Reinventing the Entrepreneur by Maryellen Tribby: A Book Review

By Melissa Batai

Maryellen Tribby was a successful business woman making a fabulous salary when she had a breast cancer scare.  Luckily, after two weeks of testing she discovered she did not have breast cancer, but the scare was serious enough to make her realize her heart was not in her job; she wanted to start a business she had been thinking about for years.

She went on to create the website WorkingMomsOnly.com, and the key to her success was her in box magazine that goes out to her subscribers twice a week.

While the book Reinventingthe Entrepreneur:  Turning Your DreamBusiness into a Reality initially looks like another book teaching you how to start and run your own business, that is not what this book is about.  Sure, Tribby does spend some time discussing how to come up with a profitable business idea, but the heart of this book is about creating an in box magazine.

Whether you are starting your own business and want a way to reach your readers or you're a blogger trying to create a newsletter that can better reach your audience, you'll likely want to read this book.

Tribby's book is broken down into six parts.  Each part contains four or more chapters:

Part One:  The Who and the Why

In the opening few chapters, Tribby helps readers identify possible businesses to start as well as whether there is a market for the idea.  She also helps readers determine the ideal customer for their business.  Finally, she asks readers to find their direct and indirect competitors and details strategies for working with them.

Part Two:  Anatomy of Your Business

In this section, Tribby offers three business models and helps you decide which will work best for your business.  The rest of the section offers the nuts and bolts of developing an in box magazine including what design you should use as well as what companies you should consider utilizing for developing your in box magazine.  (She suggest starting with Aweber.)

Part Three:  The Useful and the Actionable

If you're wondering how to write the content, Tribby has suggestions for that in this section.  If you're worried that you won't have time or energy to fill a complete newsletter, don't worry, Tribby has you covered with her excellent suggestions for obtaining filler content. 

She also has suggestions for drawing more subscribers to your in box magazine.  Clearly Tribby is good at what she does, and she has excellent suggestions here for growing your in box magazine.

Part Four:  The Art and the Brilliance of a Community

Here, you'll learn how to develop a landing page that garners you more subscribers as well as other techniques for growing your in box magazine.  Part of the strength of this book is that Tribby makes it all seem so easy.

Part Five:  Finally, A Real Business of Your Own

By now, you've learned how to produce your in box magazine, develop content, and get new subscribers.  Now, Tribby comes to another important aspect, monetizing your in box magazine.  Tribby covers affiliate advertising, private advertising and sponsored content.  She also explains why you need a media kit and how to create one.

Part Six:  Big or Small, Your Choice

This last section is for after you've developed your in box magazine and it has grown substantially.  Tribby gives firm numbers for when you should hire help and what specific type of help you should hire at what times in your business journey.  She also covers when you may want to consider selling your business.

Is This Book Right for You?

If you're interested in developing a profitable newsletter/magazine for your business or blog, you'd likely benefit from this book.  From start to finish, Tribby covers all aspects and gives many suggestions you may not have considered before.  At 265 pages, this book is available in hardcopy or ebook forms and is rich in content and strategies.