My father always told me “dime con quién andas y te diré quién eres”, which means “tell me who you hang out with and I’ll tell you who you are.” I’ve followed my father’s advice closely throughout my life, which is a big part of the reason why I teamed up with Alex and Bunny Inc.
However, when I analyze my previous ventures, I see a common thread that determines if a venture I start will become successful or if it will fail. I’m only as strong as my weak ties:
- We succeeded with Bruin Consulting because my acquaintances connected me to Deloitte, which eventually became the sponsor of the first Undergraduate Case Competition
- We succeeded in raising an Angel round with RewardMe because my blog readers were investors
- I succeeded in building a lifestyle business because friends connected me to manufacturers and distributors
For several months I brainstormed about how to scale weak ties, until finally Santiago introduced me to the obvious, simple, yet delicate solution.
The solution is email updates. Obvious, I know, but under utilized and often abused.
I recently launched my first email update and the results were far more positive than anything I had expected.
Results
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Details:
- 3,473 recipients
- 1,998 opened (58.9%)
- 85 unsubscribes (2.4%)
The best part: over 150 of my connections personally responded to my email.
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The immediate benefits:
- I found a sublet for my apartment
- I have dinner plans with several friends I haven’t talked to in several years
- I have Skype calls planned with even more friends I haven’t talked to in years
- I connected with several people that will be in Japan at the same time as me
- I received an invitation to become a speaker at General Assembly
- Over 15 people directly applied to open positions at Bunny Inc. from direct friend recommendations
The long term benefits should be even more substantial.
How to write a personal update that your network will appreciate
First of all, I want to thank my friends and acquaintances for their love and support. I didn’t plan to share my experience with the email; it was just so successful and I connected with so many of you that I had to share my experience online.
Step 1: Connect with people on LinkedIn
I habitually connect with people on LinkedIn using Gmail and the Rapportive app:
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Yu-kai, you gotta change that avatar brah…
2. Add your LinkedIn contacts to MailChimp
I add my LinkedIn network to my MailChimp account:
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3. Write a personal email that provides value to the reader
This of course is the most important part. I spent days writing the email and went through at least 4 revisions before I had the final, ready-to-publish version.
I made my email personal…
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I made my email funny (well, at least I thought it was funny)…
We’re moving to Tokyo, Japan this Summer 2015 from June to August
That’s right, my team and I are moving to Tokyo, Japan this summer to open an office, eat donburri, and win it big at Pachinko. If you’ve ever had an interest to visit Japan, now is the time. Let me know if you’d like to meet up in Tokyo and we can coordinate.
I made my email useful…
Recommended readings
Here is a list of recommended readings:
- Sword of Truth: absolutely fantastic fictional book series. I usually read fiction before bed to wind down from a busy day at work.
- Pitch Anything: the best book I’ve read on closing deals. This book was critical when I first started as an entrepreneur.
- The Alliance: terrific book about hiring and retaining a world-class team.
I made it predictable and easy to opt out…
PS. I will send these types of emails only once a quarter. If you prefer not to receive my personal and professional updates, feel free to unsubscribe to this email list. I will personally read and respond to every response. Thank you very much.
There you have it — the best email I’ve ever written. If you’re interested in receiving my future quarterly updates, subscribe here.