How to Grow a Newsletter? 7 Steps to Follow

Launching an email newsletter is easy. But building a vibrant community of engaged readers that drives traffic, builds brand authority, and generates revenue is a real challenge.

How do you cut through the noise, attract engaged readers, and nurture a thriving community? 

You’re about to find out.

This guide will explain exactly how to grow a newsletter from the ground up in seven steps and provide you with actionable strategies, tips, and best practices along the way. 

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Step 1: Define Your Audience and Niche

Before you start thinking about how to grow a newsletter list, decide on a niche that ignites your passion while addressing the needs and interests of your ideal audience. 

Your audience is the group of people who will benefit the most from your content (and product). Take a moment to map out your dream subscriber base and think beyond demographics like age and location. 

Your niche will be the specific area within your industry where you stand out. You should have a unique perspective, expertise, or approach in this area to set you apart from the crowd. So don’t just pick a trendy theme — find something you can consistently deliver valuable insights on.

Also, avoid being overly restrictive when niching down. Leave room for subcategories and adjacent topics to keep your content fresh and engaging.

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Step 2: Create Compelling Content

People send and receive a whopping 361.6 billion emails daily. Talk about information overload. 

This means you must employ content creation strategies that make people who subscribe to your newsletter hit “open” with anticipation and take the action you want them to take.

Include Effective, Bottom-of-the-Funnel Content

Bottom-of-the-funnel content is aimed at people who are close to making a purchase decision. It gives detailed information about your products/services, answers questions, and convinces them to buy. This means it has the highest chance of converting your readers and is worth investing time and money into.

When writing to your email subscribers, offer actionable tips, industry insights, or exclusive resources that demonstrate your expertise and solve their problems. 

For example, this newsletter from Maze offers an actionable article on building an accessible user research repository from scratch complemented by three relevant reads:

Also, employ persuasive language to encourage readers to take the desired action, whether it’s signing up for your service, making a purchase, or sharing your content with others. Phrases like “exclusive offer,” “limited time,” or “don’t miss out” create a sense of urgency—use them frequently. 

For example, this marketing newsletter from Hilma uses the phrase “limited time” in bold:

Get Creative With Subject Lines

The fate of your newsletter hinges on the subject line — 64% of recipients open or delete emails based on it.

Keep your subject line short and to the point, ideally under 50 characters, so it doesn’t get cut off in inboxes.

Use language that sparks curiosity, induces the fear of missing out (FOMO), or prompts action, such as “Last Chance” or “Unlock Exclusive Content”. 

For example, a newsletter from Zeus Jones had the subject line that said, “Break up with what your brand is today.” It’s short, punchy, and instantly makes the reader curious.

Also, use subscriber names or mention topics relevant to their interests in the subject line to grab attention and personalize your emails.

Experiment with different subject line strategies to see what resonates best with your audience. A/B testing will help you identify which subject lines lead to higher open rates.

Try Different Content Formats

A/B testing your newsletter content and format is a no-brainer for keeping it fresh and engaging for subscribers.

Experiment with the following formats:

Content Format	What To Share?
Text-based articles	In-depth analysis, how-to guides, or industry news
Visual content	Eye-catching images, infographics, or videos to complement your written content and enhance engagement
Interactive elements	Polls, quizzes, or surveys to encourage reader participation and gather valuable feedback
Case studies	Real-world examples of how your product or service helped others
User-generated content	Testimonials or contributions from your audience that foster a sense of community and authenticity

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Step 3: Optimize Your Sign-up Process

The sign-up experience sets the tone for your relationship with potential subscribers. Ditch clunky forms and confusing steps and build a smooth, inviting sign-up process that quickly turns visitors into loyal readers. 

The best way to optimize your sign-up process is by personalizing it and using your lead magnet as the irresistible nudge visitors need to subscribe.

Offer an Attractive Lead Magnet

People love freebies and offering a valuable free incentive is a surefire way to boost sign-ups. 

But instead of offering generic discount codes, tailor your magnet to your audience’s interests and needs.

For example, look at how the following lead magnet entices readers by offering exclusive access to the same “psychological triggers” the expert uses. The reader knows they will get instant access to an actionable resource from someone credible and trustworthy: 

To expand audience, download our free Lead Magnet Multiplier short course to learn how to write high-converting lead magnets and drive up to 756% more clicks to your products.

Personalize the Process for Those Who Subscribe to Your Email Newsletter

A one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work when thinking about how to grow a newsletter.

Once someone signs up, don’t treat them like a nameless number on your list. Make them feel valued and welcome with a personalized touch. 

It’s a good idea to send an email form to learn about their interests within your niche. This will help you segment your list and send targeted content later. 

Also, let subscribers choose the type of content they want to receive and how often they want your newsletter (e.g., in-depth guides, weekly updates).

Step 4: Market Your Newsletter on Social Media

Social media is where you connect with your audience, build brand awareness, and attract new subscribers to your newsletter.

Add high-quality visuals, a clear bio, and a link to your newsletter sign-up page on your social profiles. Create posts that clearly explain what your newsletter offers and why it’s valuable. Include a call-to-action to subscribe.

Here’s a good example from Chris Bibey, who runs a freelance gig newsletter:

You also want to share snippets of your newsletter content, intriguing headlines, or exclusive offers to pique curiosity and encourage clicks.

Finally, consider running ads based on specific content and starting an ambassador program.

