Send & Grow by SparkLoop

Welcome back to another episode of the Send & Grow podcast. This week, SparkLoop's Dylan Redekop chats with Anthony Castrio of the Bot Eat Brain newsletter.

Anthony launched Bot Eat Brain (BEB) in Sept. '22 alongside his full-time project, Indie Worldwide. Despite BEB being a side project, Anthony earned over $50k in revenues for 2023 and scaled growth to over 20k+ subscribers—going from 1k to 20k in 4 months!

In this episode, Dylan & Anthony discuss…

• The Birth of Bot Eat Brain: Uncovering the initial spark that led Anthony to dive into the AI newsletter space.
• Growth Strategies: How Anthony grew his newsletter from 1,000 to over 20,000 subscribers—in 4 months!
• Secrets to Monetization: Navigating the challenges and triumphs in building a profitable newsletter.
• Building a Content Team: The behind-the-scenes look at how Anthony assembled a winning writing crew.
• Envisioning the Future: Anthony's ambitious plans for Bot Eat Brain and the potential game-changers on the horizon.

...and much more

Other links mentioned
Bot Eat Brain newsletter
Anthony on Twitter/X
Anthony on LinkedIn
Dylan on Twitter/X

Welcome back to another episode of the Send & Grow podcast. This week, SparkLoop's Dylan Redekop chats with Dan Barry of the Revenews newsletter.

Dan has managed brand partnerships for major media businesses like Finimize and The Daily Upside where he was responsible for bringing in over $3M in ad sales revenue in just over 3 years.

In this episode, Dylan & Dan discuss…

• How to prospect for ideal brand partners—and how to know if they're ready to advertise.
• Dan's 5-step approach to newsletter ad sales, from Prospecting all the way to Post-sale management.
• How to manage expectations during the sales process—and what to do if an ad flops.
• The number one thing to do before you share ad pricing. 
• What Dan is doing now with his latest Revenews newsletter venture—and why you should pay attention.

...and much more

Other links mentioned
Revenews newsletter
Dan on Twitter/X
Dan on LinkedIn
Dylan on Twitter/X

Welcome back to another episode of the Send & Grow podcast. This week, SparkLoop's Dylan Redekop chats with Amanda Goetz of the Life's a Game newsletter.

Amanda's journey in the newsletter world is as fascinating as it is instructive. From her experiences in marketing and entrepreneurship to finding her unique voice in the newsletter space, she shares valuable insights from reaching 20k subscribers in a few months while maintaining a high engagement rate and driving revenue. 

In this episode, Dylan & Amanda discuss…

• The two most important things Amanda considered when choosing her newsletter niche—and why.
• How Amanda scaled newsletter growth while maintaining incredible engagement levels.
• Amanda's clever Octopus vs. Swordfish approach to sponsorship sales & monetization.
• Her 90-10 Rule when it comes to content—and what makes a newsletter a "must-read".  
• Amanda's advice on starting a newsletter—including content creation, audience building, and staying authentic.
• Her vision for the future of newsletters and what she believes to be the biggest opportunities for growth in 2024.

...and much more

Other links mentioned
Life's A Game newsletter
AmandaGoetz.com
Break An Egg newsletter
Amanda on Twitter/X
Amanda on LinkedIn
Dylan on Twitte/X

Welcome back to another episode of the Send & Grow podcast. This week, podcast host Dylan Redekop sits down with Tiffany Uman, a career coach and workplace expert, and the creator of the Peak Performers newsletter.

With her Peak Performers newsletter, Tiffany channels her wealth of experience from her time at L'Oreal into empowering others in their careers. She's a member of the Forbes Coaches Council, a LinkedIn learning instructor, an author, and speaker.

In this episode, Dylan and Tiffany discuss…

• The Genesis of 'Peak Performers': What drove Tiffany to create an intimate, community-focused newsletter.
• Evolving Newsletter Strategies: Learn how Tiffany shifted her newsletter approach in 2023, and how the change has impacted her business.
• Significant Growth and Engagement: Insights into how Tiffany's strategic changes resulted in a 70% growth in her email list and a nearly 50% open rate.
• Community Leveraging and Monetization: Strategies Tiffany employs to grow her newsletter audience, including her collaboration with SparkLoop and approaches to monetization.
• Looking Ahead to 2024: Tiffany's massive newsletter aspirations for subscriber growth—and how she plans to achieve them. 
• Creating with Passion: The importance of a clear mission and genuine enthusiasm in newsletter creation, and direct impacts on subscriber engagement and content quality.

...and much more!

Other Links Mentioned
Peak Performers newsletter
TiffanyUman.com
Tiffany on LinkedIn
Dylan on Twitter

Welcome to another episode of the Send & Grow podcast. Today, SparkLoop's Dylan Redekop sits down with Brad Barrett, co-founder of ChooseFI, to explore the pivotal role of newsletters in the journey of content creation and community building.

Brad shares his rich journey from modest beginnings with a personal finance blog to the monumental success of ChooseFI, a podcast that has achieved over 65 million downloads. Along his journey, Brad's experienced the transformative power of newsletters, which have been instrumental in nurturing a dedicated community, facilitating growth and generating significant revenue.

