How To Start A Newsletter

Newsletters, as we know them, have been around for a really long time (even longer if you think back to pre-email times). They’ve also been a mainstay of the Internet since its inception.

Newsletters have become a major content format among creators, partly due to their appeal to targeted interest groups and because email is the next best thing to social media for reaching audiences. It’s not unusual to be subscribed to 10 completely different newsletters – I'm probably subscribed to twice that number. Additionally, while platforms like Twitter or TikTok are at the mercy of ever-changing algorithms, your email list is something you own and control.

Newsletters are a great, low-cost way to build trust with your audience – and brands love sponsoring them because the communities they can create are very loyal. Growing an email list allows you to create a community off social media, what Jay Clouse calls moving your audience from discovery to relationship.

I'm increasingly convinced that premature growth on social media is an expensive mistake.

Here's why: If you're taking this creator thing seriously, growth in reach should lead to growth in revenue.

Social media platforms are Discovery Platforms that should be leveraged to grow…

— Jay Clouse (@jayclouse) July 24, 2023

It helps that they are considered a valid business to start, with newsletters being acquired for millions. Different creators approach newsletter content in different ways, but the process of starting one follows the same pattern. In this article, we’ll be sharing the steps to creating your own newsletter.

The reason you start a newsletter will define much of its journey – it's one of the most important steps before you even pick a platform. The “why” will determine the “what,” “where” and “how” of this new format. So, as you start, ask yourself:

Audience Connection: Am I seeking a more intimate, direct way to communicate with my audience? What would it look like to have that deeper connection with my audience?
Content Depth: Is there content I wish to share that requires a more in-depth, nuanced approach that doesn't fit well within the constraints of my current platforms? How would it change my content creation process?
Monetization and Value Exchange: Am I seeking an alternative way to monetize my content? What kind of value could I offer my audience? How would I approach monetization?
Platform Independence: How would it impact my content strategy to have a communication channel unaffected by third-party algorithms?
Feedback Loop: How do I build a mechanism to get regular feedback, insights, and suggestions from my community to better align my content with their needs and interests?

Here's a template to determine how to start your own newsletter – you can get it in Canva too!