Latest / The Newsletter Podcast with Fexingo: Substack, Beehiiv, and Email Newsletter Business / How Newsletter Writers Use Cold Email Outreach to Grow
Transcript
- Lucas: So, cold email. For most of us, it's the thing we ignore, delete, or report as spam. But there's a small group of newsletter writers who have turned cold outreach into their single fastest subscriber acquisition channel — and they're doing it without being sleazy. Luna: That's a big claim. I think most people hear 'cold email' and immediately picture those awful 'I saw your profile and thought we should connect' LinkedIn messages. Lucas: Right, and that's exactly the problem — most cold email is terrible. But done right, it's essentially a targeted, one-to-one invitation to subscribe. And the numbers are surprising. Lenny Rachitsky, who runs one of the biggest Substack newsletters on product management, has said that cold email was a major driver in his early growth. He'd find people who wrote about relevant topics, send them a genuinely helpful note, and ask for nothing except a read. Luna: I remember reading that he'd spend hours curating lists of a hundred people, then send each one a personalized email. It sounds exhausting, but apparently it worked. Lucas: It did. And the key insight is that he wasn't pitching his newsletter. He was starting a conversation, offering a compliment or a resource, and then — only if they replied — he'd mention his newsletter as a 'by the way'. That's a completely different dynamic than blasting a list. Luna: Yeah, that feels more like networking than spamming. But what about scale? One hundred personalized emails is doable for a solo writer, but what if you're trying to grow from 5,000 to 10,000 subscribers? Lucas: That's where tools and templates come in. There are writers using tools like Mailshake or Lemlist to send semi-automated cold email sequences. They target people who have recently published on a related topic, or who follow certain accounts on X or LinkedIn. The open rates are typically 30 to 40 percent, and conversion rates from email to free subscriber hover around 2 to 5 percent. Luna: So if you send 500 emails, you might get 15 to 25 new subscribers. That's not huge, but for a targeted, low-cost effort, it adds up. Lucas: Exactly. And the lifetime value of those subscribers is often higher because they came in through a personal touch. They're more likely to open, engage, and eventually convert to paid. Plus, you're building relationships with influencers in your niche. Luna: I want to push back on something, though. Isn't cold email against the terms of service of most email providers? And doesn't it risk your domain reputation? Lucas: That's a fair concern. can spam compliance is crucial — you have to include an opt-out, identify yourself, and not use deceptive subject lines. For Substack and Beehiiv specifically, their ToS don't explicitly ban outreach, but they do prohibit scraping and unsolicited bulk email. The line is between 'personalized outreach' and 'mass spam.' Most writers who succeed keep it small — under a hundred emails a day — and use their own domain, not the newsletter platform's sending infrastructure. Luna: So it's more of a gray area than a hard no. But if you're careful, it's viable. Lucas: Exactly. And Beehiiv actually built a feature that makes this easier. It's called Boost — it lets you pay to get your newsletter promoted in other Beehiiv newsletters' recommendation slots. Essentially, you're buying cold traffic, but it's warm because the host newsletter's readers already opt in to recommendations. It's not exactly cold email, but it's the same principle: reaching people who don't know you yet. Luna: Interesting. So for writers who don't want to write one-off emails, Boost is a more scalable option. But it costs money, whereas cold email is basically free. Lucas: Right. But the trade-off is time. Writing 50 personalized emails takes a couple of hours. If your time is worth $100 an hour, that's $200. Boost might cost $200 for 200 clicks — and you get maybe 10 subscribers. So the ROI depends on your hourly rate and conversion. Luna: Let's get practical. Can you share a specific cold email template that works? I think our listeners would love to see the actual structure. Lucas: Sure. The one I've seen used most effectively is what I call the 'compliment plus value' template. Subject line: 'Loved your piece on ' — short, no clickbait. Body: 'Hi, I really enjoyed your recent article about. I shared it with my team and it sparked a great discussion. I also wrote a piece on that expands on the. Thought you might find it useful. No pressure to read, obviously. Best, Lucas.' That's it. No pitch, no ask. If they reply, you can mention your newsletter. Luna: That feels