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š Win-Win Referral Rewards
Reward Your Subscribers & Grow Happily
Fred Kauber
May 27, 2024
In partnership with
š Welcome
Happy Memorial Day to our US-based readers! Today is the holiday to celebrate those who have served our country, past and presentā¦my deep thanks to all who have served, including my father, father-in-law and uncles!
With all of the holiday celebration going on, timing the publication of this issue today was tricky - I opted to send it out in the evening NY time rather than the usual morning time to allow readers to enjoy it as they wind down and prepare for the day ahead.
Itās important to recognize service and loyalty, and so the theme of this issue focuses on one of the means by which we can recognize the loyalty of our subscribers: referral reward programs. You will find many examples and case studies of successful reward programs, the strategies and tactics used to support them, and lists of great reward ideas in our Letter Ops section.
Taking inspiration from todayās theme, I am also pleased to introduce the Newsletter Business Referral Program which you will find detailed in the Just For Fun section at the bottom of this issue.
Our sponsor for this issue is the American Marketing Association, the essential community for professional marketers to learn, collaborate and up their game. Newsletter Business is all about making smarter marketers!
There are 2 time-sensitive learning opportunities for you to be aware of:
You can join a cohort of newsletter operators learning the most effective growth strategies over the next 4 weeks by signing up for Newsletter Operatorās Growth System by midnight tonight (5/27). Scroll down to our Featured Partner section to learn more - including the chance to work with me as a coach in the program!
Check out Convertkitās Craft & Commerce from June 5 - 8 in Boise, Idaho.
Please reply with thoughts on this weekās issue or reach out to @NewsletterBus on X/Twitter or connect/follow on LinkedIn.
Enjoy and see you next issue!
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š° Industry Roundup
30 Best Affiliate Programs for Creators: Affiliate programs are one of the easiest monetization channels for newsletter creators to leverage. Learn what to watch for in a good one, and get a jumpstart with 30 popular programs that cater to broad and niche tastesā¦ Read
MailChimpās Science of Loyalty: Mailchimp has released new research detailing their Loyalty Wheel framework for understanding the drivers of customer loyalty, and also hosted an expert panel webinar on the topic last week. The framework focuses on how emotion, memory, reward, and social interaction influence loyalty and is well worth reviewingā¦ Read / Watch
CASE STUDY - Less Is More At The New Yorkerā¦Like 35% More: The New Yorker is employing a strategy of sending newsletters less frequently and sending paid content previews to newsletter subscribers, resulting in 35% page view increases and 11% increases in paying subscribersā¦ Read
Shots Fired - ConvertKitās New Free Plan: ConvertKit just introduced a new free Newsletter plan which supports up to 10k subscribers, which is 4x beehiivās free Launch plan. ESP competition is heating up as ConvertKit responds to beehiivās growth & pricing changes; check out the new plan featuresā¦ Read
Featured Partner
š Newsletter Operator Growth System: FINAL HOURS - ENDS MIDNIGHT ET 5/27
The Chance To Grow Your Subscribers & Revenue RIGHT NOW!
Newsletter Operatorās Growth System is a cohort-based course that teaches you the newsletter growth tactics employed by Matt McGarry of Newsletter Operator and a team of expert newsletter coaches.
I am pleased to be one of the coaches that will support you in a curriculum that includes:
8 Live Sessions Focused On Growth Strategies & Tactics
150+ Templates & Examples That Are Ready To Use
LIFETIME Access To All Course Materials
Immersive Community of Fellow Newsletter Operators
Coaching, Feedback, and Support From Matt and Expert Newsletter Coaches Like Me
Thereās no time to waste as this cohort closes tonight (5/27) at midnight ET!
āļø Letter Ops
14+ Referral Program Ideas: One of the hardest parts of launching a referral program is deciding what rewards to offer; here are over 14 referral reward ideas to get you startedā¦ Read
CASE STUDY - Holy Grail of Referral Programs: Ryan Sneddon of Naptown Scoop shares his experiences customizing a referral program that is attractive to subscribers and yet operationally efficient to meet the needs of his 6-figure local newsletter that serves Annapolis, Marylandā¦ Read
Integrated Referral Programs: Once the domain of third-party add-ons, referral programs have become core features of many major ESP platforms. That said, not all are created equal, so hereās a look at how 3 popular ESPs implement theirs, with plenty of actual examples to learn from. IMHO, beehiivās is flexible & easiest to implement, ConvertKit/Sparkloopās more robust but a little more involved, and Substackās is simple but limited. If you already have an ESP, use the native choice; otherwise check these outā¦ beehiiv / ConvertKit / Substack
100K Subscribers Via Referral Giveaways: Whether you have an existing referral program or not, limited duration referral giveaways can drive bursts of meaningful subscriber acquisition. Matt McGarry of Newsletter Operator shares the giveaway tactics that he has used to acquire 100,000 subscribersā¦ Read
š° Classifieds
Email-Based Courses - Your newsletter audience lives within email. Why not teach them easily in the channel they already love, rather than hassle with creating a video, LMS or live course? Newsletter Business subscribers get 30% off with code MEBC30 Check it out
The Newsletter Is The Business (TINTB) - All you need to know about launching, monetizing and selling editorial newsletters. Get smart fast
Megahit - Need sponsors? Find sponsorship leads among your newsletter subscribers using LinkedIn data enrichment. Find sponsors
š Just For Fun
Referral Rewards Are Here!: I think that referral rewards are fun, and hopefully so will you when you receive them! I appreciate you as a loyal subscriber and want to reward your efforts to spread the word about this newsletter. With that in mind, I have decided to introduce the Newsletter Business Referral Program with the following awards:
Newsletter Shoutout (3 entries): This reward will entitle you to be featured in a new Shoutout section that will periodically appear in Newsletter Business. Your newsletterās name, URL, and a one sentence description will be featured.
Copy of The Newsletter Is The Business (25 entries): You will receive a complimentary copy of Newsletter Businessās ebook The Newsletter Is The Business, which is a $147 value and shares expert insights from myself and newsletter operators like Richard Patey who originally wrote the book. This book will be updated as tactics and strategies evolve and you will also receive those updates.
Newsletter Business T-Shirt (50 entries): You will receive an exclusive Newsletter Business t-shirt in the size of your choice. Right now only 2 of these exist in the world!
60 Minute Coaching Session (100 entries): The current top reward is a 60 minute private coaching session with me, where we will discuss your newsletter challenges, opportunities or any topic that you wish. I donāt currently offer individual coaching outside of this reward and a few special programs, so this is rare; when I do, the hourly rate has been $350 per hour.
For anyone so inclined, please donāt try to game the referral rewards program with nefarious referrals; our new program administrator takes that personally & doesnāt like to lose!
Thank you again for being a loyal subscriber of this newsletter - your current referral reward status is below.
Disclaimer: Not financial or business advice. This newsletter is strictly for information and education purposes and may contain affiliate links or sponsored content from a variety of partners to keep this newsletter free of charge.
Newsletter Business is published by Digiventures Media Group LLC.