.png&optimizer=image)
Do not index
Do not index
Here’s how the top creators play “the great online game”:
They build an audience on Rented platforms (Twitter, LinkedIn…) and then transfer part of that audience to Owned platforms (email).
There, they generate trust with their emails; eventually, part of that audience converts into customers.
This model has been working for many years, and with the rise of the newsletters industry, it’ll continue to grow.
Email is far from dead. Building your email list should be your #1 priority as a creator.
The problem? It’s relatively easy to bring traffic to your email sign-up page, but capturing that traffic is not easy.
This is because your newsletter signup page is likely not optimized for that.
I’ve been there.
My current Steal Club landing page is converting at only 19%. That means that for every 100 people that visit the page, only 19 end up subscribing.
I want that number to be higher, so I set up on a quest to find out how the best newsletter creators put together their landing pages, so I can “steal” how to make mine better.
In today’s article, I’ll share what I’ve found out, plus a bunch of examples so you can get inspired. But first…
What makes a good newsletter landing page? Patterns observed
You need to understand that a tiny increase in your newsletter conversion rate (this is how many people visit the site vs. sign up for the newsletter) can make a huge difference.
If your landing page goes from 20% to 40%, that’s not a 20% increase, it’s a 100% increase.
We are talking about hundreds or even thousands of subscribers. This means way more people on your list, which also means more $$$.
And this begs the question: what makes a good landing page?
After researching 50+ newsletter landing pages, I’ve managed to identify a pattern. Most newsletter landing pages I analyzed were short, simple, and only contained the same few elements:
- A headline
- A subheadline
- A Call to Action
- And a visual/social proof element
Greg Isenberg calls them “tweet-sized landing pages” 👇
.png&optimizer=image)
They work because they are straight to the point. You want to maximize the chances they leave their email, and making a short but compelling pitch is the best way.
So what are these elements? Let’s break each of these down.
#1 - A benefit-oriented Headline
The key to your newsletter landing page headline is that it’s not about you. It’s about your audience.
This headline should be benefit-oriented. In just one sentence, you need to tell them why they should give you their email.
No one wants to sign up for “John’s marketing newsletter” (sorry, John). People want a newsletter that has a clear BENEFIT for them as readers.
.png&optimizer=image)
#2 - Subheadline
If the headline is about the benefit, the subheadline is about HOW you’ll create that benefit. Some things to include:
- When you send the newsletter
- How long it takes to read
- If it’s free or not
- What the reader will learn
- Any extra benefits you might want to add
.png&optimizer=image)
#3 - A Call to Action
Most of the landing pages we analyzed asked only for the email. At most email + first name.
The less data you ask from your audience, the more likely you are to get their emails. Add only an email field and a big button.
.png&optimizer=image)
Most of the button text we saw contains either “Subscribe,” “Join,” or a variation, so there’s room for creativity here.
#4 - A Visual element
A visual that goes with the text is present on most of the pages we analyzed. This is usually a preview of the newsletter 👇
.png&optimizer=image)
In other cases, this visual element can be substituted by a social proof element (like the number of readers or a testimonial) 👇
.png&optimizer=image)
But these can also be combined (so visual + testimonial) 👇
Other elements that help with conversion
No other buttons on the page → Give people as fewer options as possible. Either they leave their email or they leave the page. The more choices you give them, the more likely they are to get distracted.
Steal the blueprint
After analyzing over 50+ newsletter landing pages, these are the common patterns I found that make a high-converting page:
.png&optimizer=image)
I’m re-doing mine following this exact blueprint; I’ll update the post with the results very soon!
Should you follow this blueprint?
One thing to note is that your conversion rate can vary depending on where the traffic is coming from and if it’s warmer or colder.
Also, consider that some of the newsletters studied here are already a reference in their niches. They don’t need to go super in-depth on what they offer because the audience already knows about them.
If you are early in your journey, the clearer you are about your value proposition, the better. Try also to add social proof, so you increase credibility and it’s easier for you to convince people to join.
My 2 cents: use this blueprint to guide your efforts, but feel free to experiment and tweak.
Get the Swipe File
And finally, as promised, here’s a list of some of the newsletters I studied to write this post:
Landing Page Swipe File
Newsletter Name
Subscribers
Headline
Subheadline
CTA Button
Link
Screenshot
Topic
400,000
Get the Curiosity Chronicle Straight to Your Inbox
Join 400,000+ others who receive the 2x weekly newsletter, where I provide actionable ideas to help you build a high-performing, healthy, wealthy life.
Subscribe
Life
140,000
Launch, Grow & Monetize Your Internet Business.
Join 140,000+ subscribers to The Saturday Solopreneur. Every Saturday morning, you'll get 1 actionable tip to launch, grow, and monetize your internet business in less than 4 minutes.
Subscribe
Creators
120,000
What's trending in AI
We track the web, so you don't have to. Top product launches, research and news from the past 24 hours in a 5-min daily digest.
Subscribe
AI
100,000
Make AI work for you
We track the latest in AI and how it impacts you. Catch up in just 3 minutes. Join 100,000+ professionals staying ahead of the curve. Get instant access for free:
Join
AI
100,000
Become a better investor with our free 4x-weekly newsletters.
Join 100,000+ investors discovering new market trends and ideas.
Get the Free newsletter
Finance
70,000
Learn what matters in tech and venture capital – for free.
