Newsletter Creation & Curation Skill

Use this skill to create B2B newsletters that match business context, not generic content templates.

Deep strategic guidance is in PLAYBOOK.md. Use this file as the executable operating manual.

Quick Decision Tree (5 Dimensions)

Answer these in order before writing anything.

1) Goal

• Lead Generation: newsletter should drive pipeline and SQLs.
• Thought Leadership: newsletter should build trust and category authority.
• Personal Brand: newsletter should establish individual POV and visibility.
• Category Ownership: newsletter should define market narrative at scale.

2) Industry

• Sales Tech: tactical, data-heavy, ROI-forward.
• HR Tech: research-led, professional, trust-first.
• Fintech: compliance-aware, conservative claims.
• Operations Tech: domain-specific, practical playbooks.

3) Company Stage

• Series A: founder-led, lean, weekly or bi-weekly.
• Series B: team-led, stronger editorial process, analytics discipline.
• Series C+: media-grade quality, original research, category narrative.

4) Role

• Founder: highest autonomy, fastest execution.
• VP/Director: medium autonomy, stakeholder review expected.
• PMM/Content: structured approvals, brand constraints.
• Enterprise employee: PR/legal gatekeeping likely required.

5) Geography

• India-first: IST timing, local examples/channels.
• US-first: EST/PST timing, US benchmarks/channels.

Template Selector

Pick exactly one base template first:

• Sales Tech: templates/sales-tech-template.md
• HR Tech: templates/hr-tech-template.md
• Fintech: templates/fintech-template.md
• Operations Tech: templates/ops-tech-template.md

Then adapt cadence and tone using Stage + Role + Geography.

Execution Workflow (Do This Every Time)

Step 1: Assess Context

Collect and confirm:

• Product category and ICP.
• Primary goal for the next 90 days.
• Stage, role, approval constraints.
• Geography and timezone.
• Available production bandwidth (hours/week, team, budget).

Output:

• One-line strategy statement: For [ICP], we publish [cadence] to achieve [goal] with [format].

Step 2: Select and Adapt Template

Actions:

• Load one industry template from templates/.
• Set cadence:
  • Series A: weekly/bi-weekly (execution simplicity).
  • Series B: weekly or bi-weekly (team process).
  • Series C+: weekly with recurring pillars (media-quality).
• Apply role constraints:
  • Founder: direct POV is allowed.
  • Employee: insert approval checkpoint before final draft.
• Apply geography settings:
  • India-first: schedule in IST and local references.
  • US-first: schedule in EST/PST and US references.

Output:

• Final issue blueprint with section headings + target word count per section.

Step 3: Generate Content

Use the blueprint to draft issue content.

Required structure:

• Subject line options (3)
• Hook (problem + stakes)
• Core insight (data, framework, or pattern)
• Actionable playbook (steps/checklist)
• CTA (reply, share, demo, resource)

Generation rules:

• Prefer specific numbers, examples, and named scenarios.
• Remove generic filler.
• Keep one primary takeaway per issue.
• Keep CTA singular and measurable.

Output:

• Draft issue in publish-ready markdown.

Step 4: Refine and Ship

Run this checklist:

• Clarity: can a busy reader extract value in 60 seconds?
• Specificity: does each section include concrete guidance or evidence?
• Relevance: does tone match industry and role constraints?
• Compliance: for fintech/employee-led, ensure legal/manager review step exists.
• Consistency: voice aligns with prior issues.

Finalize:

• Choose one subject line.
• Add final send time.
• Add amplification plan (LinkedIn + one secondary channel).

Output:

• Final issue + distribution notes + KPI targets.

Role-Based Approval Workflow

Use this enforcement logic before publishing:

• Founder-led:
  • No formal approval required.
  • Optional peer review for quality.
• VP/Director-led:
  • Manager or leadership review required.
  • High-impact claims should be validated.
• PMM/Content-led:
  • Brand + stakeholder review required.
  • Keep documented source notes for claims.
• Enterprise employee:
  • PR/legal review required before distribution.

If unsure, default to stricter review.

KPI Defaults by Goal

• Lead Generation:
  • Open rate, CTR, demo requests, SQL mentions in CRM.
• Thought Leadership:
  • Open rate trend, replies, shares, speaking invites, inbound references.
• Personal Brand:
  • Subscriber growth, profile visits, inbound opportunities.
• Category Ownership:
  • Share of voice, citations, partnerships, executive visibility.

Playbook Map (Deep Dives)

Use these sections in PLAYBOOK.md when deeper strategy is needed:

• Sales Tech strategy: SECTION A
• HR Tech strategy: SECTION B
• Fintech strategy: SECTION C
• Operations Tech strategy: SECTION D
• Role approvals and geography tactics: CROSS-CUTTING: UNIVERSAL FRAMEWORKS
• Mistakes, prompts, tool matrix, quick-reference matrix: bottom sections of PLAYBOOK.md

Why This vs Generic ChatGPT Prompting?

This skill adds structured context control that generic prompting usually misses:

• Matches content to industry + stage + role + geography before drafting.
• Forces approval logic for employee-led and fintech scenarios.
• Uses proven templates tied to B2B newsletter outcomes.
• Produces repeatable workflows, not one-off writing outputs.
• Keeps strategic depth in PLAYBOOK.md for escalation without bloating execution steps.

Fictional Case Study (Realistic)

Context

• Company: SignalPilot (Sales Tech)
• Stage: Series A, $4M ARR
• Role: Founder-led
• Market: US-first
• Goal: 12 SQLs/month from newsletter in 6 months
• Bandwidth: 4 hours/week, no designer

What They Did

• Selected templates/sales-tech-template.md.
• Published weekly on Tuesday 9 AM EST.
• Issue mix:
  • 50% data-backed sales observations
  • 30% tactical playbooks
  • 20% contrarian POV
• Reused each issue for one LinkedIn post + one short thread.

Outcome (6 Months)

• 1,350 subscribers.
• Average 42% open rate, 8.1% CTR.
• 14 monthly SQLs tagged as newsletter-influenced.
• Sales team started using issues as pre-demo credibility assets.

Usage Examples

Example A: Founder, Sales Tech, Series A

Prompt:

Use newsletter-creation-curation.
Context: Sales tech founder, Series A, US market, lead generation goal.
Create next week's issue using the sales-tech template, with 3 subject lines,
700-900 words, and a Tuesday 9 AM EST send plan.

Example B: VP Marketing, HR Tech, Series B

Prompt:

Use newsletter-creation-curation.
Context: HR tech VP Marketing, Series B, US-first, thought-leadership goal.
Create a bi-weekly issue outline and full draft with approval checkpoints and
source-backed claims only.

Example C: PMM, Fintech, Series B, India

Prompt:

Use newsletter-creation-curation.
Context: Fintech PMM, Series B, India-first, trust-building goal.
Build issue draft with compliance-safe language, IST send timing, and
manager/legal review checklist.

Fast Start (Agent Checklist)

1. Ask 5 decision-tree questions.
2. Select one industry template from templates/.
3. Produce issue blueprint (sections + word counts).
4. Draft issue using the workflow.
5. Apply role/compliance review.
6. Finalize send-time, amplification, and KPI targets.
7. If deeper strategy is needed, consult PLAYBOOK.md.