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BrainPint #14 - The Newsletter Economy

BrainPint #14 - The Newsletter Economy
By Janel • Issue #14 • View online
Hi friends,
A huge welcome to the 80+ new subscribers who’ve joined from my (unexpectedly) viral tweet and expanded thread. So thrilled and grateful to have you join me here at BrainPint. It also makes me so happy to see that more people are reading the newsletters that I love.
I love to connect with new subscribers so please reach out to me by hitting reply to this email, or DM me via Twitter @JanelSGM
Cheers,
Janel

The Newsletter Economy
Let’s talk more about newsletters since they’re what drove you here this week.
Marie Dolle has done a great job mapping the newsletter ecosystem. Newsletters are no longer just about the content and platform, they have a wider impact on media, communication and marketing.
Marie discusses newsletter discovery, inbox overflow problems and more on her Substack.
As the passion economy grows, people are monetizing their creations and readers are paying for the value they receive. Paid newsletters, like Everything, Stratechery and as of this week, Ben Evans are becoming more popular.
Ben has a subscription base of 150k, so even if 2% of them convert to a $100 annual plan, he’s going to be pulling in a cool $300k 👀
Critics of newsletters argue that consumers can only tolerate so many distractions. Web (2PM) pushes back in his latest Type House memo, saying that this fear may be overstated. A category of newsletters “helps to build a new world by enabling education, professional growth, or networking opportunities” and I too believe that the best creators will be able to outwork fatigue.
Further reading:
  • Dru Riley writes about paid newsletters at Trends.vc
Interesting Reads
Lessons from Figma, Stripe, Airtable, Shopify, Plaid & more.
Strategy 1: Tap your personal network
It’s a huge advantage to have a strong network & especially important if you need to “sell” your product because early customers need to have a reason to trust you.
Strategy 2: Seek out your customers where they are
Think: Who are your target customers, and where they currently spending time, online or offline? E.g. communities, forums, offline events
Strategy 3: Get press
Rarely the way to get started.
www.lennyrachitsky.com  •  Share
30 life lessons before turning 30 - Ness Labs
30 life lessons before turning 30 - Ness Labs
Anne-Laure shares some important life lessons
Everyone is interesting. You can learn anything from anyone if you ask the right questions
Create more than you consume. If you give your time, share your ideas, people will find you. And even if they don’t, you will learn much more in the process than if you limited yourself to passive consumption.
People can’t read your thoughts. If you think something, say something. Don’t expect people to guess your thoughts and feelings
nesslabs.com  •  Share
How to speak so that people want to listen - TEDTalk
How to speak so that people want to listen - TEDTalk
Have you ever felt like you’re talking, but nobody is listening? Let’s change that.
The ‘Do’s’:
  • Honesty (be straight and clear)
  • Authenticity (be yourself)
  • Integrity (be your word)
  • Love (wish them well)
The ‘Don'ts’:
  • Gossip
  • Judging
  • Negativity / Complaining
  • Excuses
  • Lying
www.youtube.com  •  Share
Shreyas Doshi tweeted about biases and fallacies we encounter when building products. This explains why smart product people often build products with mediocre or no impact.
Tools
Copy Paste List
Copy Paste List
Need a list of every country? Chemical elements? Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream Flavors? Get quick, unformatted, copy and paste-able lists from this site.
copypastelist.com  •  Share
A twitter thread of free web development resources which spans a diverse range (includes coding classes, hosting and design tools).
Quote Of The Week
“Think for yourself. Everyone has a unique picture of how things work and function, and yours is as valuable as anyone’s”
- Kelly Slater
Did you enjoy this issue?
Janel
By Janel

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