Every Sunday, we send you a free email unpacking one of the most important companies in tech. You’ll understand how these businesses work, why they matter, and what it means for you.
Sign up
Startup
55,000
Dive into new markets and ideas with 55,248 like-minded founders.
Save 2,000+ hours of market research with free 5-minute reports on AI, Crypto and more.
Get Started
Startup
55,000
We will make you a smarter marketer for free.
Carefully curated digital marketing news, tech, and actionable advice, delivered fresh every weekday.
Try now
Marketing
50,000
Grow your personal brand and community in just 3 minutes a week.
Join 50,000+ founders receiving actionable insights to grow their personal brand, amass a huge community, and work less while earning more.
Get Smarter
Personal Branding
50,000
Become a better designer in 5-minute lessons
Join 50,000+ others on the (free) Design Hacks newsletter.
Get Design Hacks
Design
45,000
Build, grow, and raise capital for your startup
Get tactical advice every week from an a16z-backed founder
Join 45,000+ founders for free right now to get:
→ Database of 800+ lead investors for early stage startups
→ Weekly advice by founders, for founders
Join now
Startup
30,000
One Email. One Reason. To Optimize Your Marketing.
Each Thursday I send you a newsletter guaranteed to optimize your marketing's performance.
Grow Here
Marketing
29,000
Join creators getting sponsorship opportunities.
"I have made over $17,000 from brand deals I found through Justin's newsletter. His list not only makes me money on a regular basis, but it also provides tips and information that saves me time and energy when pitching and working with brands. I cannot believe he gives all of this away for free!" Molly, 867K followers.
Send Me Sponsorships
Creators
25,000
Make an impact & build your business by writing online
Join 25,000+ subscribers and get a 5 minute free weekly newsletter with sharing one strategy to help you scale your creator biz the right way.
Sign me up
Writing
25,000
The Newsletter for Professional Content Creators
Join our community of 25k content creators and entrepreneurs who are building and growing their content businesses.Emails delivered 2x per week.
I’m in!
Creators
24,000
Gain insights on music, media, and culture
Trapital's free bi-weekly memo keeps you ahead of the trends that shape the rest of the business world.
sign up for free
Music
20,000
Sticky Notes by Cole Schafer.
Each week, I send out an email to nearly 20,000 readers that’s so provocative it’s a wonder I haven’t been canceled. In due time –– until then, subscribe.
Let Her Fly
Writing
17,000
The best way to keep up with cybersecurity research.
Join >17,000 security professionals getting the best tools, talks, and resources right in their inbox for free.
Subscribe
Cybersecurity
13,000
Growth Strategies of Top Creators Delivered to Your Inbox
Each week, I reverse engineer how top creators grew from o to 50k+ subscribers. You get the roadmap to replicate their growth - and save 40+ hours of research.
Get Started
Newsletters
12,000
Business Brainstorms
Find out why over 10,000 entrepreneurs love Business Brainstorms - the free weekly 3-minute report is packed with under-the-radar trends, business ideas, and actionable frameworks.
Subscribe
Startup
11,000
LEARN TO STAND THE F*CK OUT
Anxious about AI, wary customers, and rising competition? I'm with you... It's getting harder to be noticed...
But no one — not even experts — tells you HOW to actually do it. That's where I come in.
Get daily (Mon-Fri) emails and learn to stand the f*ck out for real:
Subscribe
Personal Branding
9,500
Twice weekly, in-depth email marketing advice for creators.
How should you segment your audience? Personalize your messaging? And leverage automation to get off the "email hamster wheel"... without getting overwhelmed? These questions, and more, are tackled each week.
Subscribe
Newsletters
8,000
Newsletter Operator
How to grow and monetize your newsletter. Learn the exact tactics top newsletters are using. Join 8000+ founders, creators, and operators for free.
Join Free
Newsletters
7,000
A happier, smarter, and richer you in 5 minutes a week.
Get weekly insights to help you succeed personally, professionally, and financially.
Join for free
Life
6,000
Startup Ideas, Sent Weekly
Join 6,000+ elite entrepreneurs getting curated startup ideas in million dollar niches. Launch your empire this weekend.
Subscribe
Startup
A Weekly Newsletter To Help You Write Better YouTube Titles In Just 5 Minutes
Get the Creator Hooks newsletter every Monday morning — save time on content research and see what titles and thumbnails people can't help but click on.
Sign up & Get the 10 Viral Video Elements Ebook
Writing
The bite-sized daily guide to health, wealth, and happiness.
Success stories, growth hacks, healthy gems, and good advice. Delivered for FREE 7 days a week. Read it in just 20 seconds.
Subscribe
Life
Become the smartest newsletter operator in the room.
The five-minute briefing relied on by thousands of publishers to grow their newsletter audience and revenue. In your inbox every Wednesday at 9:00am.
Start the habit
Newsletters
Become a smarter marketer in just 10 minutes per week!
Each week, you'll get the roadmap to replicate the success of world-class marketers like Amanda Natividad and April Dunford – and save 40+ hours of research.
Subscribe
Marketing
We'll keep you on top of the latest in newsletter publishing & marketing in just 5 minutes a week
Every Wednesday. Totally free. Each issue includes 10 sponsors buying on newsletters right now.
Sign Me Up
Newsletters
.png&optimizer=image)