In this episode, Dylan & Brad delve into:

• The Evolution of Brad's Newsletter Strategy: Learn from Brad's early experiments with email autoresponders to his more sophisticated, targeted strategies.
• Building Community through Newsletters: How Brad's focus on community engagement and personal connection turned his newsletters into a thriving platform for interaction and growth—and exactly how he's executing this strategy.
• Earning Revenue & Maintaining Trust: Learn how Brad's unique approach to affiliate marketing and product endorsements maintain & build trust while driving 6-figure revenues.
• The Power of Cross-Promotion and Networking: Find out how Brad has successfully leveraged cross-promotions with other content creators and its impact on growth.
• Localized Community Engagement: The innovative approach to transform Facebook groups into segmented email lists for more meaningful, direct community interactions.

...and much more

Other links mentioned
ChooseFI newsletter
ChooseFI podcast
Brad on Twitter
ChooseFI community
Dylan on Twitter

Welcome back to another episode of the Send & Grow podcast. This week, SparkLoop's Dylan Redekop chats with Sam Klemens of The Rollup, a unique and irreverent newsletter about finance. 

Sam started The Rollup less than a year ago. In its short existence, The Rollup has garnered over 14k subscribers and now makes enough revenue for Sam to devote his full-time focus on it—and even hire an assistant. 

In this episode, Dylan & Sam discuss…

• Sam's Unique Approach to Content: How The Rollup differentiates itself by curating investment information while offering a fresh perspective
• Subscriber Growth Insights: How Sam went from unscalable strategies to leveraging scalable growth through 
• Innovative Revenue and Advertising Strategies: How Sam overcame newsletter ad pricing challenges to selling out, and the critical role of analytics in targeting subscriber growth
• Advice for Aspiring Newsletter Creators: Sam's three biggest success factors for aspiring newsletter publishers
• Focus on Quality and what's next: How Sam maintains high-quality content with a manageable schedule and his future aspirations for 'The Rollup'
• ...and much more!

Other Links Mentioned
The Rollup newsletter
Sam on Twitter
Dylan on Twitter

Welcome back to another episode of the Send & Grow podcast. This week, SparkLoop cofounder Louis Nicholls sits down with Jay Clouse of Creator Science, a newsletter. 

Jay Clouse is the successful founder and operator of Creator Science — a creator-led business that did over $300k in 2022 and is on pace to nearly double that in 2023. But Jay's journey started with a newsletter way back in 2017. And despite many other projects & initiatives, Jay's newsletter is still one of his most powerful distribution channels. 

In this episode, Louis & Jay discuss…

• Why narrowing your target audience could be the key to growth
• How Jay has increased trust & a deeper connection with video 
• Strategies for leveraging the recent newsletter "boom" to grow your own list
• Ways to diversify your newsletter revenue streams
• Key factors in creating a resilient newsletter business
• ...and much more!

Other Links Mentioned
The Creator Science newsletter
The Creator Science podcast
The Creator Science YouTube channel
Creator Science Revenue Model (swipe file)
Jay Clouse on Twitter
Louis on Twitter

Welcome back to another episode of the Send & Grow podcast. This week, SparkLoop cofounder Louis Nicholls sits down with Mike Benitez of The Merge, a newsletter delivering military news & technology trends for people in the national security space. 

Mike is a retired US military fighter pilot. Since retiring, he's been working in the military tech space -------- while publishing The Merge as a passion project. 
 

In this episode, Louis & Mike discuss…

• How Mike maximizes his audience to help with growth AND content
• The pillars of success for The Merge's referral campaign
• The creative ways Mike is driving revenue
• ...and much more!

Other Links Mentioned
The Merge newsletter
The Merge podcast
The Merge on Twitter
Louis on Twitter

Welcome back to another episode of the Send & Grow podcast. This week, SparkLoop cofounder Louis Nicholls sits down with Michael Houck of Houck's Newsletter, a newsletter for startup founders. 

Michael has worked for world-renowned startups like Uber and AirBnB. Those experiences—along with building his own startup—have helped him build Houck's Newsletter to over 63k subscribers while quickly approaching $1M in total revenue, including $250k in ARR. And it all started as a side hustle.
 

In this episode, Louis & Michael discuss…

• How Michael has grown his newsletter by 50k subscribers in a few months
• The key mindset shift more newsletter operators can benefit from
• All the ways Houck's Newsletter earns revenue (not just paid subscription!)
• The most important metrics Michael's focused on for revenue growth
• How Michael drives paid subscribers with free content
• ...and much more!

Other Links Mentioned
Houck's Newsletter
Megaphone
Michael on Twitter
Louis on Twitter

Welcome back to another episode of the Send & Grow podcast. This week, SparkLoop cofounder Louis Nicholls sits down with Aleyda Solis of SEOFOMO, a newsletter for SEOs. 

Aleyda Solis started the SEOFOMO newsletter to keep up with SEO news for her consulting services. "I was saving all the links anyway," she told us. Now SEOFOMO goes out to over 27,000 SEO professionals (or SEOs). And her newsletter brings in over $80k per year in addition to her consulting service.
 

In this episode, Louis & Aleyda discuss…

• How she used her newsletter to grow her consulting business 
• How Aleyda created giveaways to maximize growth—for free
• Her unique referral program strategy
• How she manages affiliates & sponsorships
• ...and much more!

Other Links Mentioned
SEOFOMO Newsletter
Aleyda's SEO Consulting website
Aleyda on Twitter
Louis on Twitter