src=”https://buffer.com/resources/content/images/2023/08/austin-distel-Imc-IoZDMXc-unsplash–1-.jpg” alt=”How I Built a Profitable Newsletter Business”>
In December 2022 I started to crave something else. I was working for a Venture Capital company and felt the urge to start something new.
I worked as a portfolio manager at the firm and was responsible for all of the founder relationships. In my relationships with founders, I observed a common trend: they are not different from anyone else.
I think anyone can start a business as long as they are self-aware and have the drive to overcome obstacles.
After a stint in Venture Capital I began applying the market research knowledge I had gained to my own life. I built three successful online music businesses, of which one was sold successfully in 2021.
I’ve always tried to balance having jobs with online businesses. I believe it is important to diversify your income streams, because you never know when you might lose your job or the market may change.
I’ve always had a problem with the concept of “more”. After working hard for a while at a particular company, I want to do more.
Exploding Ideas.co.uk is my next thought.
ExplodingIdeas.co, my weekly newsletter on startup ideas, explores emerging trends and market gaps. I show readers how to take advantage of these opportunities.
The growth of newsletters
In January 2023 I noticed a rise in the reception of niche newsletters. Milk Road, a niche newsletter, made headlines recently for selling for more than $1,000,000 to a private equity company after just ten months in business. TheRundown.ai was launched shortly after and skyrocketed to popularity. It is now on track to make $1,000,000/year in just four months.
The insane interest in the newsletter was enough to convince me. The fact that these newsletters are so popular and can be monetized is what convinced me.
After four months I made thousands of dollars profit with my niche newsletter ExplodingIdeas.co. How I did it, and how you too can do it!
Identifying my newsletter niche
After I decided to build my own newsletter I had to decide what trend I would be able to take advantage of. Milk Road was successful because it took advantage of crypto’s peak popularity. The Rundown also benefited when AI was in high demand.
Even if there wasn’t a bubble in the market, I needed to find something that had momentum so I could easily attract people through an interest already present on the market.
In April 2023 there was much uncertainty in the market. AI was threatening to further displace jobs, tech firms were laying workers off, and the stock exchange was heavily corrected by rising interest rates.
When there is fear and uncertainty in the marketplace, people will be faced with pay reductions and possibly being laid off. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs becomes very important.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is a psychological theory that consists of a five-tiered model of human need, which is often represented as a pyramid of hierarchical levels. It describes how, when faced with the prospect that they will lose their income which allows them put food on their table and shelter above their heads, this becomes their only thought.
It happens every time the market goes down.
I used that feeling as my motivation and created a newsletter that would give people detailed insights into online business trends that they could use as a side gig. It would allow those who were motivated to act to create their own online business with only a computer. This could also be a solution for those worried about the market’s more serious decline.
I’d built up a few side hustles and done market research for Universal Music Publishing Group over the years. This knowledge was perfect to incorporate into my newsletter, and I felt the timing was right.
Building an initial audience
I found a social media channel that was organic to promote my newsletter. This allowed me to get free subscribers.
Since newsletters are content-based businesses and I was unsure of how to monetize them, I did not want to subsidize the acquisition of subscribers via ads, as I thought that this would be an unsustainable way of acquiring new subscribers. To grow a business without an immediate revenue model, I had to find a way to grow for free.
In the past I have built several businesses using Facebook private groups and Reddit. I posted valuable content, and then funneled traffic to my landing page. I decided to follow the same route with this. Facebook isn’t nearly as popular as it once was, so I chose to test out Reddit for my organic growth.
Many people were looking at subreddits such as r/Entrepreneur and asking how to create their own side hustles. They were also asking how other people created side hustles which ultimately led them to earn a living. After a few posts, I responded with my own advice about how to find business ideas that could be capitalized on. Then, after providing my advice, I linked to my newsletter to provide more resources.
I slept, woke up and was surprised – people seemed interested! While I was asleep, I received 50 signups.
