Growth In Reverse Podcast Summary
Episode: Behind the Scenes of a Free 30-Day Newsletter Growth Sprint
Release Date: May 7, 2025
Hosts: Chenell Basilio and Dylan Redekop
1. Introduction to the 30-Day Growth Sprint
In this episode, Chenell Basilio and Dylan Redekop delve into the intricacies of their ongoing 30-Day Growth Sprint—a concentrated effort aimed at exponentially increasing newsletter subscribers through strategic cross-promotions and giveaways. Chenell shares her enthusiasm and initial successes, highlighting the campaign's feeling akin to a launch event with significant engagement metrics.
Notable Quote:
Chenell: “It feels like a launch event.” [00:00]
2. Current Progress and Early Results
Chenell reports impressive early metrics, with 2,600 people signed up for the sprint and 1,250 being new subscribers to Growth in Reverse. This reflects substantial interest and effective initial outreach.
Notable Quote:
Chenell: “We have like 2,600 people signed up. 1250 of those are new subscribers to Growth in Reverse, which is super, super cool.” [00:00-00:40]
3. Giveaway Mechanics and Prize Structure
The growth sprint includes a giveaway valued between $8,000 to $10,000, featuring prizes such as newsletter audits from Chenell and annual licenses to tools like Right Message, Senja, and Tella. The giveaway structure encourages participants to share the campaign with others, thereby increasing their chances of winning.
Notable Quotes:
Chenell: “When you sign up, you get sent into the giveaway, which has some, I think it was like $8,000 worth of prizes.” [01:40]
Dylan: “It’s probably closer to $10,000 worth of prizes.” [02:08]
4. Marketing Strategies Employed
a. LinkedIn Challenges and Engagement
Chenell initially utilized LinkedIn newsletters and posts to promote the growth sprint. However, she observed a decline in engagement—from 50-100 engagements per post to 20-30—possibly due to algorithm changes or inconsistent posting.
Notable Quotes:
Chenell: “These are getting like 20 to 30 engagements.” [03:09]
Dylan: “Maybe we should quickly, for people who might not have heard our last episode, give a quick recap.” [00:40]
b. Email Marketing and Referral Systems
Participants receive daily emails with growth tips and are entered into the giveaway. The referral system incentivizes sharing by offering additional entries for each unique referral, with a notable 9% of participants joining through referrals.
Notable Quotes:
Chenell: “If you share it with someone using your unique link, you get more entries to win.” [04:09]
Dylan: “The top person has 52 referrals right now, which is insane.” [04:47]
c. Substack Activity
Chenell has begun posting growth levers on Substack, assisted by Dylan. Despite initial hesitations to duplicate content from LinkedIn, this move has resulted in a modest increase from 70 to 102 subscribers.
Notable Quotes:
Chenell: “I have 102 subscribers on Substack.” [09:06]
Dylan: “Maybe you should keep the same thing from LinkedIn.” [10:21]
5. Challenges Faced
a. LinkedIn Engagement Decline
The decrease in LinkedIn post engagements posed a significant challenge, leading Chenell to question the effectiveness of the platform and consider alternative strategies to rejuvenate engagement.
Notable Quote:
Chenell: “There should be a bigger, bigger group here.” [00:40]
b. Technical Issues with Referrals Tracking
Technical glitches surfaced in the referral tracking system, causing confusion among participants and necessitating immediate fixes to ensure accurate tracking and display of referral counts.
Notable Quotes:
Chenell: “People have been emailing me saying it's not showing my referrals.” [16:09]
Dylan: “This shows zero for me.” [16:25]
6. Ideas and Potential Improvements
a. Increasing Giveaway Appeal
To enhance the giveaway's attractiveness, Chenell and Dylan discuss introducing tiered prizes, such as mini audits or shout-outs in the newsletter, contingent on achieving specific referral milestones.
Notable Quotes:
Chenell: “What if I did like a mini audit... three things you can optimize.” [18:10]
Dylan: “A five-minute audit would still be valued over a newsletter audit.” [06:30]
b. Leveraging Testimonials
Collecting and showcasing testimonials can build credibility and encourage more sign-ups. Chenell plans to integrate testimonials into the landing page and social media carousels to highlight participant satisfaction.
Notable Quotes:
Chenell: “I have a Senja form just for 30 days of growth that I need to start sharing.” [25:02]
Dylan: “Those testimonials can be used elsewhere too.” [26:54]
c. Experimenting with Growth Tactics
Chenell considers sharing experiments related to implementing growth tactics, such as adding a welcome video or detailed case studies, to engage the audience and provide additional value.
Notable Quotes:
Dylan: “If you did a really short, interesting experiment... it'd be really cool to share.” [27:08]
Chenell: “I’ll do it like three days past and I’ll be like, in the last 72 hours, here’s what this did.” [28:17]
7. Future Plans and Post-Campaign Strategy
As the 30-Day Growth Sprint nears its end, Chenell contemplates the next steps, including potentially packaging the sprint as a paid offering or using it as a lead magnet. The discussion emphasizes the importance of organizing content and leveraging free information effectively, inspired by successful models like Ryan Holiday’s approach.
Notable Quotes:
Dylan: “Sometimes you have to launch when you’re not ready.” [30:39]
Chenell: “Maybe I do like seven days as a lead magnet.” [34:00]
8. Notable Quotes with Timestamps
- Chenell: “When you sign up, you get sent into the giveaway, which has some, I think it was like $8,000 worth of prizes.” [01:40]
- Dylan: “Maybe we should quickly... give a quick recap.” [00:40]
- Chenell: “These are getting like 20 to 30 engagements.” [03:09]
- Dylan: “The top person has 52 referrals right now, which is insane.” [04:47]
- Chenell: “I have 102 subscribers on Substack.” [09:06]
- Dylan: “Those testimonials can be used elsewhere too.” [26:54]
- Chenell: “Maybe I do like seven days as a lead magnet.” [34:00]
- Dylan: “Sometimes you have to launch when you’re not ready.” [30:39]
Conclusion
This episode offers a transparent look into the strategic planning and real-time problem-solving involved in executing a successful newsletter growth campaign. Chenell and Dylan’s candid discussion underscores the importance of adaptability, leveraging multiple platforms, and continuously refining marketing tactics to achieve and sustain substantial subscriber growth.
Whether you're a seasoned newsletter creator or just starting, the insights shared in this episode provide valuable lessons on optimizing growth strategies, managing giveaways, and navigating the challenges of digital marketing.
Listen to the full episode here to gain deeper insights and actionable strategies for your own newsletter growth journey.