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Sample stakeholder 'update' email

Melissa Stefaniak

Anyone sending routine 'update' emails to your stakeholders and willing to share an example with me? I'm curious to understand tone, length, general content and if you include any 'asks.' 

Thanks!

Melissa

  • 0

    We are just about to pull one together!  I'd love to get in on this action and see what others are coming up with!  

    Even better -- has anyone received feedback from stakeholders on what works/doesn't work in what you send out?  If not, do ya think Jason/David or another mentor-type-person would be willing to critique and give suggestions?

    Want these to be positive to both stakeholders and venture...

  • 0

    I'm writing one now. I guess we all thought that was a great idea when we heard it in the workshop yesterday :) I'll share mine as soon as I have it ready. I'm not including any specific asks, but am definitely outlining the main problems we are tackling to give the opportunity for a stakeholder to chime in with advice, a contact, or a solution if one is obvious to him/her. 

  • 0

    I'd love to see what you all come up with too! I want to create a framework that I can use so I'm not starting from scratch each time. 

  • 0

    [I think it'd be easiest to share information right here...]

    I try to send an update to my mentors every Thursday. Subject is "Murray B. - Update #___" and I include 3-5 bullet notes. I typically don't include asks in this update email. Those usually come in a followup email or in-person meeting but sometimes I'll throw in a loose ask as a prompt for them to start thinking about a specific topic. Some examples of my bullets below. 

    ---------
    1) MANUFACTURING : Still my biggest hurdle. Both US factories got me prototypes this week (canvas, which you saw, and nylon), which is great news even though there are tons of edits to be made before I can get a price list.  I anticipate 2-3 rounds of edits with each. I am gathering more information about embroidery and patches so that the front flap of the stations are ready to roll for customizations.
    ---------
    4) BOOTH DISPLAY : This afternoon we have a Venture Fair for some Darden alumni. One of my major challenges I've had is being pigeon-holed as a 'leather company' when people see our current Murray Belt collection (which is, of course, leather).  I feel much better about this afternoon's booth display compared to the others I have done over the past few months, as I have a more protoypes and materials to display.
    ---------
    3) RENTING MURRAY BELTS? : I'm exploring the possibility of renting my current leather Murray Belts through the website. I am sitting on inventory and figured I might as well get them out in to the world somehow. No idea how to streamline logistics but I have it on my list for next week to figure out.
    ---------
    2) WEBSITE : I've been able to check out the backend of a few different e-commerce platforms from other incubatees to help determine which is best for Murray B. Getting there. 
    ---------
    3) PATENT : A provisional utility patent is being filed today. "SHOULDER/RIB CARRYING SYSTEM WITH MODULAR, INTERCHANGEABLE  POUCHES" will soon be patent pending.
    ---------
    1) DESIGN : I sent off my proto edits to the factories today and my design changes to the stations are pretty significant but should alleviate some of the common problems I've received from customers. After more customer discovery and talks with travel retailers, the Murray Belt system will be sold initially as a 3-piece system - belt base, and two stations. 
    ---------
    1) PREORDER : I've thrown some pre-order links up on the website and have gotten 2. Progress! Interns are building out a new website now and as soon as I can get some actual product photography I'll try and push some pre-orders. 
  • 0

    Hey All - has anyone else put an "update" email together and wants to share? I'm unable to attach mine to this vlab but I have a hardcopy at my desk and happy to share with anyone interested

  • 0 in reply to Lyon McCandless

    Dear Friends of DataClassroom,
    The early prototype is getting very positive responses from teachers!

    Earlier this month we presented DataClassroom Beta to a group of 15 middle and high school biology teachers from across the Mid-Atlantic region at UVA’s Mountain Lake Biological Station. We learned a lot about our product and set our building agenda based on feedback from teachers. The biggest surprise was that AP biology teachers are ready to use DataClassroom right now, as is! We encouraged workshop participants to share DataClassroom with colleagues and were delighted to see additional teachers registering passwords since the workshop ended. This is an exciting time as we transition from testing the app with potential users to working with early adopters.

    Growing in the iLab@UVA

    The supportive start-up community in the iLab incubator program this summer has given us a big push. Connections made in the iLab have led us to productive talks with future customers and helped us to improve our market fit as we move DataClassroom towards becoming a tool that fits in well to science classrooms everywhere. You are invited to stop by and see us at the iLab's Incubator Showcase on August 9 (RSVP here) from 5:30-7:30.

    Students in grades 6-12 from WeCodeToo gave us valuable feedback at a focus group demo session hosted by the iLab.

    Upcoming Events

    Next week, Aaron will be traveling to Chicago to speak about DataClassroom at the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) STEM Institute and meet with science administrators at the University of Chicago and at high schools in the area. Additionally, we are working with CPS to prepare for full day workshop in the fall with 25 CPS educators teaching Advanced Placement science courses.

    Our ask right now:

    We are working to get the prototype used by as many teachers as possible and talk with schools that want DataClassroom to provide professional development for teachers. If you have a contact at a school that might be interested in working with DataClassroom, we would love to be introduced.

    Thanks again for your continued support of DataClassroom in ways big and small. We thank you for helping us to help teachers make good things happen in the science classroom.

    What does DataClassroom do again?

    DataClassroom is a web-based app that engages students with data in the grade 6-12 science classroom. Students learn data analysis by doing data analysis and see each step in the process with visualizations. Teachers meet the demands of the Next Generation Science Standards while building data skills for the next generation.

    Best, Aaron

  • 0 in reply to Lyon McCandless

    Dear Friends of DataClassroom,
    The early prototype is getting very positive responses from teachers!

    Earlier this month we presented DataClassroom Beta to a group of 15 middle and high school biology teachers from across the Mid-Atlantic region at UVA’s Mountain Lake Biological Station. We learned a lot about our product and set our building agenda based on feedback from teachers. The biggest surprise was that AP biology teachers are ready to use DataClassroom right now, as is! We encouraged workshop participants to share DataClassroom with colleagues and were delighted to see additional teachers registering passwords since the workshop ended. This is an exciting time as we transition from testing the app with potential users to working with early adopters.

    Growing in the iLab@UVA

    The supportive start-up community in the iLab incubator program this summer has given us a big push. Connections made in the iLab have led us to productive talks with future customers and helped us to improve our market fit as we move DataClassroom towards becoming a tool that fits in well to science classrooms everywhere. You are invited to stop by and see us at the iLab's Incubator Showcase on August 9 (RSVP here) from 5:30-7:30.

    Students in grades 6-12 from WeCodeToo gave us valuable feedback at a focus group demo session hosted by the iLab.

    Upcoming Events

    Next week, Aaron will be traveling to Chicago to speak about DataClassroom at the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) STEM Institute and meet with science administrators at the University of Chicago and at high schools in the area. Additionally, we are working with CPS to prepare for full day workshop in the fall with 25 CPS educators teaching Advanced Placement science courses.

    Our ask right now:

    We are working to get the prototype used by as many teachers as possible and talk with schools that want DataClassroom to provide professional development for teachers. If you have a contact at a school that might be interested in working with DataClassroom, we would love to be introduced.

    Thanks again for your continued support of DataClassroom in ways big and small. We thank you for helping us to help teachers make good things happen in the science classroom.

    What does DataClassroom do again?

    DataClassroom is a web-based app that engages students with data in the grade 6-12 science classroom. Students learn data analysis by doing data analysis and see each step in the process with visualizations. Teachers meet the demands of the Next Generation Science Standards while building data skills for the next generation.

    Best, Aaron