you can provide.

Details of running a newsletter

What service to use? I use Beehiiv. There are others out there, but after trying a handful, Beehiiv is the best in my opinion. It's user-friendly, has great analytics, and integrates well with other tools.

How often to send ? This is the million-dollar question, isn't it? Here's my take

I do daily. But that's because it drives my business. I wouldn't recommend it for most people - it's a tonne of work. It’s for the clinically insane.

Weekly is solid. It's frequent enough to keep you top of mind, but not so frequent that it becomes a burden for you or your readers.

Monthly gives too long for people to forget about you. Unless you're dropping some seriously epic content each month, I'd steer clear of this frequency. For it to work your newsletter needs to be appointment viewing - literally stuff people are frothing at the mouth to receive.

Ultimately, the best frequency is the one you can consistently maintain while providing value. Boring answer but there it is. Start with weekly and adjust based on your audience's response and your capacity.

Newsletters are your secret weapon in building and maintaining your tribe. They keep you top of mind, provide ongoing value, and give you a direct line to your audience.

Yes, they take work. Yes, they require consistency. But the payoff? A engaged, loyal tribe that trusts you and values what you have to offer.

In the next Part I’m going to talk about going one step further with Tribe engagement: building a community.

Keep prompting,

Kyle