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These 2 Michigan University students founded one of the most popular business newsletter companies.
Alex & Austin made the news look cool with Morning Brew.
In just 7 years, Morning Brew got:
- $50M in annual revenue
- 4M+ subscribers
Breakdown of how they did it🧵
Alex & Austin made the news look cool with Morning Brew.
In just 7 years, Morning Brew got:
- $50M in annual revenue
- 4M+ subscribers
Breakdown of how they did it🧵
Morning Brew started in 2015.
In 7 years, it evolved into a Media Company:
- Sold a major stake to Insider for ~$75M
- Hit 100K subs in just 2 yrs
- Launched 9 Newsletters
- Multiple Top Business Podcasts
In 7 years, it evolved into a Media Company:
- Sold a major stake to Insider for ~$75M
- Hit 100K subs in just 2 yrs
- Launched 9 Newsletters
- Multiple Top Business Podcasts
Before this, Alex was working at Morgan Stanley and managed to write for Morning Brew part-time.
When Morning Brew showed results, he pursued it full-time.
Austin joined full-time in the fall of 2016.
When Morning Brew showed results, he pursued it full-time.
Austin joined full-time in the fall of 2016.
The growth they got was insane!
- Gained 900K subs in a single year in 2018.
- Currently have 1M Instagram followers.
- Went from 2 to 250 employees.
Alex & Austin changed the game.
Let’s dive into the Main Strategies they used👇
- Gained 900K subs in a single year in 2018.
- Currently have 1M Instagram followers.
- Went from 2 to 250 employees.
Alex & Austin changed the game.
Let’s dive into the Main Strategies they used👇
Strategy #1: Five-Star Content
Alex found the gap. Old school finance news was dull and boring.
So he published news in a concise, modern, laid-back & easy-to-digest way. The aim was simple - to give busy college folks an overview w/o reading word-to-word in a fun way!
Alex found the gap. Old school finance news was dull and boring.
So he published news in a concise, modern, laid-back & easy-to-digest way. The aim was simple - to give busy college folks an overview w/o reading word-to-word in a fun way!
Be it the headline, the pictures, or the storytelling -they make sure you have fun...
Here is a glimpse for you👇
Here is a glimpse for you👇
The newsletter started as just a side hustle for fun.
Alex started Market Corner, a PDF version of the Newsletter to help finance students with business news.
The first 300 subs came through campus flyers.
Alex started Market Corner, a PDF version of the Newsletter to help finance students with business news.
The first 300 subs came through campus flyers.
Austin was just one of the readers & wanted to join as he had ideas on how the newsletter could evolve and grow.
Both expanded it to 1k subs by attending biz clubs- Austin manually walked with a laptop & asked for emails.
Both expanded it to 1k subs by attending biz clubs- Austin manually walked with a laptop & asked for emails.
Alex’s hack for writers 📝 :
i) Chase trends
ii) Killer Visuals infographics
iii) Perfect your Content Strategy
iv) Be super careful with each word
v) Adapt to market shifts & audience whims
i) Chase trends
ii) Killer Visuals infographics
iii) Perfect your Content Strategy
iv) Be super careful with each word
v) Adapt to market shifts & audience whims
They are diving deep into each sector!
Now have 9 freaking newsletters😳
- Money with Katie
- Healthcare Brew
- Marketing Brew
- Money Scoop
- Retail Brew
- Tech Brew
- CFO Brew
- HR Brew
- IT Brew
Now have 9 freaking newsletters😳
- Money with Katie
- Healthcare Brew
- Marketing Brew
- Money Scoop
- Retail Brew
- Tech Brew
- CFO Brew
- HR Brew
- IT Brew
Strategy #2: Unique Referral Program
Morning Brew's main marketing was from "word of mouth” - accounting for 30% of subscribers.
However, the founders discovered a killer method - A Killer Referral Program.
Gifting free swags to readers who brought more subscribers!
Morning Brew's main marketing was from "word of mouth” - accounting for 30% of subscribers.
However, the founders discovered a killer method - A Killer Referral Program.
Gifting free swags to readers who brought more subscribers!
They made referral cool and intuitive:
- Quick Copy Link
- Multiple sharing on Socials.
This strategy brought them 25% of their 1.5M active readers.
- Quick Copy Link
- Multiple sharing on Socials.
This strategy brought them 25% of their 1.5M active readers.
Even offered giveaways for MacBooks 💻
College students went mad!
College students went mad!
Strategy #3: Mastering Social Media
Apart from all the newsletter and geeky stuff, the Morning Brew team is pretty active on Social Media too.
They've posted behind-the-scenes parody entertainment videos related to Finance.👇
Apart from all the newsletter and geeky stuff, the Morning Brew team is pretty active on Social Media too.
They've posted behind-the-scenes parody entertainment videos related to Finance.👇
https://twitter.com/MorningBrew/status/1626981869441908739
Morning Brew mastered the art of Content Repurposing.
They cleverly repackaged their newsletter content for their social media platforms, delivering a more tailored experience to their audience.
Took full advantage of Twitter / Instagram to promote their podcasts too...
They cleverly repackaged their newsletter content for their social media platforms, delivering a more tailored experience to their audience.
Took full advantage of Twitter / Instagram to promote their podcasts too...
Strategy #4: Constant Innovation
As I said, Morning Brew is a media biz now.
Evolved & expanded as per trends by understanding the audience.
Currently running 5 podcasts:
- Impostors
- Founder's Journal
- Our Future Podcast
- The Morning Brew Daily
- The Money with Katie Show
As I said, Morning Brew is a media biz now.
Evolved & expanded as per trends by understanding the audience.
Currently running 5 podcasts:
- Impostors
- Founder's Journal
- Our Future Podcast
- The Morning Brew Daily
- The Money with Katie Show
MB also has 5 YouTube channels - "Good Work" is the most subscribed.
Good Work's tagline "Fake Business News" is super hilarious!
Their combined subscriber count is 500K+ and some videos like this one 👇 even went viral.
Good Work's tagline "Fake Business News" is super hilarious!
Their combined subscriber count is 500K+ and some videos like this one 👇 even went viral.
This has to be the funniest take on Blackstone ever!😂
One of Alex's other super powers is in the world of personal branding.
He launched the "60 Seconds Startup Challenge" and it's not only gaining a ton of attention but it's also attracting great sponsors.
Why?
Alex understands the nuances of his audience and people eat this up.
He launched the "60 Seconds Startup Challenge" and it's not only gaining a ton of attention but it's also attracting great sponsors.
Why?
Alex understands the nuances of his audience and people eat this up.
Alex & Austin still play a key role in Morning Brew and still hold some stake in businesses. The duo went from running a PDF newsletter to a running a multi million-dollar brand.
Here is Alex revealing what worked *you might be surprised*👇
Here is Alex revealing what worked *you might be surprised*👇
Alright. That's a wrap! Enjoyed the breakdown?
I dive deep into some of the most interesting business stories with a focus on B2B, Media & SaaS.
Follow @TheCoolestCool for more amazing stories and insights into Marketing just like this one.
I dive deep into some of the most interesting business stories with a focus on B2B, Media & SaaS.
Follow @TheCoolestCool for more amazing stories and insights into Marketing just like this one.
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