Shows
Growth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)How CJ Gustafson Grew Mostly Metrics to 60k+ Subscribers & Multi‑Six‑Figures in RevenueThe Growth Vault is LIVE: https://growthinreverse.com/vault----------------------------------------------------------------“During my last year as a CFO, I made more money from my newsletter and podcast than my full-time job." — CJ Gustafson, Mostly MetricsWe sit down with CJ Gustafson, former tech CFO and now full-time creator of two newsletters—Mostly Metrics and Looking For Leverage—and a podcast called Run The Numbers. CJ is masterful at taking financial and business concepts and making them wildly entertaining. CJ shares how he went from consulting and private equity to running a high-revenue content bu...2025-08-0653 min
How to Write for a Living220: How to grow a newsletter, build a paid community, and stay human online (with Chenell Basilio)Season 2, episode 20 is here!In this conversation, Chenell Basilio shares how she went from a solo deep-dive experiment to building a newsletter followed by tens of thousands and her own successful community. We get into what drives real growth, how to stay visible without burning out, and why keeping things human is still the most underrated advantage online.What we covered:- How Growth in Reverse started with a 60-hour research obsession and four subscribers- The simple moment that got Jay Clouse to become one of Chenell’s first readers an...2025-08-0341 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Turning a Niche Newsletter of 30k Subs Into a Full-Time BusinessThe Growth Vault is LIVE: https://growthinreverse.com/vault----------------------------------------------------------------“You don’t need to create for everyone. You need to create for the people who value you most — and they’ll carry your newsletter further than you think." — Matt Johansen, Vulnu.comWe sat down with Matt Johansen, creator of the Vulnerable U newsletter (nearly 30,000 subscribers), to unpack how he’s grown a must-read in the cybersecurity space. Matt has successfully transitioned from working in the cybersecurity space to running a newsletter + content agency business. So we wanted to learn exactly how he's done it...2025-07-301h 01Growth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)How to Turn 1 Subscriber into 10: Get More Referrals With These TacticsThe Growth Vault is LIVE: https://growthinreverse.com/vault----------------------------------------------------------------“This is the underrated growth strategy every newsletter should be using.” What if every subscriber could turn into 10 more?In this episode of the Growth In Reverse podcast, Dylan and Chenell unpack one of the most underrated newsletter growth levers: referrals.They explore how to turn one subscriber into ten, without even needing a full-blown referral platform. From embedding share prompts into your welcome sequence to clever ways to incentivize email forwarding, this episode is packed with low-lift, high-impact stra...2025-07-2336 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)His Paid Newsletter Launch Drove $50k+ (and 500+ paid subs)“I waited to launch my paid newsletter until I had a solid strategy and felt like I’d earned it.” — Tom Orbach, Marketing IdeasTom Orbach of MarketingIdeas.com — which recently crossed 44,000 free subscribers and over 500 paid subscribers in just the first few days after launching his paid tier — joins Chenell & Dylan to share the exact playbook he used to grow his newsletter and launch the paid version. He became a Substack bestseller within a day of his paid launch! And he did this all while working a full-time job.You'll learn how he engineered a wildly succ...2025-07-1648 min
The Side Hustle Show681: 15 List Building Tactics that Actually WorkIt's time for some list building tactics that actually work! With all the upheaval in the search results and the fickle nature of social media, you know you need to build your email list, but how do you actually do it?
Today we're sharing 15 simple tactics that really work. Our guest has been studying the biggest newsletters and creators to see what's working now.
Chenell Basilio from Growth in Reverse and Growth in Reverse Podcast joins us to share strategies that get real results.
Listen to Episode 681 of the Side Hustle Show to l...2025-07-1054 min
The Side Hustle Show681: 15 List Building Tactics that Actually WorkIt's time for some list building tactics that actually work! With all the upheaval in the search results and the fickle nature of social media, you know you need to build your email list, but how do you actually do it?
Today we're sharing 15 simple tactics that really work. Our guest has been studying the biggest newsletters and creators to see what's working now.
Chenell Basilio from Growth in Reverse and Growth in Reverse Podcast joins us to share strategies that get real results.
