Layoff to payoff: How a laid-off journalist built & sold the Extra Points newsletter.

Let's hop in a time machine together real quick:

It’s April 2020. The pandemic is in full swing.

And after nearly 7 years of managing brands at SB Nation—Matt Brown gets laid off.

Out of desperation, Matt starts a paid newsletter called Extra Points — a newsletter "covering off-the-field stuff that shapes college sports.”

Fast-forward 18 months: Matt’s grown & monetized Extra Points to the point he can sell it to a larger media entity while staying on as publisher.

In this week’s Friday Feature, you’ll learn what Matt’s done to grow the super niche Extra Points newsletter to ~16,000 subscribers—with over 3,000 paying subscribers— and how you can too:

• Growing quickly with Earned Media
• Creating an irresistible & shareworthy asset
• Differentiating with unique strengths

#1 - Growing quickly with Earned Media 

Earned media can be a boon for newsletter growth.

But what is it?

Earned media is any external press or publicity that’s “earned” rather than paid for. Things like social media shares, written articles, mentions on TV, radio or podcasts, or any other unpaid public mentions.

And Matt needed Extra Points to grow quickly: “I started Extra Points because I needed a job,” Matt told us on our podcast.

He was desperate to grow and couldn’t afford to pay for it.

That's where the Earned Media strategy came into play.

🧐 Why it’s awesome

Earned media can be a useful growth strategy—especially for newsletters lacking budget for paid growth.

Why? Because Earned media...

→ Exposes you to larger audience (potentially). Depending on the source, your newsletter could potentially get in front of way thousands of eyes & ears otherwise.

→ Costs only time. No budget for growth? Invest time to earn media (more on how shortly!)

→ Carries low risk with high upside. Since it requires a time investment rather than financial, the risk is lower while potential payoff is massive.

→ Can increase credibility. Earned media from the right sources can bolster newsletter credibility and reputation.

→ Offers SEO gains. Earning backlinks from reputable sites will improve newsletter landing page SEO.

🙋 How Extra Points does it

Matt couldn’t grow fast enough relying on his social audience alone.

He told us, “The only way I was able to grow was by being intentional and creative with how I generated earned media.”

And thanks to his years with SB Nation, Matt’s cultivated relationships with reporters and booking agents for national media outlets. It’s another one of his “unfair advantages”:

“So we've had to rely on earned media a lot. I've written press releases and sent them out to lots of my reporter colleagues, and I've spent years building relationships with booking agents for national radio and even some TV spots. Getting on major college radio shows, on regional TV, and getting 'earned media' that further establishes myself as an expert in my space has been very important.” — Matt Brown

✏️Steal this for your newsletter

We don't all have Matt's connections.

But there are still repeatable steps from Matt’s earned media strategy that newsletter operators can follow:

1. Create content that will “earn media” (ie. content worth sharing: unique, interesting, relevant to your brand & target audience)
2. Find aligned media players: journalists, other newsletters, websites/blogs, influencers, media outlets
3. Create a compelling pitch: send a personalized pitch explaining why your newsletter and/or content would align with their content & audience (bonus: offer to be a resource for comment, interview, or to provide exclusive content for them)

#2 - Creating an irresistible & shareworthy asset 

When done right, lead magnets can help your newsletter grow.

But 95% of newsletter operators do them wrong. A free eBook or checklist isn’t the right answer.

“Get rid of lead magnets. They're a red herring,” Justin Moore of Creator Wizard told us when we asked what he’d do differently if starting over.

So don't create another traditional lead magnet.

Think BIGGER.

Matt did exactly that: he built an MVP version of a 1980’s simulation-style video game.

Yes. A full-fledged video game. And called it Athletic Director Simulator 3000.

🧐 Why it’s awesome

You don’t need to build something as complex as a video game. But you should consider this strategy for the following reasons.

A unique offer captures attention. Offering something out of the ordinary grabs people’s attention. It sets you apart.

Urgency can increase conversion. Offering limited-time access—like in the case of Extra Points’ video game—can create a sense of urgency, leading to higher conversion rates.

It’s shareworthy. Something unique & engaging like a game or challenge naturally lends itself to being shared. Think Wordle, but as a lead magnet.

Reduce churn by increasing value. Lower churn rate by increasing subscription value with full access. In Extra Points’ case, readers get the added bonus of video game access with their $8/mo subscription.

🙋 How Extra Points does it

Matt’s project started out of curiosity and interest in learning Python code.

