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client-colleague-cycle.md

client-colleague-cycle.md

# The Client-Colleague Cycle ## Hook What if you could write one newsletter that serves both your customers AND your colleagues? ## The Insight Most businesses run two comms tracks: - External newsletter → "Buy our stuff" - Internal updates → "Hit your numbers" Both audiences tune out. **Storyselling proposes radical transparency**: one newsletter where clients see how you're building for them, and colleagues see the impact they're having. ## Why It Works Microsoft didn't build .NET in a vacuum. They created a 34-year conversation with developers — sharing roadmaps, celebrating wins, acknowledging failures. When Ballmer stood on stage in 2002 saying "Developers, developers, developers," those developers already felt like owners. That's the Client-Colleague Cycle: - **Clients** → provide insights about what they actually need - **Colleagues** → build better products based on those insights - **Clients** → see the value and stay loyal - **Repeat** ## The Takeaway "Customers can become your best colleagues. Colleagues can become your best customers." ## Related - [[research/storyselling]] — Full methodology breakdown - Rabbit Hole: `/rabbit-holes/storyselling/` ## Tags `#newsletter` `#story-tenet` `#methodology`