genuine. And it shows you actually read their work. I think that's the make or break — if you're not genuinely interested, they'll smell it. Lucas: 100%. And the data backs it up. I talked to a writer who used this exact template to reach 300 people in a week — all journalists covering the same beat. He got a 40% reply rate and 50 new subscribers. That's a 17% conversion from email to subscriber, which is way above the 2-5% average. The difference was relevance: he only emailed people who already wrote about his niche. Luna: That's impressive. But let's be honest — most writers won't do that. It's hard work. But for those who want to accelerate growth without spending money on ads, it's a solid tactic. Lucas: Absolutely. And it's not just for B2B newsletters. I've seen food writers, sports newsletters, even niche hobby newsletters use it successfully. The key is finding where your potential subscribers hang out online and reaching them with a human touch. Luna: One thing I want to clarify: when you say 'cold email,' are you including LinkedIn messages? Because I've seen writers use LinkedIn InMail to grow their list. Lucas: Yes, that's a variant. LinkedIn InMail has higher open rates because it's less crowded, but it's also more expensive — unless you have a premium account. Some writers use LinkedIn to find potential subscribers, then send them a connection request with a note. Once connected, they can message them directly. Same principle, different platform. Luna: I'd add that Twitter DMs work too, especially if you're already engaging with someone's content. A quick DM saying 'Hey, loved your thread, I write a newsletter on X — think you'd like it' can be effective if you're genuine. Lucas: Right. And the overarching rule is: don't be transactional. If you're only emailing to get a subscriber, it will feel cold. If you're emailing to start a relationship, it feels warm. That's the difference between spam and outreach. Luna: So what's the biggest mistake you see writers make when they try cold email? Lucas: They send a template that's too generic. 'Hi, I saw your profile and think you'd love my newsletter on.' That's a pitch, not an invitation. They also send too many too fast, which triggers spam filters. And they don't track results — they have no idea which emails are working. Luna: How do you track? Just manually? Lucas: You can use tools like HubSpot or Mixmax for tracking opens and clicks, but honestly, a simple spreadsheet of who replied and who subscribed is enough. The goal isn't to optimize every variable — it's to build a list of engaged readers one by one. Luna: It sounds like cold email is more of a mindset than a tactic. It's about being helpful and patient. Lucas: Exactly. And that's why it works. In a world of automated growth hacks, a personal email stands out. If you can write 10 good emails a day, that's 300 a month. At a 5% conversion, that's 15 new subscribers per month from outreach alone. Over a year, that's 180 subscribers — all highly targeted. That's not nothing. Luna: And those 180 are likely to be your most loyal readers because they came in through a personal connection. Lucas: Right. So if you're stuck at a plateau and ads are too expensive, it's worth trying. Start small, keep it personal, and track what works. Luna: If these marketing conversations have sparked something you've actually used in your own newsletter growth, that's exactly what keeps this show ad-free and going. If today's episode was worth a coffee to you, the link is buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Seriously, that small gesture makes a big difference. Lucas: Yeah, and we really appreciate it. So — back to cold email. One last thing I want to mention: the timing. The best time to send cold email is Tuesday through Thursday, mid-morning in the recipient's time zone. Avoid Monday mornings and Friday afternoons. That alone can lift your reply rate by 20 percent. Luna: Good tip. And follow up? How many times should you follow up if they don't reply? Lucas: One follow-up, max two. And wait at least a week. The follow-up should add value, not just 'checking in.' Maybe share a new article you wrote or a resource they might like. If they don't reply after two emails, move on. Luna: That's respectful. Nobody likes being bombarded. Lucas: Exactly. So to wrap up: cold email is a viable, low-cost growth channel for newsletter writers if done with care. Personalize, provide value, and be patient. It's not a silver bullet, but it's a tool worth having in your kit. Luna: And remember, the line between outreach and spam is respect. Treat each email as a conversation starter, not a transaction. Lucas: Well said. That's it for today. We'll be back next episode with another deep dive into newsletter growth.