From 0 to $200K+ Per Year with a Local Newsletter (Full Tutorial)

Learn how to start a local newsletter and build a profitable business you truly own! After 15 years of building startups, Michael Kauffman faced an existential crisis that led him to launch Catskill Crew—a local newsletter that bypassed traditional blogging rules and scaled to a multi-six-figure media empire. Michael has grown his list to over 40,000 subscribers by prioritizing his community over advertisers, creating high-quality content, and always aiming to create win-win-win partnerships. In this video, Michael shares: ✨ How to choose the perfect local newsletter scope for your geography ✨ The community-first approach that turns subscribers into active participants ✨ Why he chooses creative monetization over a traditional Substack paywall ✨ His exact strategy for scaling to over 40,000 subscribers (starting from zero!) ✨ Tips for balancing content across platforms without burning out ✨And more! Plus, you'll get a behind-the-scenes look at Michael’s anti-funnel newsletter workflow and how he uses his platform to make a tangible impact on his local community. 🎉 Grab my free travel blogger resource library (75+ resources, including a Launch & Scale A Local Newsletter Cheat Sheet!) https://flowto.it/RWy2YMupr?fc=0 📸 VIP Opportunities for Travel Bloggers Newsletter (+ 1 Free Issue!) This newsletter is simple but powerful: you get 5 high-value leads that can help grow your blog’s traffic, email list, and income straight to your inbox every Monday at 8am ET. Sign up to get one issue of your choice for free! ⬇️ https://vipblogger.substack.com/ 🛠️ Related resources mentioned (includes affiliate links): Kit email marketing platform - get 30 days free of their Creator Plan, no credit card required: https://partners.convertkit.com/jessi... Email Marketing Membership from Liz Wilcox - for powerful email marketing trainings and newsletter templates: https://jessie--lizwilcox.thrivecart.... Full list of recommended tools: https://jessieonajourney.com/tools ✍️ Prefer the written or podcast version of this interview? Visit jessieonajourney.com here: https://jessieonajourney.com/blogging... 🤝 Connect with Michael (‪ ‪@mikeypesto‬ ): Website & Newsletter: https://catskillcrew.com/ The Newsletter Club: https://www.thenewsletter.club/ Twitter(X): https://x.com/mikeypesto ⌚️Timestamps: 0:00 Intro to local newsletters 2:15 Michael Kauffman's background and the birth of Catskill Crew 6:45 Why the local newsletter model is a smart business move 10:30 Depth vs breadth in local content creation 14:15 The three pillars: growth, content, and monetization 18:30 Prioritizing subscribers over advertisers 23:00 Creative monetization and the snail mail experiment 28:15 How to monetize newsletters with local events and partnerships 33:30 Launching physical products and board games 38:45 The importance of personality-driven email content 43:15 Promoting revenue streams through your newsletter business 47:30 Outsourcing tasks and avoiding creator burnout 52:00 Organic growth tactics and using meta ads 57:15 Giving back to the community and supporting nonprofits 1:01:00 Final advice for new local newsletter operators 1:03:30 Outro and free resources for creators 📽️ This video was recorded using the following tools (includes affiliate links): Zencastr (video recording): https://zencastr.com/?via=jessica Samson Q2U (microphone): https://amzn.to/3xAtn5F 🎵 Outro music is "Nightingale" by Eveningland (sourced from the YouTube Free Music Library) #newsletter #newslettermarketing #emailmarketing #emailnewsletter #newsletters