Listen to Episode 681 of the Side Hustle Show to l...2025-07-1050 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Newsletter Coaching Session: Scaling Deep Dives Into a Newsletter Growth Engine“$250k is when growth changes. It’s when you need systems. You usually can’t do it solo.” — Matt Gira, The QuarterMatt Gira joins Chenell & Dylan — in person — to share how he went from building underwater drones to launching The Quarter: a newsletter that deep dives into how founders grow bootstrapped businesses to $250K. This is an interview, but also an impromptu coaching session with Matt as we help him figure out how he can grow his newsletter faster and get it in front of the right audience.We talk content strategy, growth experiments, and the surpris...2025-07-0942 min
Podcasting Business School577: The Podcast + Newsletter Strategy w/Chenell BasilioHead on over to my main website: https://www.podcastingbusiness.school/ Step One: Watch the four minute video to find out WHO I help and HOW I help them. Step Two: Sign up for a Podcast Profit Potential Discovery Call to discuss the idea of working together. Step Three: Sign up for my FREE weekly newsletter. Every Thursday you will get FRESH content that is different from what you get with the podcast. Step Four: Check out dozens of testimonials and success stories from my happy clients. ******************2025-07-0842 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Your Newsletter Is Too Easy to Join — Here’s Why That’s a Problem“I love unsubscribes. Don’t be here if you don’t want to be here.”It is insanely easy to subscribe to a newsletter—and even MULTIPLE newsletters all at once.But is that a good thing? Should newsletter creators be more choosy when determining who signs up? We're diving into one of the most overlooked and under-discussed aspects of newsletter growth: friction. Specifically, how adding friction—rather than eliminating it—can actually improve subscriber quality, open rates, and monetization.This one’s a must-listen if you’re growing via referrals, recommendations, o...2025-07-0231 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)9 Big Takeaways For Creators From Craft + Commerce 2025“The real value wasn’t in the keynotes—it was the dinners, the hikes, the casual connections.” – Dylan Redekop, first-time C+C attendeeDylan and Chenell reflect on their time at Kit's Craft + Commerce email newsletter conference for creators in Boise. But this episode isn’t just a recap — it’s a deep dive into what made the conference unforgettable: the people, the ideas, and the big shifts in how creators are building authentic businesses. From mastermind dinners with Pat Flynn to keynote takeaways on AI, content strategy, public speaking, and creator community, they unpack what creators sho...2025-06-2546 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)From Tweets to 70k: How Jesse "Accidentally" Built a Newsletter of 70k Subscribers"Every time I try to be an expert, I lose readers. When I’m just me, they stick around." – Jesse J. Anderson, Extra Focus newsletterFor the first time ever, Chenell & Dylan have recorded LIVE, in-person podcast episodes! Coming at you in-person from Kit Studios in Boise ID, Chenell & Dylan connect with Jesse J. Anderson—better known online as ADHD Jesse—to uncover the evolution of his successful newsletter, Extra Focus. Jesse's grown Extra Focus to over 70,000 subscribers and a combined social following in the hundreds of thousands. Jesse shares the real, raw, and often...2025-06-1847 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Should your newsletter have a podcast? (Our take after 6 months of episodes)"Podcasting isn’t a shortcut to growth—but it’s a hell of a way to deepen relationships." – Chenell BasilioWhat can happen when you commit to a weekly podcast for six straight months? You're about to find out. Chenell & Dylan pull back the curtain on the Growth In Reverse podcast—sharing the behind-the-scenes of what’s worked, what hasn’t, and what we’ve learned along the way.We get real about the numbers: subscribers, downloads, YouTube stats, and more. Plus, we chat through the very real question—should newsletter writers even start...2025-06-1147 min
Newsletter OperatorChenell Basilio: How To Get Your First 50,000 Email SubscribersChenell Basilio is the founder of Growth in Reverse, a newsletter and podcast that reverse engineers how top creators grow their audiences to 50,000+ subscribers. Want more content like this?Join Newsletter Operator for more strategies on how to grow and monetize your newsletter here: NewsletterOperator.comWork with Ryan's agency Tailwind Work with Matt's agency GrowLetterFollow Matt McGarry @JMatthewMcGarry and Ryan Carr @ryan_boat on Twitter.Episode Topics & Timestamps00:00 Introduction and Background02:48 Content Creation Essentials05:58 Choosing the Right Platforms...2025-06-1050 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Creators Are Flocking to Substack—but Should You Join Them?“You can pretty much do anything on Substack—which is good and also makes me nervous.” – Chenell BasilioWe've seen a wave of creators flocking to Substack over the last month and couldn’t help but wonder... what’s really going on here? In this episode, Chenell & Dylan unpack the why we believe this migration is happening. Are creators just chasing the next shiny thing, or is Substack genuinely offering something new and powerful?We dive into the benefits, red flags, and the not-so-obvious consequences of going all in on the platform. We cover how Su...2025-06-0439 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)30 Creators. 