Latest / The Newsletter Podcast with Fexingo: Substack, Beehiiv, and Email Newsletter Business / How Newsletters Use Partner Cross-Promotions to Grow Subscribers
Transcript
- Lucas: If you write a newsletter, you have probably stared at your subscriber count and thought, I need to get this number up, but paid ads feel expensive and cold outreach feels awkward. Luna: Yeah, and most of the growth advice out there is either 'write better content' or 'run a referral program', both of which take months to pay off. Lucas: Right. So there is a faster, cheaper option that a lot of independent writers overlook: cross-promotions with other newsletters. Basically, you recommend each other's newsletters to your respective audiences. One email from each side, and both lists get a spike. Luna: I have seen this work really well for some bigger players. Do you have a specific example? Lucas: Let's look at a case from early 2022, before the newsletter space got super crowded. The Daily Upside, which covers finance and business news, had about 500,000 subscribers at the time. They partnered with Marketing Brew, which had a similar sized list in the marketing niche. They did a one-time swap: each newsletter included a short blurb recommending the other, with a direct sign-up link. Luna: And what were the results? Lucas: Both newsletters reported adding roughly 15,000 new subscribers within a week of the send. That is a 3 percent lift from a single email, zero ad spend. The cost was basically the opportunity cost of using that slot for their own content. Luna: That sounds almost too good. Was there any downside? Lucas: The main risk is audience mismatch. If you recommend a newsletter that is totally off-topic, your subscribers might feel annoyed or unsubscribe. But in this case, finance and marketing overlap nicely. A lot of people in finance want to understand marketing, and marketers often follow business news. Luna: So the key is finding a partner whose audience overlaps with yours, but is not identical. Too much overlap and you are just swapping the same people. Lucas: Exactly. You want maybe 20 to 30 percent overlap. Enough that the recommendation feels relevant, but not so much that you are just trading existing subscribers. And list size parity matters too. If you have 5,000 subscribers and you partner with someone who has 500,000, the larger partner might not see enough value to justify the send. Luna: What about smaller newsletters? Can they do this at all? Lucas: Absolutely, they just have to scale down. Instead of a full email blast, you can do a footer swap. You each add a line at the bottom of your regular newsletter saying 'Recommended by a friend' with a link. That puts less pressure on the audience, but it is a steady trickle rather than a spike. Luna: I have also seen some writers do a 'best of' roundup where they feature three newsletters they read. That feels more natural than a straight ad. Lucas: That is a good approach. And platforms like Beehiiv and Substack have built-in tools for this. Beehiiv has a 'Recommendations' feature where you can add other newsletters to your sidebar, and Substack has a similar network where you can recommend other Substacks and they recommend you back. Luna: Before we go deeper into the mechanics, I want to pause on something you mentioned about cost. You said zero ad spend, but there is an implicit cost. Lucas: Right, and that is actually something we think about a lot on this show. These episodes are ad-free by design, and that is a choice we make because we believe the content should speak for itself. If you find value in what we do here and want to support that choice, you can do so at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It is a small way to keep the show independent and listener-supported. Luna: Yeah, and it really does make a difference. Thanks to everyone who has already chipped in. Now, back to cross-promotions — you mentioned the tools, but what about the actual ask? How do you approach another writer? Lucas: It is surprisingly simple. Most writers are open to it if you are respectful. You send a short email saying you admire their work, you think your audiences would enjoy each other's content, and you propose a specific format: a one-time blast, a footer swap, or a mutual recommendation in the sidebar. Include your subscriber count and niche so they can assess fit. Luna: Should you offer to write the blurb yourself to make it easier for them? Lucas: That is a nice touch. Draft a few sentences they can use verbatim. It reduces friction. And be clear about the timing: 'I will send mine on Tuesday, you send yours on Thursday' so it feels coordinated. Luna: What about tracking? How do you know if the swap actually worked? Lucas: You can use a unique tracking link or a custom landing page. Many newsletter platforms provide click-through stats. The Daily Upside likely saw a spike in sign-ups from a specific referral URL. If you are using Substack, you can see how many subscribers came from a recommendation. Luna: One thing I have noticed is that cross-promotions work best when both newsletters have a similar publishing frequency. If you send daily and your partner sends weekly, the recommendation might get buried. Lucas: That is a smart observation. Also, the timing relative to your own content matters. If you send a recommendation immediately after a high-performing post, you might get a bigger lift because readers are already engaged. Some writers schedule swaps right after a big piece goes out. Luna: Are there any pitfalls besides audience mismatch? Lucas: Yes. Over-promoting is a risk. If you do too many cross-promotions, your subscribers might feel like you are just a billboard. I would recommend no more than one cross-promotion per month, unless you have a regular 'recommended' section that readers expect. Luna: And you have to be careful about the quality of the partner newsletter. If you recommend something that turns out to be spammy or low-quality, it reflects poorly on you. Lucas: Absolutely. Vet the newsletter before you agree. Read a few issues. Check their open rates if they share them. The trust you have built with your audience is your most valuable asset. Luna: Let's talk about the future. Do you think cross-promotions will become more automated? Like a marketplace where you can match with partners based on list size and niche? Lucas: It is already happening. Beehiiv has a 'Partner Network' that suggests newsletters to recommend. Substack's recommendation network is essentially that. I think we will see more algorithmic matching, but the human element — the mutual respect — will always matter. Luna: So for a new newsletter writer today, what is the one actionable takeaway? Lucas: Find three newsletters in adjacent niches that have a similar subscriber count to you. Reach out with a specific proposal. Start with a footer swap to test the waters. Track the results. If it works, scale up to a full blast. You could easily add 10 to 20 percent to your list in a few months, with zero ad spend. Luna: And if you are a listener who has tried cross-promotions, we would love to hear your story. Reach out to us on social media. Lucas: That is a good note to end on. Cross-promotions are one of those tactics that seem obvious in hindsight, but most writers do not take the step of actually asking. So go ask.