#85 The Least Boring Weekly Newsletter

May 04, 2022 • Estimated Reading Time: 12 minutes

Good morning readers! 🌞

Hope your week is filled with love and plenty of love 💕

‘It's most prominent customer’ Authentic Brands Group (ABG), which owns dozens of retail brands. ABG alleged that San Francisco-based Bolt failed to deliver the technology 👩‍💻 that it promised and that it missed out on over $150 million in online sales during the company’s integration with fashion retailer, Forever 21. Big oof. On top of that, ABG’s complaint went on to say that Bolt had raised funding ‘at increasingly high valuations’ by “consistently overstating” the nature of its integrations with the company’s brands to make it seem like it had more customers than it actually did.

Almund’s newsletter will let you in on all kinds of tips for D2C brands and much much more.

Alright, so let’s get right to it!

This newsletter is going to dive into:

🥇 Specialise First, Then Diversify as a Startup Founder.

👨‍⚕️ Mental Health Awareness Month Begins!

👩‍🎓Too many MBAs are running companies

📖 Top Reads of the week

👨‍💼 Plenty of jobs await you!

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WHAT'S COOKING, HUH?

Specialize First, Then Diversify as a Startup Founder

As a startup founder, you’re sure to have a formidable imagination and prescient of your enterprise that spans past a single product or perhaps a sector. In any case, startups are about excessive upside potential. Unambitious individuals aren’t the type of people who find themselves drawn to construct these kinds of businesses.

The juxtaposition of specialization versus diversification shouldn’t be new and has been in the middle of many heated debates between economists for a long time. Megginson et al. (2004) performed research on Enterprise Efficiency After Mergers that studies a correlation between efficiency and the diploma of focus. At a similar time, there are apparent advantages to a variety of providers, such as publicity to new markets and dangerous discounts ☠️.

Diversifying too early into too many domains can lead to a dilution of your efforts and a failure to get substantial outcomes from most of your undertakings. The truth is, attempting to attract a too-broad market is among the commonest startup advertising and marketing errors. Listed below are the two explanations:

1. Your Assets Are Restricted

The biggest drawback with diversifying your efforts too early is that you must allocate your restricted assets rigorously to succeed. Ergo, for each new vertical you spend money on, it deprives the primary vertical of the enterprise of those assets. That is dangerous, especially within the early startup phases, your fundamental providing can use all of the funding of assets it may get.

Many founders make the error of investing in diversification too early when attempting to mimic the sea of established manufacturers swimming in profits. Nonetheless, what they fail to know is that these manufacturers are at a special developmental stage.

Henry Ford famously mentioned that his clients can have “any (automotive) shade as long as it’s black”. He was quick to realize his fundamental benefit is producing low-cost automobiles 🚘, and then rightfully paid attention closely to that, forgoing different product options. Later, when the Ford Motor Firm established itself, it began giving its customers options. Nonetheless, doing so from early on may have been a giant mistake—within the early phases of an enterprise, complexity is your enemy.

2. Diversifying Hinders The Institution Of A Model

Differentiating your services and products from the established players in the DTC market is the only chance at survival your startup model gets. And one of the best ways to distinguish yourself is by learning what makes your model distinctive.

By diversifying too early, you would unwittingly enter into a league of direct competitors that are allied with established manufacturers in the marketplace. Naturally, this isn’t a suitable step to take as their assets and better model loyalty will rid you of any market value.

To sidestep direct competitors, early-stage startups are better off specializing in their distinctive proposition. The query shouldn’t be ‘whether or not, but ‘when’ to diversify. Begin by fixing just one user problem better than anybody else in the marketplace and then move on to the other. Specialize first, then diversify.

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Mental Health Awareness Month Begins!

The crisis of 2020 made everyone realize just how important mental health is, especially in the workplace. Be it physical problems from being in the office to mental stress from unmanaged workplace processes; a lot can affect your employees’ mental well-being, leading to hazardous consequences.

Let’s Paint The Picture 🖼️

Mental Health Awareness is the need of the hour at workspaces. Increasing workload, unjust workplace practices, inadequate compensation, workplace harassment, and absence of inclusive practices in the office—a lot can lead to employees feeling stressed and concerned, often pushing them to quit.

Here are some stats that best describe just how much stress leads to the loss of talent to companies in the US.

➡️ A whopping 94% of professional workers have reported feeling unusually high-stress levels.

➡️ And this has only increased as generations move on; 3/4th of corporate workers today believe so.

