How Adam Ryan Grew WorkWeek To $1M+ Per Month and 500k+ Subscribers, Are Newsletter Recommendations a Ponzi Scheme? B2B vs. B2C Newsletters, How To Sell Ads If You Have a Small Audience, Paid Subscriber Acquisition, B2B Lead Gen, and More
Feb 23, 2024
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Learn how Adam Ryan grew WorkWeek to $1M+ per month and 500k+ subscribers, the debate on newsletter recommendations being a Ponzi scheme, B2B vs. B2C newsletters, selling ads with a small audience, strategies for paid subscriber acquisition, B2B lead gen tactics, maximizing audience potential, and prioritizing quality over quantity for newsletter subscribers.
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Quick takeaways
Strategic slow growth is vital for scalable ventures, while lifestyle businesses may benefit from an agency model.
Emphasize content-to-commerce strategies for revenue growth, aligning products with audience needs to drive engagement and sales.
For newsletter sponsorships, focus on aligning sponsorships with audience interests, creating habits that resonate with content.
Deep dives
Identifying Opportunity in B2B Content Creation
Starting Workweek in 2021, Adam Ryan identified a gap in quality B2B content targeting industry experts like chief people officers. By collaborating with industry experts, Workweek aims to deliver superior content for a niche audience, focusing on building brands and products that cater to specific roles within organizations.
Diversified Portfolio of Content Channels
Workweek boasts 10 newsletters, seven podcasts, and a significant number of events, conferences, and summits. With a subscriber base of approximately 510,000, the company's revenue, including non-ad revenue, has been growing substantially, with a focus on optimizing existing brands and channels for increased profitability.
Monetization Strategies Beyond Advertising
Workweek's focus on non-ad revenue growth, indicating a shift away from traditional advertising and sponsorship models. By emphasizing content-to-commerce strategies learned from past experiences, Workweek's approach highlights the significance of sparking emotion and trust to drive sales and audience engagement.
Content Strategy and Product Development
Adam Ryan emphasizes the importance of aligning content with audience needs and preferences to drive engagement and sales. Through surveys, testing, and iterative product development, Workweek aims to build products and services that solve specific problems and resonate with their target audience.
Navigating the World of Newsletter Sponsorships
While discussing the challenges and strategies for selling sponsorships, Adam Ryan shares insights on how B2C versus B2B newsletters differ in revenue potential. For beginners, he recommends focusing on audiences' interests and needs, leveraging relationships, and creating a habit of aligning sponsorships with the newsletter's content and audience preferences.
Adam Ryan is the co-founder and CEO of WorkWeek, a B2B media company with 10+ newsletter publications and communities across various industries like healthcare, marketing, sales, HR, e-commerce, and fintech.
Episode topics & Timestamps
00:00 How WorkWeek started
05:04 Audience indicators and your ideal customer profile (ICP)
07:32 Slow, strategic growth trumps rushing into big projects.
10:19 Different business growth approaches have varying scalability and repeatability. Lifestyle businesses may benefit from an agency model, but for larger, scalable ventures, ongoing growth and compounding the business are crucial.
14:40 Approach to product development, growth metrics
17:32 Thoughts on newsletter recommendation networks
22:13 The email inbox is more sensitive
24:46 Paid ads
26:47 Maximizing existing audience potential
31:17 Acquiring newsletter subscribers and the potential trade-offs involved.
35:05 Focus on quality over quantity for newsletter subscribers.
36:34 Organic growth and subscriber engagement
40:14 Traditional media
43:35 Higher ad revenue, lower churn, better LTV
47:45 Prioritize audience, seek feedback, and consider time constraints.