E44: Ever wonder what it takes to skyrocket your newsletter from ground zero to an audience that hangs onto your every word? Many creators struggle with picking the perfect niche, nailing the right frequency, and snagging those elusive subscribers. But don't worry. Yong-Soo Chung (@YongSooChung) spoke to Matt McGarry (@JMatthewMcgarry), a newsletter expert and the mastermind behind the growth of some of the most successful newsletters out there including The Hustle, Milk Road, 1440 Media, and The Daily Upside. He shared tons of amazing insights and strategies.
On today’s episode, you’ll learn:
- Choosing Captivating Topics for Your Newsletter
- Finding the Sweet Spot for Newsletter Frequency
- Crafting Formats that Resonate with Your Audience
- Different Strategies for Growth at Various Stages
Let's get down to business!
***
SPONSOR:
Big thanks to Swell AI for sponsoring this episode. Swell AI is like having a production assistant 24/7. If you're a content creator, do yourself a favor and try Swell AI.
***
EXCERPTS:
The Growing Potential of Newsletters: "The behavior of reading newsletters every day or every week is still rapidly growing. There's really not a lot of big newsletter companies out there. So there's lots of room for growth, and everybody's still using email. It's not quite crowded yet" — Matt McGarry (06:53)
The Impact of Deep Expertise on Newsletter Success: "The newsletters that I see that grow the fastest and that have the most success are usually started by people who have deep, deep expertise." — Matt McGarry (08:28)
***
TOPICS:
- Clear Strategy for Building and Growing a Newsletter
- Discussion on Newsletter Topics, Frequency, and Format
- How to Acquire New Subscribers Through Paid Ads
- Best-performing Ads and Platforms for Different Growth Stages
- Perceptions and Trends in the Newsletter Industry
***
LINKS:
The Five Types of Indie Newsletter Business Models
Lettergrowth
JOIN: First Class Founders Premium Membership
DOWNLOAD: Hyper-Visuals For Our Episodes (Free)
***
FOLLOW / REVIEW:
- Follow
- Leave 5-star review
***
CONNECT W/ YONG-SOO:
- X
- Threads
- LinkedIn
- Newsletter
***
First Class Founders is a show for indie hackers, bootstrapped founders, CEOs, solopreneurs, content creators, startup entrepreneurs, and SaaS startups covering topics like build in public, audience growth, product marketing, scaling up, side hustles, holding company, etc.
Past guests include Arvid Kahl, Tyler Denk, Noah Kagan, Clint Murphy, Jay Abraham, Andrew Gazdecki, Matt McGarry, Nick Huber, Khe Hy, and more.
Episode you might like:
Future of Newsletters with Tyler Denk, Founder & CEO at Beehiiv
From Zero to 100K Subscribers: How to Grow Your Newsletter like a Pro with Newsletter Growth Expert Matt McGarry
...
First Class Founders: Creators | Solopreneurs | Personal HoldCo