Axios HQ resource library for new users

Share these quick-start assets to get colleagues up and running

Training and onboarding new folks to your Axios HQ account can be time consuming. That’s why we’ve put together some helpful resources to help you get new users up and running in the tool, faster and more efficiently.

How to use Axios HQ

The below resources can help new users reflect on their comms strategy, use HQ to optimize it, and understand best practices to get the most out of each send.

• The Getting Started Guide provides step-by-step exercises to planning and sending your first HQ update.

• Axios HQ’s Playbook is a quick-start guide to using HQ. Fill in the blanks to quickly add your org’s specific details to get new users started, faster.

• The Smart Brevity Checklist gives an overview of the science-backed writing style, why it works, and how to implement it in any communication. Go deeper:
  • Smart Brevity 101 - How to find and refine your audience
  • Smart Brevity 101 - How to kick off every essential communication
  • Smart Brevity 101 - How to optimize an essential communication

• Our Best Time to Send report offers guidance on the send windows that can spark the most engagement for your update.
  
  

Tailored content for each user

Sometimes, the hardest part about building an effective communication is knowing what to put in it. Axios HQ’s Smart Outlines do the work for you, tackling the blank page problem with suggested outlines and thought starters – tailored for your role and audience.

For your C-Suite, Founder, or Executive

Consider a weekly high-level update to keep the org aligned around what matters most. A suggested outline:

1. Strategic vision. Share the overarching business goals and objectives for the upcoming quarter or year.
2. Organizational updates. Highlight any significant changes in leadership, structure, or processes.
3. Employee success stories. Recognize outstanding performance or key contributions by team members.
4. Corporate culture initiatives. Update on programs focused on promoting a positive work environment and fostering employee growth.
5. Partnerships and collaborations. Announce new partnerships or collaborations that drive business opportunities.

For your Chief of Staff or Operations leaders

Consider a weekly org-wide update to keep employees informed on the latest happenings. A suggested outline:

1. Process improvements. Highlight recent changes to internal processes or workflows and their positive impact on efficiency and productivity.
2. Cross-department collaboration. Showcase successful projects or initiatives resulting from teamwork across different departments.
3. Organizational growth. Provide updates on company expansion plans, new office locations, or team restructuring to keep everyone informed about changes to the organizational structure.
4. Training and development opportunities. Share upcoming training sessions, workshops, or resources to foster personal and professional growth among employees.
5. Policy updates. Communicate any changes to company policies, procedures, or guidelines, ensuring employees understand the implications and their responsibilities.

For your HR or People Ops leaders

Consider a monthly update to share updates, initiatives, and fun moments that drive the org’s culture. A suggested outline:

1. Recruitment and retention update. Discuss the recent hires, open positions, and strategies to maintain talent.
2. Training and development initiatives. Showcase recent or upcoming workshops, courses, and skill-building opportunities for employees.
3. Diversity, equity, and inclusion. Share the latest initiatives or updates on creating a more diverse and inclusive work environment.
4. Workplace policies and updates. Introduce new or updated HR policies or guidelines that are important for employees.
5. Employee satisfaction and feedback. Present the results and insights from employee engagement surveys or feedback sessions, or offer a poll in the tool to gather it.

For your Marketing or PR team leaders

Consider a monthly update to stakeholders on the progress and impact of key programs. A suggested outline:

1. Campaign performance. Analyze the effectiveness of a recent marketing or PR campaign, including key metrics and insights.
2. New marketing collateral. Showcase and explain recently developed marketing assets (e.g., brochures, whitepapers, webinars).
3. Content marketing update. Report on blog performance, most popular posts, and content strategy insights.
4. Event recap. Sum up key event takeaways and the impact of the company's own event or presence at a recent conference, expo, or trade show.
5. Social media roundup. Highlight the top-performing social media content from the past month and key takeaways for future content.

For your Communications leaders 

Consider a monthly update to share org-wide wins, programs, and opportunities that keeps staff aligned. A suggested outline:

1. Communication success stories. Highlight recent examples of effective internal communication and its impact on the organization.
2. Department spotlights. Showcase the work and achievements of individual departments, emphasizing collaboration and shared goals.
3. Communication tools and technologies. Introduce new or underutilized internal communication tools and best practices for using them.
4. Thought leadership. Share insights from industry events, conferences, or external articles that are relevant to the organization's communication strategy.
5. Feedback and suggestions. Encourage employees to participate in shaping the future of internal communications by requesting their ideas, feedback, and suggestions.

For your Sales or Customer Success leaders

Consider a weekly update to stakeholders on pipeline progress, goals, and key learnings. A suggested outline:

1. How we’re pacing. Highlight the current status of your key metrics, path to your monthly or quarterly goals, and any flags to getting there.
2. Sales achievements. Highlight top performers, along with details about their wins and strategies
3. Showcase new client wins. Highlight recent notable clients and how they can impact the company.
4. Key lessons from customer feedback. Share valuable insights gathered from customer feedback, with action plans to address the concerns.
5. Market analysis. Update on competition, emerging trends, and potential business opportunities.

For your Finance leaders

Consider a monthly update to stakeholders on key financials and overall business health. A suggested outline:

1. Financial performance. Report on revenue growth, profitability, and cash flow during the latest quarter.
2. Budgeting update. Insights and adjustments in departmental budgets and spending.
3. Cross-functional collaboration. Successful stories on client or process wins as a result of collaboration between departments.
4. Employee spotlight. Highlight an exceptional employee from the Finance department and share their accomplishments and expertise.

For your Product, Design, or Engineering leaders

Consider a bi-monthly update to the organization on the progress of major projects or upcoming launches. A suggested outline:

1. Design thinking. Showcasing a case study in which an empathetic approach to problem-solving led to innovative solutions and improvements.
2. Customer feedback loop. Discuss how valuable customer insights are being utilized to inform product enhancements and developments.
3. Performance updates. Delve into recent optimizations to improve the speed, reliability, and overall performance of our products.
4. Design sprints. A recap on the recent design sprint outcomes, highlighting key takeaways and opportunities for future improvements.
5. Feature prioritization. Walk through the process of how features are prioritized and the rationale behind the decisions.