➡️ Anger, resentment, and worry are the common emotions most 15 to 50-year-olds feel in the US at the moment.

➡️ Owing to this, 16% of the corporate workforce is forced to quit their jobs.

Mental Health at the workplace is serious business. And the quicker companies are to address this issue, the faster they can equip themselves to take better care of their employees, leading to higher success rates.

But how can you integrate menthol health awareness and enhancement practices into your existing business process cycle? We’ve got you (just like always).

We’ve put together some business practices that one can implement in their organization, from small to large scale businesses.

🤝🏻 Act As You Say

Instead of simply stating that you support mental health, act accordingly too. Start by setting work boundaries and prioritizing breaks to set an example for your teammates. This will also help avoid burnout while you, as a manager or representative, take care of them.

📞 Ensure Check-Ins

Often, companies don’t have the financial resources to help employees get insurance or aid to cover therapy. If you’re a business of the like, ensure you routinely check in with your team. If you notice someone struggling mentally, make sure to take time out to speak to them, let them know that you’re there to help, relieve them of some responsibilities, and provide support.

Even if you’re not a financially pressed company, routine check-ins are necessary.

📋 Include Mental Health Care In Your Company Care Plans

If your employees aren’t aware of mental health resources being a part of the organization's health care plan, they’ll simply skip it. Ditch the fine print and communicate with them effectively. Let them know of the extra days off, mental health coverage, regular assessment, etc.

🌱 You Can Provide The Resources

If you’re not able to help your employees with financial aid, invest in an in-house counselor. You can hire a trained professional to help your employees feel better in the workplace and effectively manage their stress levels.

Another way you could help your employees (that isn’t monetary aid) is through effective research. Create an organized bank of resources that contains links to nearby mental healthcare centers, local service providers, insurance agents with flexible or low-cost plans, etc.

📝 Change Policies

There is no harm in changing your organization's policies a few times if it helps your employees’ mental health. Moreover, it’ll only build trust, empathy, and loyalty. Ensure you’re inclusive in your new policies and cover all of your employees’ needs and requirements while ensuring the business processes don’t take a hit.

➕ Be Inclusive At The Office

It’s the little things that count. Something as simple as gender-neutral bathrooms and wheelchair assistance built into the office space’s design is a great addition to the workplace that makes your employees feel welcomed; a break room designed to relax your employees makes them feel better during their work break. Small steps to being an inclusive space can bring about a lot of change.

The fight against mental illnesses is challenging and alarming in every instance. That's one more reason why organizations must work closely with their employees to tackle the problem together.

So in the next edition, we’re packing in some great examples! You’ll find some great lessons from the leading corporate giants, DTC businesses, and service-based organizations on effective mental health practices.

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Video Bites: All Things DTC!

(Yes, we’re introducing a new section to our newsletter. We’ll break down interesting podcasts, summarize informative videos that often have people dozing off, and talk about DTC ads that were a hit! And today, we’ve got something special.)

Watch the complete video here: Too Many MBAs Are Ruining Companies

Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk says that the biggest problem with corporate America today is that too many business school graduates are running the show. “I think there might be too many MBAs running companies”, said Musk.

🎯 According to Musk, MBA graduates favor numbers on sheets more than innovative products on the table, losing sight of their mission to create amazing products or services.

🎯 Musk said the biggest mistake he has made as a leader of both Tesla and SpaceX was spending too much time in meetings looking at PowerPoints and spreadsheets, instead of being out on the factory floor.

🎯 "When I go spend time on the factory floor or using the cars or thinking about the rockets...that's where things have gone better," Musk added on, at the WSJ summit. He finds that if he is engrossed in the details of the issues, it boosts morale and his team is "more energized".

🎯 To conclude, Musk urged CEOs to "get out there on the goddamn front line and show them that you care and that you're not just in some plush office somewhere."

He’s definitely one for actions, as Tesla’s stock price and market cap have grown over the last several months, making him worth an estimated $157 billion, according to Bloomberg's Billionaire Index.

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TOP READS FOR THIS WEEK

Facebook's removing support for podcasts.

Tik Tok announces new features and programming for API Heritage.

Google launches new training and education initiatives for National Small Business Week.

Amazon highlights freevee, virtual product placement at In-person NewFronts debut.

YouTube announces partnership with Paramount at a kickoff event.

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IN NEED OF A JOB? WE'VE GOT A PLENTY AWAITING YOU!

SEO Specialist - Nesco Resource

Growth Marketing Manager - Google

Digital Marketing Specialist - TEAM LEWIS