30 Days. 3,700+ Subscribers: How She Did It"I thought this would grow my list. It did—but the real win was something else entirely." — Chenell Basilio on her 30 Days of Growth experiment.In this special episode of Growth In Reverse, Chenell & Dylan break down the whirlwind that was Chenell's 30 Days of Growth experiment. What started as a simple idea to improve my cross-promotions quickly snowballed into a full-fledged daily popup newsletter, complete with giveaways, podcast episodes, and a ton of valuable insights.We dive into the gritty details—from the unexpected chaos of daily publishing and coordinating with 30 creators to the...2025-05-2842 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)How He Turned a Free Google Doc into $1.2M + 18,000 Newsletter SubscribersGet 30 proven newsletter strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>"There is a strong, undeniable correlation between the number of emails you send and the amount of money you make." — Olly RichardsIn this episode, Chenell & Dylan chat with Olly Richards — the founder of Storylearning.com and now a fast-growing personal brand — about exactly how he grew his personal brand from $0 and 0 audience to $1.2m and over 18,000 subscribers in 18 months. From his early days as a broke jazz musician to building a multi-million dollar language learning business, Olly walks us through the evo...2025-05-2150 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)From Confusion to Clarity: How to Fix an Overwhelming NewsletterGet 30 proven newsletter strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>"Faceless brands are forgettable. Put your name on it. Make it human."In this episode, Dylan and Chenell are back for another Newsletter Roast! Get out your marshmallows 🔥 This week we're roasting a newsletter all about podcast discovery. The Find That Pod newsletter promises to help readers uncover the best shows out there, but does it actually do that? We go deep into what’s working and what’s not. We share actionable insights for creators looking to grow a...2025-05-1431 min
Talking Too Loud with Chris SavageSubscribing On Purpose: Creating Sticky Newsletters with Chenell BasilioCan you really grow a successful newsletter with just 600 subscribers? Chenell Basilio, founder of Growth in Reverse, joins Talking Too Loud to bust list-size myths, unpack the secrets behind engaging content, and explain why passion and community beat flashy growth hacks every time.Links to Learn More:Follow Chenell Basilio on LinkedInFollow Savage on LinkedInSubscribe to Talking Too Loud on WistiaWatch on YouTubeFollow Talking Too Loud on InstagramFollow Talking Too Loud on TikTokLove what you heard? Leave...2025-05-1340 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Behind the Scenes of a Free 30-Day Newsletter Growth SprintGet 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>"This might be the most fun I've had growing my newsletter." — ChenellAnd here's how Chenell's doing it.We're giving you a behind-the-scenes look at how 30 Days of Growth is going—and how we’re planning to make the most of the final stretch! With over 2,600 signups already and a massive giveaway in motion, this mini-launch is becoming more than expected… but can it be even bigger?In this episode, Chenell & Dylan break down what’s working, what could be b...2025-05-0735 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Steal These 5 Newsletter Growth Levers You Can Start TodayGet 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>In this episode, we’re unpacking five high-performing newsletter growth levers that creators are using right now to grow smarter—not harder.Each tactic comes straight from Chenell's 30 Days of Growth series, where creators shared the exact strategies that helped them attract thousands of new subscribers, improve engagement, and build more loyal audiences. From a clever “four-hour follow-up email” to a Google Doc that helped generate over $1.2 million in revenue, we’re dissecting what made these plays work—and how you can apply them to your own...2025-04-3038 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)The Cross-Promo Playbook: Strategies That Actually Work (Without Wasting Time)Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>We're diving into one of the most underrated growth strategies out there: collaborations and cross-promotions. Whether you're building a newsletter, launching a podcast, or growing a YouTube channel, collabs are one of the most high-leverage plays you can run — and we break down exactly how to do them right.We get into real-life examples, from simple newsletter swaps to co-created content that drives thousands of subscribers (even when you're the smaller creator). We also talk through common mistakes we’ve made, what to wa...2025-04-2348 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)30 Proven Ways to Grow Your Newsletter (this episode will self-destruct in 7 days....)Here's the scoop: I'm launching a free 30-day, pop-up newsletter called 30 Days of Growth. It's going to feature 30 different tactics to either grow or optimize your newsletter from creators like Jay Clouse, Amanda Goetz, Eddie Shleyner, and many others. Each one will be something you can implement in 24 hours or less. You can sign up to grab it at 30daysofgrowth.co.2025-04-2005 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)The #1 Thing These 3 Newsletters Got Wrong (and How to Fix It) — Newsletter Roasts Vol. 2Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>Three roasts are better than one!Our first Newsletter Roast was last month, and we only roasted ONE newsletter. Today we're bringing back the heat—but roasting THREE newsletters instead of just one. These newsletters are all in different phases of their journey but all share one common problem (you'll have to listen to find out). In this episode, we review each newsletter's sign-up page, their welcome email & onboarding, and one edition of their newsletters. While you *can* listen to this on...2025-04-1641 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)How “IV Content” Fuels the Fastest-Growing Newsletters—to 50k and Beyond (NMS Talk)Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>This special edition of the Growth In Reverse podcast is the full live talk I gave at the Newsletter Marketing Summit in Austin TX this past February. Over the past two years, I’ve studied the growth of the most successful newsletters in the world—those who’ve hit 50,000+ subscribers—and I noticed something interesting. There's one thing every single one of them has in common. It's not some sexy growth hack or a secret referral program. It’s something way more powerful a...2025-04-0925 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)From 40 Followers to $1m: Dave & Marsden Kline Built a Creator Business in 3.5 YearsGet 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>"Quantity leads to quality, but when you find a winner, you have to double down." — Dave Kline, MGMT PlaybookDave Kline went from leading teams at Bridgewater to building a million-dollar creator business—with zero prior experience on social media. But the real secret behind the success? His wife, Marsden (Mar). While Dave built a public-facing brand on Twitter and LinkedIn, Mar worked behind the scenes to shape the vision, voice, and strategy of their business.Then, she stepped into the spot...2025-04-0245 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)One man. One newsletter. One Million subscribers: How Lenny Rachitsky did it.Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>Lenny Rachitsky just crossed 1 million subscribers with his Substack newsletter, aptly named Lenny's Newsletter.Chenell has written a few deep dives on Lenny (How he reached 377k subscribers, and how he got 18k paid subscribers).So we thought it would be interesting to see what he's done to accelerate his growth to over 1M subscribers over the past few years—and share our biggest takeaways and reasons for his growth. → Take your newsletter to the next level with GIR Pro >>→...2025-03-2644 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Brutally Honest Newsletter Roast: What Works, What Doesn't, and What to FixGet 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>“The easiest way to lose potential subscribers is to make them work too hard to understand what they’re signing up for.”(Watch this episode on YouTube -->)We sent out the call to get your newsletter roasted. Over 20 listeners submitted their newsletters. And today we're roasting the first one: Craftsman Films Shout-out to Daren Smith of Craftsman Creative and Craftsman Films for being our first guinea pig with this experimental episode. → Take your newsletter to the next leve...2025-03-1934 min
Aggressively Human: Online Business in the Age of AI, Algorithms & AutomationsCut out the (Meta) Middleman: Creator-Led Newsletter Growth with Dylan RedekopNo matter your relationship with social media and Big Tech… you can’t argue that it’s become more saturated, more based on the algorithm (bye bye followers, hello “for you” feed), and more “pay-to-play”. So, you decide to focus on your newsletter and stop building on rented land. But in order to grow, you’re told to give even more money to the platforms for ads, or spend time every day posting and engaging - ultimately paying with your attention.What if there was another way to grow your newsletter, without relying on social media or paying high rate...2025-03-1356 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)The Future For Newsletters: Biggest Lessons from the Newsletter Marketing SummitGet 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>"The future of newsletters isn’t just email." — Chenell BasilioMissed the Newsletter Marketing Summit in Austin? Well, Chenell didn't! She was there IRL—and she's sharing her biggest takeaways from the first annual summit. Not only did Chenell attend the event, she was a speaker! Listen in to find out more about her talk and the insights and trends she discovered while in Austin TX. → Take your newsletter to the next level with GIR Pro >>→ Get...2025-03-1241 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)From 0 to 100K: The Science of Writing, Learning & Experimentation with Anne-Laure Le CunffGet 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>"I didn’t have a goal—I just committed to showing up every day for 100 days." — Anne-Laure Le Cunff, Ness LabsAfter publishing 100 articles in 100 days, Anne-Laure drove 6,000 subscribers to her Maker Mind newsletter.It was the tiny experiment that kickstarted her newsletter journey. But it was just the beginning. Today, her Maker Mind newsletter reaches over 100k subscribers' inboxes, and her Ness Labs community brings in over 6 figures in revenue every year. But what's even more impressive is tha...2025-03-0544 min
Growth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)This Student Grew a Newsletter & Community to 6-Figure Subscribers & RevenueGet 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>Anne-Laure got her first 6,000 subscribers by posting 100 articles in 100 days. But that was back in 2019.Today, her Maker Mind newsletter hits over 100k subscriber inboxes, and her Ness Labs community brings in over 6 figures in revenue every year. So, in this deep dive walkthrough, I share how Anne-Laure went from 6k subscribers to 100k+. Then later this week, Dylan and I chat with Anne-Laure about her recent journey of getting her PhD in neuroscience and publishing a book, all while still operating...2025-03-0223 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Building a $2M Newsletter While Getting Lazier with Katelyn BourgoinGet 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>"Less is more. The key to growing Why We Buy wasn’t doing more—it was doubling down on what worked and cutting the rest.” — Katelyn BourgoinChenell & Dylan are joined by Katelyn Bourgoin of the Why We Buy newsletter.Chenell researched & wrote a GIR Deep Dive on Katelyn back in 2023. At that point, Katelyn's Why We Buy newsletter had just surpassed the 50k-subscriber mark and she was in the midst of earning $300k with her newsletter. Fast-forward 18 months: Why We B...2025-02-2652 min
FocusedChasing Valuable Rabbits, with Chenell BasilioChenell Basilio joins us to talk about cultivating curiosity, finding your people, and avoiding burnout.
This episode of Focused is sponsored by:
Indeed: Join more than 3.5 million businesses worldwide using Indeed to hire great talent fast.
Cleft: Capture and Share Notes With Cleft's AI Scribe.
Zocdoc: Find the right doctor, right now with Zocdoc. Sign up for free.
Guest Starring: Chenell Basilio
Links and Show Notes: Deep Focus: Extended ad-free episodes with bonus deep dive content. Chenell's Craft + Commerce Talk Growth in Reverse ...2025-02-261h 17
