From Zero to 100K Subscribers: How to Grow Your Newsletter like a Pro with Newsletter Growth Expert Matt McGarry
Aug 16, 2023
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Matt McGarry, a newsletter growth expert, shares insights on choosing captivating topics and finding the right frequency for newsletters. He also discusses crafting formats that resonate with the audience and strategies for growth. The podcast highlights the potential of newsletters and the impact of deep expertise on their success.
Newsletters still have a lot of growth potential as a medium and are not yet crowded in the market.
Choosing the right topic and sending newsletters on a weekly basis are key factors for successful newsletter growth.
Deep dives
The Hustle's Business Model and Jerome's Role in Scaling the Newsletter
The podcast episode discusses Jerome's experience at The Hustle, a newsletter company. They highlight the business model of sending one email a day with sponsorships as a main revenue source. Jerome was hired to lead scaling initiatives as The Hustle had already gained a sizable audience of 1.2-1.3 million subscribers. They were focused on growing their premium newsletter subscription called trends.co. Jerome successfully revamped their growth strategy and increased subscribers to 1-2 million with a smaller budget.
Jerome's Transformation into a Newsletter Growth Expert
The episode reveals how Jerome, also known as Matt McGarry, became a go-to expert in newsletter growth. He worked with notable clients like The Milk Road, The Daily Upside, and 1440 Media. The podcast highlights Matt's expertise in newsletter content, strategy, and monetization. He also founded the newsletter operator, which provides resources and runs the newsletter growth agency called GrowLetter. Their agency helps about 20 different newsletters grow through ad campaigns on platforms like Meta, Twitter, and TikTok.
Choosing the Right Topic, Frequency, and Format for Your Newsletter
The episode advises on selecting the right topic for a newsletter. It suggests leveraging personal expertise, focusing on emerging trends, or reverse engineering a business objective. It also recommends sending newsletters on a weekly basis, allowing enough time for creating engaging content and nurturing subscriber habits. Furthermore, the podcast explores different newsletter formats such as expert newsletters, curation-focused newsletters, reporter-style newsletters, analyst newsletters, and writer-type newsletters, providing examples and insights.
Strategies for Growing Your Newsletter Subscribers
The episode delves into growth strategies for newsletters at various stages. It emphasizes starting with grassroots marketing to gain initial subscribers and using social media platforms like Twitter and LinkedIn for distribution. As the subscriber count grows, the podcast suggests leveraging recommendations and cross-promotions with similar newsletters in terms of size and topic. Paid advertising on platforms like Meta, Twitter, TikTok, Quora, and Google Ads is also recommended based on audience targeting and user quality. Lastly, it mentions the value of using referral programs and discoverability platforms to boost subscriber acquisition.
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
*** 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.