Thread by @stewfortier

I've now asked 30+ successful newsletter writers how they got their first 1,000 subscribers.

Their answers are all similar.

Here's how to go from 0 to 1K subscribers (thread):

First, the high-level lessons:

1. You have to write good stuff for people to subscribe & stick around.

2. Most growth tactics are simple, not easy.

3. It's easier to succeed with a clear niche, but you can succeed without one.

4. Different wins – make your writing distinct!

Now, the tactics.

Here's what most people did to go from zero subscribers to 1,000+...

0 to 10 subscribers:

• Set up an email capture page
• Ask your friends, co-workers, and family to subscribe

Getting started is simple.

Call your grandma. Text your sister. Ask your Doordash guy to sign up.

These people will cheer you on even if your first few emails suck.

10 to 50 subscribers:

• Share your subscribe page on FB, Twitter, and Linkedin
• Keep inviting your friends, family, and coworkers 1-on-1

Don't overthink this – just share an invite to subscribe with a bit of context.

You'll be surprised how much people want to support you.

50 to 100 subscribers:

• Reach out to every new subscriber and establish a relationship
• Ask your subscribers to share your newsletter
• Join a writing community or a community focused on your niche

https://twitter.com/amandanat/status/1465702674184114180

Growth at this stage is counter-intuitive:

You're too small to start a referral program, but early fans are disproportionately willing to help.

Here are some simple things @danielxli and @dickiebush did:

100 to 250 subscribers:

• Publish on a consistent schedule
• Start writing where people are already hanging out (Twitter)
• Post your best work on aggregator sites (Hacker News, Reddit)

Two themes start to emerge at this stage...

1. You have to write where people are already hanging out.

Nobody is going to magically find your newsletter. You have to bring it to them.

Invest time building a presence on Twitter or another social platform.

See @amandanat's advice here:

https://twitter.com/amandanat/status/1465702670086201344

2. Consistency builds a foundation for growth.

The majority of writers I asked have some sort of weekly or bi-weekly publishing cadence.

Consistency:
- Maximizes your shots on goal
- Helps you learn what's working
- Forces you to uncover more ideas

From @janedonuts:

A couple more tactics:

• Ask a friend with a newsletter if you can write a guest post
• Tastefully plug your work in the comment section of already-popular posts

Right around here, quality seems to matter a lot more.

You're promoting your work to strangers. Lots of people on your list don't know you personally.

These people will care more about *what you can do for them.*

They'll be less forgiving, so raise your bar.

250 to 500 subscribers:

• Don’t stop doing what’s already working (let things compound!)
• Break your routine and produce a piece of staple content

You now have a bit of distribution and can spend some extra time writing something especially good...

The people I talked to had success writing:

• Long-form interviews with somebody interesting
• Personal essays that went in-depth on their story
• Deep dives on a niche topic
• Compilations with other influencers (see @nick_dewilde's piece below)

https://twitter.com/nick_dewilde/status/1467539688130945031

500 to 1,000 subscribers:

• Write better stuff!
• Stay engaged on Twitter
• Re-share your best work

Now you're cooking with gasoline...

Two amazing things happen once you have hundreds of subscribers:

1. You've built a small but real distribution channel.

There are hundreds of people paying attention to your work, some of whom may have relatively big audiences.

If you write something great, it now has a far higher likelihood of spreading beyond you.

2. You have a backlog of work, some of which is pretty good.

Lots of writers routinely pulled their best work from their archives and shared them with new readers.

Here's @nevmed on how this makes you look like a hit machine:

A couple of Twitter-specific tactics also worked at this stage:

• Keep writing interesting tweets & plug your newsletter if one goes viral
• Write tweet threads & plug your newsletter at the end

For Tweet threads to work, though, the quality has to be 💯 .

The hardest part at every stage is just showing up consistently & doing the work.

If you don't quit, compounding eventually works in your favor.

1K subscribers can take a while, but 2K is now inevitable.

From @visualizevalue:

Happy writing & good luck 🚀