Tech Qualified

How to Grow a Newsletter as a Small, Scrappy Marketing Team

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Episode Summary

In this episode of Tech Qualified, hosts Justin Brown and Meredith Metsker chat with Greg Elfrink, Director of Marketing at Empire Flippers. Greg shares his experiences and insights on building and maintaining a successful newsletter, scaling content efforts, and leveraging global talent in the M&A space.

Greg dives into the creation of the “This Week in M&A” newsletter, detailing its transformation from a simple content wrap-up to a robust weekly update with 118,000 active subscribers. He explains how switching to a more diverse and engaging format, inspired by popular newsletters like The Hustle and Morning Brew, significantly improved metrics and audience engagement.

Throughout the conversation, Greg emphasizes the importance of curating relevant content and staying updated on industry trends to provide value to subscribers. He highlights the strategic use of both internal and external resources, including influencers and social intelligence software, to keep the newsletter fresh and informative.

The discussion also touches on the challenges of marketing to entrepreneurs in the digital space, the benefits of a well-structured content strategy, and the impact of effective communication tools on team alignment and productivity. Greg’s insights offer valuable takeaways for anyone looking to enhance their marketing efforts and connect with a broader audience.

Greg Elfrink

Director of Marketing

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Key Insights

Leveraging Sales Calls for Content Creation

Sales calls are a treasure trove of content. Listening to these calls on double speed helps extract valuable insights that can be transformed into engaging content. Most content in companies is created by sales during these calls, often providing golden nuggets of wisdom that are seldom reused. By analyzing these calls, especially with AI tools, businesses can uncover unique data-driven content. An example at Empire Flippers involved a simple blog post about “winning the wire race,” which educated buyers on securing business deals by sending bank wires earlier. This post alone generated millions in sales credit, showcasing the power of turning internal insights into public knowledge.

The Importance of Content Curation in Newsletters

Content curation can significantly enhance newsletter engagement. Transitioning from a purely self-promotional content wrap-up to a curated newsletter format, inspired by The Hustle and Morning Brew, led to a substantial increase in metrics. Featuring expert insights and relevant industry news rather than repetitive internal content keeps the audience engaged and subscribed. This approach has helped Empire Flippers grow their subscriber base to 118,000 active readers with over a 50% open rate. It demonstrates that providing value through curated, diverse content can foster a loyal readership.

Adapting to Market Trends and Customer Needs

Staying updated with market trends and customer needs is crucial for any business. Empire Flippers serves various business models, including SaaS, e-commerce, and Amazon FBA, each with its unique challenges. By continuously monitoring industry changes and incorporating relevant updates into their communications, they help their audience navigate complex market dynamics. This proactive approach ensures that entrepreneurs can focus on their businesses while staying informed about essential industry developments. It’s a strategy that emphasizes the importance of being a reliable resource for your audience.

Episode Highlights

Personifying the Brand for Cohesive Identity

Effective brand building starts with personification and collaboration across departments. By asking abstract questions such as “How old is this brand?” and “Where does this brand hang out?”, the team can define the brand’s personality, voice, values, and mission. This collaborative approach involves team members from various departments, ensuring a comprehensive perspective on the brand. The collective input helps in creating a cohesive and relatable brand identity that resonates with both internal teams and external audiences. This method not only aligns the brand’s strategy but also fosters a sense of ownership and unity within the organization.

“I try to make it really abstract so that people just think of it as a brainstorming activity […] And what I’m looking for is a common theme that’s being tied across all of them.” – Allys

Handling Brand Management with Limited Resources

Small teams face unique challenges in brand management, often requiring external help for specific tasks. At Uconnect, the visual aspect of the brand was refreshed with the help of an agency, while ongoing visual content is handled by a freelance designer familiar with the brand’s roots. This approach allows for consistency in brand visuals while freeing up internal resources to focus on other areas like content creation. The collaboration with trusted external partners ensures that the brand’s identity remains cohesive and aligns with the company’s evolving goals and strategies.

“We did a total brand refresh, worked with an agency to do that. And now we have a freelance graphic designer who helps us implement the visual side of things.” – Meredith

Strategically Launching a New Brand Identity

Launching a new brand identity involves updating all visual and content elements to align with the brand’s new tone and positioning. This includes revamping websites, social media profiles, and marketing collateral. Beyond visual updates, reintroducing the brand to the market requires strategic efforts such as PR, speaking engagements, and increased visibility. These activities help in establishing the new brand identity and ensuring it resonates with the target audience. The goal is to create a unified and compelling brand presence that reflects the company’s values and aspirations.

“It felt like we had our coming out party or we were maturing into a new level or stage of our business […] trying to get speaking events, things like that, where you just have way more brand visibility.” – Allys 

Maintaining Brand Identity in Content Creation

Ensuring that all content aligns with the brand identity is crucial for maintaining a consistent brand voice. This involves balancing personal style with the brand’s tone, especially when the content is created by different team members or external writers. Clear communication of the brand’s personality traits and values helps in guiding the content creation process. Providing feedback and using templates can help maintain consistency across various content types, from newsletters to social media posts. The aim is to ensure that every piece of content reflects the brand’s identity accurately and engages the audience effectively.

“Whenever we work with a freelance writer I’m saying Hey, we really value a conversational tone. So you don’t need to be overly polished. That’s just how we approach it.” – Meredith

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