Focused224: Chasing Valuable Rabbits, with Chenell Basilio2025-02-261h 17Growth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)The 7-Figure Newsletter Teaching People “Why We Buy”Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>Katelyn Bourgoin has amassed over 63k subscribers and earned $1M in revenue—in 2024 alone! She runs the popular newsletter Why We Buy. It's my favorite newsletter when it comes to buyer psychology.And in this deep dive walkthrough, I'm giving you a rundown of how she's built and monetized her newsletter. And then later this week, Dylan and I have Katelyn on the show talking all about how she's pivoting her consulting business to a full-on newsletter business. Get 75+ Growth Lev...2025-02-2332 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Beyond Sponsorships: The Most Unique Newsletter Revenue StreamsGet 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>What are the most popular revenue streams for newsletters?And how many revenue streams do most newsletters have? Chenell & Dylan review the revenue stream stats from the 66 Deep Dives that Chenell's published for Growth In Reverse. They reveal what the 3 most common revenue streams are—but then they unearth the lesser-known revenue streams that newsletter creators are sleeping on. → Take your newsletter to the next level with GIR Pro >>→ Get free access to 75+ newsletter Growth Levers here >>KEY TAKEAW...2025-02-1937 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)How To Revive a Stalled Newsletter — with Ben CollinsGet 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>What happens when an established newsletter hits a growth plateau? And can anything be done to revive it?Chenell & Dylan sit down with Ben Collins of BenLCollins.com and his Google Sheets Tips newsletter.When Chenell researched & wrote her GIR Deep Dive on Ben last year, all appeared to be going well for Ben and his Google Sheets Tips newsletter. But when we invited Ben to join us on the podcast, he was apprehensive: "Are you sure you want me to...2025-02-1246 min
Growth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)He Built a 6-Figure Empire Teaching Google Sheets: Ben Collins Deep DiveGet 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>Ben Collins has built a successful business and a newsletter with over 50k subscribers that earns him a comfortable living. Later this week, Dylan and I talk to Ben about how he can continue to grow the newsletter and get over the growth plateau he's currently facing. Get 75+ Growth Levers used by top newsletters: https://growthinreverse.com/gll/Join a community of others building their newsletters: https://growthinreverse.com/pro/***LINKS MENTIONED• Ben's newsletter and website: https://www.ben...2025-02-1021 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Small changes that could 10x your newsletter.Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>Could these small changes have a 10x impact on your newsletter's success? Chenell & Dylan reveal 15+ little newsletter changes you can make today that could have massive results. → Take your newsletter to the next level with GIR Pro >>→ Get free access to 75+ newsletter Growth Levers here >>KEY TAKEAWAYSThe minimalist landing page tip that can help boost conversions9 small ways to improve your welcome email—and increase engagementThe missed opportunity with “almost there” & "thank-you" pagesReferral programs: a simple way to make th...2025-02-0545 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Scaling to 150k: The Secrets to More Paid Subscribers with Aakash Gupta (#010)Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>"Collaborations are not optional. They’re the fastest way to grow a newsletter.” — Aakash Gupta, Product GrowthChenell & Dylan sit down with Aakash Gupta of the Product Growth newsletter in this episode. When Chenell researched & wrote her GIR Deep Dive on Aakash last year, he had just hit 100k subscribers. He's now grown to over 150k subscribers, publishes multiple times per week—and started a new podcast this past August. Aakash shares how he's grown his newsletter, where he focuses his energy, and how...2025-01-2947 min
Growth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)$624k/Year From a Newsletter - How Aakash Gupta Grew His Newsletter From 0 to 105k in 3 Years. (#009)Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>In 3 years, Aakash Gupta went from 0 to over 300k followers, 105k email subscribers, and $624k in annual revenue. This is a walkthrough of a deep dive I wrote into his growth story, which you can read here: https://growthinreverse.com/aakash-gupta/On Wednesday, we're releasing the full interview with Aakash Gupta here, so stay tuned!2025-01-2718 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Turn Your Newsletter Into a Sponsor Magnet - with Justin Moore (#008)Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>"I made $2,000 with a newsletter list of only 3,000 subscribers."In this episode of the Growth In Reverse podcast, Chenell & Dylan sit down with Justin Moore and discuss how to nail brand sponsorships. Justin is the founder of Creator Wizard where he coaches creators to earn more with their brand deals. He has also written and pre-launched his book on the same topic called Sponsor Magnet. → Take your newsletter to the next level with GIR Pro >>→ Get free access to 75+ newsletter Growth Lever...2025-01-2251 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)7 of the Best Newsletter Growth Strategies of 2024 (#007)Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>In this episode of the Growth In Reverse podcast, Chenell & Dylan dive into the best and most unique growth strategies they saw in 2024.→ Take your newsletter to the next level with GIR Pro >>→ Get free access to 75+ newsletter Growth Levers here >>KEY TAKEAWAYSHow Khe Hy used lead magnets "in disguise"Aakash Gupta discovered a massive growth hackKyla Scanlon drives over 69k subscribers with short-form contentYossi Levi creates irresistible content with "exclusives"How Julie Gurner extracts value, then pivotsBen Tossell repl...2025-01-1536 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Spicy Newsletter Takes: Should You Really Do This? (#006)Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>In this episode of the Growth In Reverse podcast, Chenell & Dylan dive into some of the most polarizing newsletter topics. They share their experiences and opinions AND potentially *hot* takes. Take your newsletter to the next level with GIR Pro >> Get free access to 75+ newsletter Growth Levers here >> KEY TAKEAWAYSLead Magnets: Yes or No? How to make them work for you.Double Opt-In Debate: Does it help engagement or kill your subscriber growth?Cleaning Your Email List: 100% necessary—or mo...2025-01-0851 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Grow Your Newsletter WITHOUT Social Media (#005)Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>In this episode of the Growth In Reverse podcast, Chenell & Dylan review how