I decided to double down on my strategy and see how fast I could get 1,000 subscribers. I reached 1,000 subscribers in just 12 days, and spent zero dollars on customer acquisition.
Then, I thought that I could make money if I listened to what the community wanted, and charged for it.
Making it a business
It was difficult to launch paid features. I was unsure how people would react to the change, as everything up to this point had been free.
After three months, and with 5,000 subscribers I launched a paid subscription for subscribers who wanted to get deep insights into business ideas.
There are two levels:
- Tier one was freemium. Subscribers get access to a high-level research on business ideas every Sunday.
- Tier two includes the Sunday Business Idea Research and the Tuesday Deep Dive. The Tuesday Deep Dive provides SEO opportunities, Google trends data, business ideas and case studies of successful people who have already pursued the idea.
I launched tier 2 because my community of subscribers kept emailing me to ask for more information so that they could take action on the ideas and suggestions I sent.
It was not exciting to see only eight people sign up on the day of launch. However, new subscribers began arriving every day which was encouraging. I realized that it was necessary to have a long-term view when onboarding subscribers. Since then, the site has grown a lot.
I was surprised to learn that readers immediately began emailing me with requests for new features. I was contacted by readers who wanted to talk to me on the phone to discuss their ideas. Other readers were businesses and wanted to sponsor my newsletter.
Both features were added as new features. I let companies sponsor the weekly newsletter, and gave people the opportunity to meet with me one-on-one to discuss their ideas and strategies.
The business benefited immediately from these two new revenue streams. My first consulting gig came within three days, and my first sponsorship of my newsletter was in the first seven days after I launched my business.
Making your newsletter profitable and sustainable
It was easy to start making money early by acquiring subscribers via Reddit.
I initially spent around $1,200 for a subscription to an email service provider (for a year subscription), a domain and a MidJourney membership (to create the logo).
As I kept my costs low at the start, I was forced to be a scrappy business owner and bootstrap the company. Since I was funding this myself, I had to do everything cheaply, including developing the logo, art, fonts and other elements. In the first two weeks after turning on monetization, I was profitable.
These subscribers were given away for free on Reddit, which made them come to my website and subscribe independently. This was a completely organic process. I did not retarget these subscribers with ads. My open and engagement rates are high.
This was the result of my very first newsletter article, which always includes polls.
Engagement and retention are key to success
It is impossible to overstate the importance of user retention and engagement in the newsletter industry. The success of a newsletter depends on its readers. Maintaining high click-through and open rates is crucial for its success.
To keep subscribers interested, I sent weekly polls with interactive content. This approach was well received by the readers as it created a sense community and involvement. This gave me valuable feedback and insights into the content and topics that resonated most with my readers.
To reduce churn I monitored the open and click-through rate of emails. If a subscriber had not opened an email for a while, then I would send them a personal email asking what else they wanted to see. This personal touch did wonders to retain subscribers and sparked many new ideas for content.
Advice for future newsletter operators
The moment I reached 5,000 subscribers in three months was one of my greatest. It was incredible to see my hard work validated and appreciated by thousands.
The journey was not always easy. There were times of slow growth, and I even questioned if this was a viable venture. I remember when we launched the paid plan, and I was anxiously awaiting sign-ups. We had eight in the first day. These moments challenged my resolve and taught that rewards don’t always come in an instant.
The biggest lesson I learned from this experience is that it is crucial to understand your audience. Each step that I took to success was the result of listening to my subscribers and tailoring content and services to their needs.
My advice to those who are considering a similar route is to choose a niche that you love and concentrate on producing high-quality content. Remember to be patient as you grow and that your subscribers are more than just numbers. These are real people, with questions, interests and a desire for knowledge. They will reward you for treating them with loyalty if you treat them like that.
Did you miss our previous article…
https://onlinemarketingagencies.net/all-about-threads-what-you-need-to-know-about-instagrams-new-app/
Leave a Reply