What is it?
This is basically word-of-mouth subscriber acquisition, supercharged.
The core idea is to recruit passionate subscribers to actively promote and refer new sign-ups.
Their mission is to authentically market your newsletter in return for exclusive access, content, or merchandise.
The trick is to identify the right ambassadors. You want people who exemplify your newsletter's brand and values, and are passionate enough to spread the word consistently!
Lean into making participants feel a sense of “VIP status” so they feel like they’re a part of the mission and stay motivated to help you grow your band.
The Good and the Bad
- helps build brand-audience connection
- guaranteed ROI
- time-intensive setup
- only works if people genuinely love your brand
Examples of how to crush it
Morning Brew used an ambassador program on college campuses to help them get their first 10,000 subscribers.
At first, ambassadors spoke about Morning Brew during lectures and personally collected emails. This initial momentum turned into more wildfire word-of-mouth and let Morning Brew scale up rapidly.
The Hustle
The Hustle also grew its newsletter through an ambassador program. They offered exclusive benefits like Q&A sessions with famous influencers, as well as swag and tech giveaways. This attracted thousands to become ambassadors!
From there, the program's success was fueled by a private Facebook community, where ambassadors engaged and shared strategies in a team effort.