some popular newsletters grew without social media —and share how you can do the same. Get free access to 75+ newsletter Growth Levers here: https://growthinreverse.com/growth-levers-library/Start collecting testimonials for free with Senja: https://growthinreverse.com/senjaLINKS MENTIONEDStart collecting testimonials for free with Senja: https://growthinreverse.com/senjaBen Collins - Google Sheets Newsletter (GIR Deep Dive)Thomas Shields - The Dink Newsletter (GIR De...2024-12-3044 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)What I’d Change If I Started Over (#004)Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>In this episode of the Growth In Reverse podcast: after hitting 40,000 subscribers in 2 years of publishing her Growth In Reverse newsletter, Chenell reflects on how she operated, grew, and monetized her newsletter—and what she would do differently if starting from scratch. Get free access to 75+ newsletter Growth Levers here: https://growthinreverse.com/growth-levers-library/Start collecting testimonials for free with Senja: https://growthinreverse.com/senjaKEY TAKEAWAYSStarting Strong: Why beginning with curiosity and passion set the foundation for success.Co...2024-12-2343 minGrowth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Building His Newsletter to 75k Subscribers with Eddie Shleyner of Very Good Copy (#003)Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>#003 - Welcome to the Growth In Reverse podcast — in this episode, Chenell & Dylan host a special guest: Eddie Shleyner, the creator behind Very Good Copy.Eddie has built a successful newsletter and blog focused on micro lessons in copywriting, creativity, and marketing, garnering the attention of over 70,000 subscribers and leading brands.Get Chenell's FULL deep dive on Eddie Shleyner here: https://growthinreverse.com/eddie-shleynerStart collecting testimonials like Eddie did —for free— with Senja: https://growthinreverse.com/senjaKEY...2024-12-1854 min
Growth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)The Biggest Mistakes We See Newsletters Making (#002)Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>#002 - Welcome to the Growth In Reverse podcast — in this episode, Chenell & Dylan cover the 12 most common mistakes they see newsletter creators making—and how to fix them. Get the full list of mistakes and 75+ newsletter growth tactics here: https://growthinreverse.com/mistakesStart collecting testimonials for free with Senja: https://growthinreverse.com/senjaKEY TAKEAWAYSMistake #1: Poor Format & ContentMistake #2: Hiding your subscribe formMistake #3: Too many other linksMistake #4: Unclear valueBONUS Mistake: Not collecting social proofMistake #5: Not sending a welcome emailMistake #6: Usin...2024-12-1131 min
Growth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)The Wildest Newsletter Growth Strategies From 3,000 Hours of Research (#001)Get 30 proven strategies to grow and optimize your email list FREE >>#001 - Welcome to the Growth In Reverse podcast — in this episode, Chenell & Dylan dig into some of the wildest ways to grow your newsletter after looking back on over 3,000 hours of research into creators. Get the full list and 75+ newsletter growth tactics here: https://growthinreverse.com/wildStart collecting testimonials for free with Senja: https://growthinreverse.com/senjaKEY TAKEAWAYSCodie Sanchez’s Playbook: How buying and growing newsletters helped her build a massive audience.Yossi Levi (Car Dealership Guy): Buil...2024-12-0425 minNewsletter OperatorANNOUNCEMENTGet super-early bird pricing and an extra $100 off Newsletter Marketing Summit:NewsletterMarketingSummit.comUse code BFCM24 for the extra $100 off any ticket. This code expires on 12/2 at midnight EST.In this podcast, Matt and Ahrif discuss GrowLetter's first-ever conference, Newsletter Marketing Summit.Speakers include: Alex LeibermanSam ParrJames AltucherBrian MorrisseyJenny RothenbergRyan HashemiYossi J LeviChenell BasilioRyan Heafy Brad WolvertonTim HuelskampJay ClouseNeville MedhoraMatt McGarryAnd many moreGot questions about the event? Want to learn about sponsorship options? Contact: ahrif@growletter.co2024-11-2624 min
Growth In Reverse (Newsletter Growth & Email Marketing)Coming soon... the Growth In Reverse podcast!Hitting 50k newsletter subscribers isn't easy. But the Growth In Reverse podcast reveals how newsletters are doing it. Chenell Basilio has spent the past 2+ years and thousands of hours reverse engineering how the biggest newsletter creators in the world have grown audiences of 50,000 to 1M subscribers—and beyond. Join Chenell and her cohost Dylan Redekop every week to learn the most effective and unique newsletter growth strategies, hear from other newsletter experts, and figure out how to turn your newsletter into a profitable business. Check out the newsletter of the same name at growthinreverse.com → 2024-11-2200 min
Streamlined Solopreneur: Helping solopreneur parents stop checking email at the playgroundWhy and How I’m Fixing my NewsletterMy newsletter has gone through a lot of changes over the years, but something that's been steadfast is promoting the latest episode of this podcast at the beginning of the week. And that made perfect sense when both the newsletter and this podcast talked about largely the same thing.But now this show talks about running a solo business generally, while the newsletter is supposed to focus on podcast processes and systems.They both make the same promise, but the audiences are different.I've tried splitting the baby, so to speak...2024-07-1525 min
Creator ScienceHow to build raving fans and real connection (feat. Chenell Basilio and Becky Davidson)Last week, I spoke at ConvertKit's annual Craft and Commerce event in Boise, Idaho. It's one of my favorite events of the year, and this year may have been my favorite event ever. ConvertKit revealed that they are rebranding to Kit and making a whole slew of other product updates, including opening an in-person recording studio available to all ConvertKit customers, which is where today's recording took place. Today, I'm talking with two members of the lab who have become great friends. The first is Chenell Basilio, the writer of Growth in Reverse. Growth in Reverse is...2024-06-1348 min
