Newsletter & Email Growth: Growth In Reverse

His private newsletter with 1.5k subs earns $1M ARR

34 snips

Aug 27, 2025

Nathan May, founder of The Feed Media, reveals how he transformed a small newsletter into a $1M ARR powerhouse within a year. He discusses the significance of niche communities in building trust and driving growth, as well as his unique revenue models before attracting sponsors. Nathan shares innovative monetization strategies, including the intriguing 'media mullet' concept, and emphasizes the importance of engaged subscribers over sheer numbers. His insights offer valuable lessons for anyone looking to elevate their newsletter game.

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ANECDOTE

How Mobile Apps Led Him To Newsletters

Nathan discovered newsletters after running a $15–20M mobile app portfolio and meeting founders who monetized newsletters.
That inspired him to explore newsletters as serious businesses beyond traditional VC paths.

ANECDOTE

The Neuron Acquisition That Almost Happened

Nathan nearly bought The Neuron and planned to apply Industry Dive-style monetization and affiliate funneling.
Losing the deal still shaped his strategy for owning and monetizing publications later.

INSIGHT

Small Lists Can Be Extremely Valuable

Small, niche lists can generate outsized revenue when audience quality and monetization align.
Nathan hit $1M ARR from roughly 1,000–1,500 subscribers by focusing on high-LTV offers.

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“You have to be first—or you have to be best. That's how you win at paid content." — Nathan May, The Feed Media

In this episode, we interview Nathan May, founder of The Feed Media.

Nathan shares how he turned a small, private newsletter into a $1M ARR business in under a year, and how his agency helps some of the biggest creators and media companies scale their audiences with paid growth.

We dig into the playbooks behind The Feed Media, the experiments that worked (and the ones that didn’t), and why even a small but mighty list can generate outsized revenue. Whether you’re looking to monetize a niche newsletter or scale a larger media brand, Nathan’s story offers a unique perspective on growth and revenue.

>>Get 30+ video lessons and ideas for optimizing your newsletter: https://growthinreverse.com/vault

KEY TAKEAWAYS

The surprising first step Nathan took before writing a single newsletter issue
Why building around a niche community gave him an unfair advantage
The revenue model he used before sponsors ever came knocking
How The Feed Media structured its first monetization funnel
The newsletter flywheel Nathan swears by for compounding growth
The counterintuitive move that actually boosted subscriber trust
Why his first 1,000 subs mattered the most
The overlooked channel that drove some of his fastest growth
How Nathan would start & scale a B2B newsletter today
The single most important metric he tracks inside The Feed Media

LINKS MENTIONED

TheFeedMedia.com
Nathan May on LinkedIn
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Thanks to Tim Forkin for editing these episodes.