The response was so great that the D1 Ticker team (Extra Points’ parent company) invested in expanding it. It's now used as a means to both convert readers to paid subscribers and to open the door to bulk subscription sales conversations they otherwise weren’t having.

(As a bonus, the game's generated national press attention from sites like Awful Announcing. #EarnedMedia)

Extra Points has found success with Athletic Director Simulator 3000 for a number of reasons…

→ They created something engaging & unique: video games are highly engaging, and adding in the educational component is killing two birds with one big stone: athletic directors and instructors can leverage the game for educational purposes, and the students are incentivized to play (and pay).

→ They included a time-limited free trial: 72-hour free trial is an effective trial period — enough time to get hooked on the game but not enough to exhaust its potential — incentivizing the upgrade to a paid subscription.

→ They added a competitive element: Similar to an online challenge, Matt and the team created an online scoreboard feature to stimulate engagement and competition with others.

→ They created an opportunity for bulk sales. The video game got their sales team into more bulk classroom subscription conversations than they were before.

✏️ Steal this for your newsletter

You don’t have to build a video game.

But your newsletter's unique value doesn't have to stop at the inbox.

What can you deliver that will not only enrich your content but make your newsletter irresistible?

Think outside your newsletter. Consider what your ideal reader really wants—and would really want to share. (Remember Wordle?)

Maybe it is a video game.

Or maybe it's a writing tool like Lex, built by the Every team. Maybe it's a puzzle like Wordle—that the NY Times bought.

The point is, think bigger than a traditional lead magnet.

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🎧 Bonus: Listen to Matt discuss his video game and the success they've experienced with it in our recent chat →​

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​#3 - Differentiating with unique strengths

What makes Extra Points unique and valuable is the irreplicable content—a direct result of Matt’s professional pot-pourri: his experience, perspective, relationships, skills, and ambition.

When we spoke with Jon Elder from Amazon Insiders, a major reason for his success was due to his experience actually “doing the thing”. And then writing about it. Matt is no different.

While other newsletters could publish 4 editions per week of in-depth analysis & research on the college sports industry—just like Extra Points—none share the same unique pot-pourri like Extra Points.

In other words, Matt Brown is the differentiator.

🧐 Why it’s awesome

Finding your point of differentiation is critical.

Whether it’s your unique experience, perspective, network, skills or ambition, leaning on any combination of those will help create content only you can create.

Using your mix of unique strengths will help you stand out from a sea of commodity, AI-generated content.

🙋 How Extra Points does it

“I think the thing that has made Extra Points successful has been the fact that I write a lot of information our consumers can't find anywhere else.” — Matt Brown

Matt’s leveraged his unique strengths & situation in a variety of ways…

→ Desperate times. Matt didn’t have time to flirt with a newsletter idea. He’d been laid off and needed income. So, instead he dove head first, driving the first 100 paying subscribers within 48 hours of launching Extra Points. He leaned into his desperation and turned it into a strength from the get-go.

→ In-depth research. Matt personally researches the information presented in Extra Points. Gathering additional information and calling sources for original quotes sets his content apart from others.

→ Using Contacts & Open Record Requests. Matt leverages his network and experience filing open record requests which both enrich and differentiate his content. And even get him mentioned in The Washington Post.​

→ Leaning on Expertise. Matt’s years of experience with SB Nation and writing about college sports is his unfair advantage for both crafting superior content and knowing what topics readers care about.

✏️ Steal this for your newsletter

“The easiest way for you to stand out is to pick up the phone and call somebody that's in the story that you linked,” Matt explained to us.

That’s what he did—but what’s your version of this?

What combination of skills, experience and motivation can you leverage to create something people can’t get anywhere else?

Maybe you…

• have deep connections and exclusive access in an industry
• can extract learnings & write summaries better and faster
• are a really good interviewer and unafraid to ask tough or unique questions
• are funnier than all the newsletters publishers in your niche

Whatever it is, lean into what makes you unique and what only you can deliver.

Adding it up…

Matt Brown spun up Extra Points with the intention of driving revenue from the beginning. His journey is proof that executing the right strategies while leaning into what sets you apart can turn even the most niche content into a successful business.

And creating a video game didn’t hurt ;)

Here are 3 things to do next:

1. ​Check out Extra Points if you haven’t already →
2. ​​Listen to Matt Brown on our Send & Grow podcast →
3. Give us your take: what newsletter is doing something different and innovative we should feature next? Maybe it's yours... Hit reply and let me know!