Our Founder’s Story
You could say that I’ve always been an entrepreneur. When I was a kid, I spent my evenings mowing lawns and raking leaves. In high school, I decided to start my own pager company. Unfortunately, pagers were on their way out, and soon my business was too. But it gave me a taste of what I really wanted in life: to be a business owner.
My very first crack at a “real” business was a Woody’s Hot Dogs stand, located in the parking lot of a hardware store. During my first year, we sold over half a million dollars worth of dogs, but I quickly realized that despite my success, hot dogs weren’t my true calling. I sold the stand in 2002 and by the end of the year, I had taken up yet another franchise–this time in dry cleaning. That’s when I first got my start in newsletters.
As per the franchise contract, I was required to send out a monthly newsletter. Having never sent a newsletter before, I proceeded to send out the world’s worst newsletter for approximately two years. It was boring, it was unorganized, and rumor has it that some people still keep it by their bedsides… in case they encounter a bout of insomnia. I made the switch to a much more personal and entertaining newsletter and, just like magic, my readership levels exploded. I knew I was on to something.
When it came time to sell the dry cleaning company, I made a list of all the things that I enjoyed, that I was good at, and I believed in. Unsurprisingly, “newsletters” took the number one spot. I started Solution Marketers, a newsletter company, in 2011 and hired a small team to help me get it up and running. We focused on three products; birthday postcards for restaurants, new mover campaigns, and newsletters. However, about 18 months in, we realized that we needed to narrow our focus.
Why newsletters? Because we believed in them, we were passionate about them, and more importantly, we knew how to make them successful. In September 2012, we changed the name to The Newsletter Pro and by the time December rolled around, we had more than doubled in size. We’ve been on a path for growth ever since and we don’t plan on stopping now.
“Eliminate the negative, latch on to the affirmative, don’t mess with Mister In-Between.” Take it from Bing Crosby, life doesn’t always go the way we planned, but we’re determined to overcome those hurdles with a “can-do” attitude and a smile on our face. We don’t have “problems,” we have opportunities. We face challenges with optimism and we’re all about seeking the silver lining.
At The Newsletter Pro, no one person or position is more important or more worthy than another. We’re all working towards the same goal–so we give credit where credit is due, we own up to our mistakes, and we help each other out whenever we can. We know that ego can be the downfall of an otherwise successful business, so we check it at the door.
Two minds are better than one, but many minds are better than two. We work together as a team to solve problems, brainstorm new ideas, and make The Newsletter Pro the best it can possibly be. We thrive on innovation and we know that collaboration is key.
If our products and services don’t make our clients say, “Wow,” we haven’t done our job. We not only aim to please, we aim to astound — each and every time. We under-promise and over-deliver, we go the extra mile, and we always do more than we have to.
Communication is the key to success in any relationship, be it personal or professional, and we’re no exception. We keep our communication lines open, honest, and respectful. In a word: real. We encourage healthy debate and thrive on collaboration — but we also know when to take a step back and really listen.
Frankly, my dear, we give a damn! We genuinely care about our clients, each other, and our community. And that care shines through in everything we do–whether we’re sending a client a personalized gift, celebrating a co-worker’s accomplishments, or giving back to those around us, we don’t believe in “caring too much.” We’re passionate about positively impacting others and making a difference in our community.
The Newsletter Pro has more than tripled in size over the past several years — we’re moving faster than the speed of life and our Pros work hard to stay ahead of the curve. As the company races forward, changes directions, and rumbles along this roller coaster we call TNP, we’d better be able to hang on to our seats! In other words: to learn, improve, and grow right along with the company; to keep up with the velocity of the position; and to enjoy the ride!
When it comes to discovering our employees’ innate talents, we’re something of an expert. We encourage our employees to expand their horizons and discover their native genius, then, we help it grow. We provide them with the tools they need to make the most of their inherent skills, and, through internal projects and educational initiatives, we allow them to put those skills to good use.
We work hard, but we play hard too. We encourage our team members to have a good time within the walls of our company and beyond. We don’t mind if a fort pops up every now and then, if a Nerf battle ensues, or if a paper airplane building challenge breaks out in the middle of the day, because we’re advocates for self-expression! We believe that happy team members are infectious (birds of a feather, right?), and exactly the type of people we want to have around.