Run Ads to Promote Specific Content, Not the Newsletter

Instead of directly promoting your newsletter, highlight a unique piece of content with targeted ads. This approach will pique your audience’s interest and attract them based on their specific needs, not by a generic newsletter pitch. 

You can take inspiration from the following post—which is not exactly an ad but can be run as one:

Direct people who interact with the ad to a landing page where they can access the promoted content and subscribe to your newsletter.

Here are some ad content ideas and the ideal platform for running them on:

Platform	Ad Content Ideas	Targeted Audience
Facebook	Engaging article titles, visually appealing snippets	Interest groups based on hobbies, professions, or current events
Twitter	Thought-provoking questions, insightful quotes	Users following industry influencers or hashtags related to your niche
Instagram	Eye-catching visuals, short video teasers	Users interacting with accounts focused on relevant aesthetics or hashtags

Start an Ambassador Program

Introduce an ambassador program for your existing email subscribers to spread the word about your newsletter. 

Look for individuals who actively share your content and leave positive comments. Reach out to these enthusiastic subscribers and pitch them to promote your content in exchange for a treat.  

Provide pre-made social media posts, templates, and images to make things easy for your ambassadors. 

Here’s how The Hustle pitches its ambassador program in its website footer:

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Step 5: Use Email Well

Email marketing for newsletters remains a vital tool for nurturing existing subscribers and increasing your reach. 

Build a strong email list through your website, social media platforms, events, and networking. 

Remember to ensure compliance with data protection regulations and obtain consent before adding subscribers to your list.

Some good ways to use email marketing for growing your newsletter include using welcome emails, staying consistent, and ensuring you’re sending emails only to valid email addresses.

Send Welcome Emails That Convert

Send a warm welcome email when someone subscribes to your email newsletter. 

Here’s an example:

Even though it is automated, it greets the subscribers nicely and explains what they can expect from the newsletter: 

Keep Email Subscribers Engaged With Consistent Emails

Send out regular emails to engage people who subscribed to your email newsletter.

Use Campaign Refinery for List Cleaning

Sending emails to invalid addresses will hurt your sender’s reputation. Email providers will mark you as spam, meaning your newsletter won’t get read no matter how good it is.

The result is a 37% increase in your average customer open rates.

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Step 6: Grow Your Newsletter Through Strategic Partnerships

Building a thriving newsletter is not a solo mission. Research shows over 60% of consumers trust influencer recommendations much more than branded content. 

This means strategic partnerships with other creators and influencers can help you grow your newsletter among new audiences and boost your visibility.

Here’s how Ali Abdaal—a well-known influencer—promoted the Morning Brew Newsletter in one of his weekly newsletter emails: 

You can also find bloggers, podcasters, or YouTubers with audiences who share your target demographic and pay them to promote your newsletter.

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Step 7: Analyze, Adapt, and Grow

Growing a newsletter isn’t a one-shot deal. It’s more like an experiment, where you tinker, analyze, and adapt based on the results.

Experiment With Content and Sending Frequency

Keep your content fresh and engaging by experimenting with different formats, frequencies, topics, and styles.

Every 6 in 10 people want to receive an email from their favorite brands at least once a week. Newsletters work best when sent no more than twice a week, but at least once a month.

Adjust your frequency to find the balance between staying top-of-mind with your subscribers and avoiding email fatigue.

Track Key Metrics

Use Campaign Refinery to monitor metrics and gain insight into which content resonates most with your audience, which subject lines are most effective, and when is the best time to send emails. 

Some key metrics to track include:

Metric	What it Means	Industry Average
Open Rate	Percentage of subscribers who open your emails	38.49%
Click-Through Rate	Percentage of subscribers who click on links within your emails	2.91%
Conversion Rate	Percentage of email subscribers who complete the desired action	15.22%
Subscriber Growth	The rate of new subscribers added to your newsletter list over a specific period	2.5%
Unsubscribes	Number of subscribers who unsubscribe from your newsletter	0.1%
Social Shares	Number of times your newsletter content is shared on social media platforms	–

Amplify Content That Performs Well

If a specific article or format generates high engagement, share it again with a different angle or headline.

You can also repurpose your high-performing content into different formats to reach a wider audience and drive additional engagement. 

Also, consider combining email marketing with SEO by turning your newsletters into blog posts. Share snippets or teasers of popular articles on your social media channels to attract new subscribers.

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How to Grow a Newsletter With Campaign Refinery

Growing a newsletter takes work. You begin researching the likes and dislikes of your target audience, followed by creating content that resonates with them. 

Once you’ve done that, it’s all about technicalities like optimizing your sign-up process and using email well. 

Email marketing is an entire world of its own and if you get caught up in all its intricacies, you might not be able to curate the best newsletter content. That’s where Campaign Refinery comes in.

Acing Email Marketing With Campaign Refinery

Content Refinery is an arsenal of tools to help you blast past email delivery roadblocks and skyrocket your subscriber engagement.

Content Refinery isn’t just another email marketing platform. It’s a premium, exclusive product, available only to select customers who focus on high-quality content and domain reputation. This means you’ll have to apply to join a community of serious email marketers who share your commitment to excellence.

Hit the Inbox Every Time with the Inbox Formula

If all of that sounds interesting, go check out the Inbox Formula and apply to become a Campaign Refinery client today!

Written by Eilaf Meenai