Creator Science[GREATEST HITS] #147: Chenell Basilio – How the best newsletter operators grow to 50K+ subscribersChenell is the writer of Growth In Reverse, a weekly newsletter where she reverse engineers how a top creator grew from 0 to 50k+ subscribers.Chenell has done deep dives on Justin Welsh, Codie Sanchez, Lenny Rachitsky, Harry Dry, and many more.I read it every week and think it’s incredibly well-done. The premise is super clear, and as a result, Chenell has seen her OWN newsletter grow very quickly – nearing 10,000 subscribers in just about four months.In this episode, you’ll learn:
The common patterns between these newsletter operators
Some of the mo...2024-04-2346 min
Send & Grow by SparkLoopDeep Dives & Community Ties: Unlocking Newsletter Growth — with Chenell Basilio of Growth In ReverseEnjoying the podcast? Then you'll LOVE the Send & Grow newsletter where we share deep dives, tips, and news for smart newsletter operators like you. Welcome back to another episode of the Send & Grow podcast. This week, SparkLoop's Dylan Redekop chats with Chenell Basilio. Chenell writes the popular Growth In Reverse newsletter. Since publishing her first edition to 4 people, she has since grown her newsletter to over 30k subscribers organically in the past year. In this episode, Dylan & Chenell discuss…The Genesis of Growth In Reverse: How Chenell's curiosity about newsletter monetization led to the birt...2024-02-2732 min
What's Good?Brian Dukes | Founder's Journey: Exit PreparationBrian didn't begin his career as an entrepreneur, starting his professional journey in Big 5 Consulting before getting an MBA at the University of Michigan, but instead of taking a traditional MBA job, he joined his first startup - a Ford Motor Company Joint Venture. Three years later he cofounded a technology and digital marketing agency, built that business into an automotive industry leader, and began to cut his teeth in M&A, through those experiences, in 2022 Brian embraced the opportunity to join a friend to build Exitwise... an M&A Advisory platform that provides exit education and transaction support...2024-02-271h 23
The Undefeated UnderdogsChenell Basilio - How to grow a newsletter empire(50K+ subscribers) on the Internet!👉🏼 About the Guest:Chenell Basilio is not just a name, but a powerhouse of knowledge and strategic thinking that fuels the growth of leading creators. With her incredible ability to reverse engineer the growth strategies of top creators, she uncovers the blueprint of creators who amassed over 50k+ subscribers via her Growth In Reverse newsletter. By investing over 20 hours each week in research, she presents a wealth of insights on strategy, marketing, and growth.Chenell has done deep dives on Kat Norton(Miss Excel), Dan Koe, Justin Welsh, Codie Sanchez, Lenny Rachitsky, Harry Dry, and many m...2023-12-1457 min
10q Interview with Chris HutchingsWill Poskett - Grow Club NewsletterIn this episode of 10q Interview, I talk to brand strategist and Grow Club newsletter writer, Will Poskett.I loved chatting to Will, one of those very knowledgable people who makes you feel like you've been mates for years.We covered a whole range of topics, including:thoughts on influencers & marketingcutting through the Linkedin BSthe superpower of consistency and disciplinean 'EXCLUSIVE' on the remaining of his newslettergrowth marketingtargeting a high value audiencebest time to send an email newsletterwhat's next after communitygrowth on Linkedingood/bad bossesthe upside of simplifying complex thingsI think yo...2023-09-191h 13
Growing Steady | Intentional Creative Business Podcast172 - The next big move with our software product (and NEW segment!)This week, we go through a big move we’re making with our software product Teachery. For the first time, we have a pretty big change in our new user signup process! We’ve created 7 pre-designed course themes to get someone up and running much faster with their online course. We’re also moving our marketing site to Webflow so we have more control over marketing content, landing pages, etc. We’ll keep you posted on the progress!We also introduced a new segment called Calm Business Confidential where each of us brings an interesting calm business to the p...2023-08-1752 min
Clients from ContentHow A Newsletter Became A Must-Read For Creators In 6 MonthsThis is a special “Flip the Script” episode! Instead of answering a guest’s questions, host Josh Spector brings on an expert he wants to learn from and asks them three questions. Today’s guest is Chenell Basilio. Chenell runs the Growth In Reverse newsletter, where she reverse engineers how top creators grew their newsletter to 50,000 plus subscribers. Each week, she spends around 25 hours researching a creator and writes a deep dive, sharing some of the growth strategies they've used. You can also find her on Twitter @chenellco, talking about newsletters and building an audience.Here a...2023-07-2636 minNewsletter OperatorChenell Basilio - How To Get Your First 10k Subscribers, Find Content-Market Fit, Learnings From Top CreatorsChenell Basilio is the founder of Growth In Reverse. Each week she reverse engineers how top creators get to 50k+ subscribers, so you can replicate their growth.Join the Newsletter Operator for more strategies on how to grow and monetize your newsletter here: NewsletterOperator.comWork with Ryan's agency Tailwind Work with Matt's agency GrowLetterFollow Matt McGarry @JMatthewMcGarry and Ryan Carr @ryan_boat on Twitter.2023-07-2139 min
First Class Founders: Creators | Solopreneurs | Personal HoldCoHow the Top 0.1% of Newsletter Creators Are Skyrocketing Their Growth with Chenell Basilio of Growth in ReverseE38: Want to know how the top 0.1% of creators grow their newsletter? Today, we’re joined by Chenell Basilio, the creator behind Growth in Reverse.Growth in Reverse is a newsletter that deep dives into newsletter creators with over 50,000 subscribers. Chenell spends over 40 hours per week researching one creator each week.During my conversation with Chenell, she didn’t hold anything back.On today’s episode, you’ll learn:What Chenell’s Research Process Looks LikeHow to Build Your Tribe of Like-Minded CreatorsHow Chenell Has Built Her Audience Growth Flywheel5 Types of Newsletter...2023-07-0541 min
Build In Public PodcastWhat Newsletter Creators Are Doing Differently To Grow To 50,000 Subscribers (feat. Chenell Basilio)Welcome to another episode of the Build In Public Podcast.Today's episode features Chenell Basilio, the prolific writer behind Growth in Reverse, a newsletter that reverse engineers how top creators go from zero to 50k+ subscribers.In this interview, Chenell and KP unpack an array of perspectives and a few tips on topics such as:● What ‘Growth in Reverse’ newsletter is● How Chenell came up with the concept● Which content she reviews when writing about a creator● The secret behind the aesthetic graphics of ‘Growth in Reverse’● Inflection points in Chenell’s career● What st...2023-06-2743 min
Streamlined Solopreneur: Helping solopreneur parents stop checking email at the playgroundTo Grow Your Newsletter, You Need to Have Unique Content with Chenell BasilioIt would be a dream of mine to grow a newsletter from 0 to 8,000+ in less than 6 months. But that’s exactly what Chenell Basilio did. The way she did it? Deeply researched, super-helpful content. See, she teaches people how successful creators grew their newsletters to 50,000+ subscribers. And today, she’s going to tell us all about her process. And in How I Built It PRO, we talk about money and goals for the next 6 months.Top TakeawaysCreating unique, long-form content can be a boon to your website or newsletter; people want something good and help...2023-06-1947 min
The Marketing Millennials165 - Proven Tactics on How to Grow Your Audience, with Chenell BasilioWhat’s the best way to build your email list without the help of paid advertising? Like any good Christopher Nolan plot twist, Chenell Basilio, writer of the “Growth in Reverse” newsletter, thinks moving backward through time is the most effective strategy to grow your audience. She sits down to chat with Daniel about the art of reverse engineering, her top takeaways for organically growing a newsletter audience, and why you really need to stop planning and just start doing when it comes to marketing. 0:00 Intro/Background2:15 Tactics for Growing an Audience2023-06-0132 min
Creator ScienceChenell Basilio – How the best newsletter operators grow to 50K+ subscribers.EPISODE DESCRIPTIONChenell is the writer of Growth In Reverse, a weekly newsletter where she reverse engineers how a top creator grew from 0 to 50k+ subscribers.Chenell has done deep dives on Justin Welsh, Codie Sanchez, Lenny Rachitsky, Harry Dry, and many more.I read it every week and think it’s incredibly well-done. The premise is super clear, and as a result, Chenell has seen her OWN newsletter grow very quickly – nearing 10,000 subscribers in just about four months.In this episode, you’ll learn:
The common patterns between these newsle...2023-05-0246 min
Queer Money®: How Gay People Do MoneyHow to Build a Profitable Email List | Queer Money Ep. 398Want to make money online?If so, one of your most valueable assets will be your email list.But isn't email so "2008, 2000 and late?"Not according to Chenell Basilio who joins us this week on Queer Money to share what she's learning from disecting how other online rockstars are building massive email lists and making millions every year.For the resources and to connect with our guests, get the show notes at: https://queermoneypodcast.com/subscribe Follow us:Queer Money Instagram Queer Money YouTubeQueer Money TwitterQueer Money on T...2023-05-0235 min
Creator ScienceMatt McGarry – The man behind email acquisition for The Hustle, Codie Sanchez, Sahil Bloom, and The Milk RoadEPISODE DESCRIPTIONMatt McGarry is the owner of Growletter, an agency helping some of the biggest newsletters in the world grow. He's helped The Hustle, Codie Sanchez, The Milk Road, and others attract millions of email subscribers.He also studies the world’s best newsletters, content creators, and media companies and shares their strategies and tactics through his newsletter, called The Newsletter Operator.He is THE guy to know if you’re focused on building a newsletter and are interested in growing through paid acquisition.In this episode, you’ll learn:
How...2023-04-1850 min
The Undefeated UnderdogsJustin Welsh - Learn the art of solopreneurship from a mastermind!👉🏼 About the Guest:Justin Welsh is the writer of the Saturday Solopreneur, a weekly newsletter with 90K+ subscribers, as well as the founder of a boutique advisory firm for entrepreneurs and creator of digital products for creators. He is also an angel investor, a mentor to entrepreneurs in LATAM with 500 Startups, and an LP at GTM Fund, a rolling fund investing $4 million per year into early-stage B2B SaaS companies.👉🏼 About the Host:Sharath is a founder, creator, and community builder. He is also a serial maker who built and shipped 15+ projects using no-code tool...2023-04-061h 04
The HeyCreator ShowIt's Time for a Creator Spotlight: Chenell BasilioTim Stoddart (@timstodz) and Ethan Brooks (@damn_ethan) sit down to discuss what their plans are for their SaaS product as well as a couple really cool creators in the newsletter space.
Creator mentioned in the show:
Twitter @chenellco https://twitter.com/chenellco?s=21&t=exDIXfp3BkCZLPaADvjsLQ2023-01-0758 min
Creator ScienceJosh Spector – Driving action with a daily newsletter and providing Transformation for your audienceWATCH▶️ Watch this episode on YouTube***EPISODE DESCRIPTIONJosh Spector is a marketing and business consultant who writes For The Interested, a newsletter for creative entrepreneurs with more than 20,000 subscribers.Josh also recently launched the I Want To Know podcast where Josh answers three questions from creative entrepreneurs to help them overcome their challenges and accomplish their goals. In this episode, we talk about how Josh has built his newsletter, the benefits, and challenges of publishing daily, why I think he’s undercharging for sponsorships, and why Transfo...2022-09-1354 min
Creator SciencePolina Marinova Pompliano – How "The Internet's Biographer" writes great profilesWATCH▶️ Watch this episode on YouTube***EPISODE DESCRIPTIONPolina Pompliano is the author of The Profile, which studies the most successful and interesting people and companies in business, entertainment, tech, sports, and more.The Profile is a paid newsletter. Before Polina was writing The Profile, she wrote for Fortune, USA Today, and CNN. Polina also has nearly 130,000 followers on Twitter and in order to write exceptional profiles, says she read 1.8 million words online last year – the equivalent of 25 books.Profiles are a rare breed of writing – and Polina i...2022-07-2649 min