Here's where the smartest newsletters like Growth Daily are finding advertisers
Feb 19, 2025
Paramark News Desk
Credit: Growth Daily (edited)
Key Points
Email tracking issues and an oversaturated ad market challenge small to mid-sized newsletters
Growth Daily adapts by using alternate click-tracking services and focusing on quality content to attract advertisers
Targeting brands on platforms like Reddit and contextualizing ads within newsletters are all tactics that have gained traction for newsletters
So much of marketing is the long game. And for newsletters, we have to play both the long game and the short game.
Isabelle Novinska
Director of Partnerships
,
Growth Daily
Running a marketing newsletter in 2025 is no easy feat. The past year brought a whirlwind of challenges—from email marketing metric changes, an oversaturated ad market, and competing with industry giants.
To understand what’s working for senders, we spoke with Isabelle Novinska, Director of Partnerships at Growth Daily, about the tactics that have helped her team not only survive but thrive. The daily newsletter has been called "the WSJ for marketers" and is read by over 200,000 marketers in B2B and B2C.
Tracking dilemma: One of the biggest hurdles for newsletters has been email tracking. Changing regulations and unreliable data from ESPs have forced many to rethink how they measure success.
"2024 was a bit up and down when it came to just correct tracking," Novinska explained. "Tracking was our biggest issue—whether it be from the ESP or what we were hearing from partners. So we pivoted to an alternate click-tracking service that runs all of our links through two different sources of truth which has helped a lot."
For smaller newsletters, this kind of adjustment is critical. Unlike their deep-pocketed competitors, they don’t have access to the same high-end tools, making it essential to find creative, cost-effective solutions.
"When we’re working with partners, it’s imperative that we give them the correct number of clicks back in their report because that’s what leads to renewals," she added. "Tracking in general is changing all the time, but I think smaller newsletters like us are more impacted than the big guys."
Newsletter ad market: "It seemed like everybody and their brother was creating a newsletter," Novinska said. "So demand for ad slots went down, but the inventory went up."
Despite this, Growth Daily has continued to book advertisers—thanks to a strong focus on quality content. "If you keep your content up to par and keep improving it, you won’t have an issue finding sponsors," she explained. "Brands that understand the value of newsletter marketing will always be curious and want to learn more."
However, Novinska noted that selling ad space often means reframing the value of newsletters for brands that aren’t already convinced. "My job is to frame it as lead-gen content marketing," she said. "For some advertisers, that’s what clicks."
It seemed like everybody and their brother was creating a newsletter. So demand for ad slots went down, but the inventory went up.
Isabelle Novinska
Director of Partnerships
,
Growth Daily
A smarter approach to ad sales: In terms of outreach, Novinska has shifted her focus away from traditional platforms like LinkedIn, which she finds too costly for lead generation. Instead, she’s taken a more unconventional route—targeting brands that advertise on platforms like Reddit.
"If you advertise on Reddit, you know that it can be a fickle beast, for lack of a better term," she said. "But it signals to me that they’re open to testing new things, and that’s been doing really well for outreach."
Meanwhile, making ads feel natural within a newsletter’s flow has proven to be an effective tactic.
"We really try to contextualize ads—specifically the headline—so they feel like a piece of news," she explained. "That way, it doesn’t feel like an interruption, and readers stay engaged."
Authenticity vs AI: Growth Daily’s team remains cautious about overreliance on AI. While AI can streamline operations, Novinska is wary of sacrificing a human stance.
"There’s been a lot of pressure to lean into AI, but we resist because it could make the newsletter feel phony," she says. "I can tell when a piece or ad is AI-written, and we're really trying to stay away from that and keep authenticity."
The long game: Despite the obstacles, Novinska remains optimistic about the future of newsletters—at least for those willing to adapt. "So much of marketing is the long game," she reflected. "And for newsletters, we have to play both the long game and the short game."
Related articles
Solutions
© 2024 Paramark, Inc.
Here's where the smartest newsletters like Growth Daily are finding advertisers
Feb 19, 2025
Paramark News Desk
Credit: Growth Daily (edited)
Key Points
Email tracking issues and an oversaturated ad market challenge small to mid-sized newsletters
Growth Daily adapts by using alternate click-tracking services and focusing on quality content to attract advertisers
Targeting brands on platforms like Reddit and contextualizing ads within newsletters are all tactics that have gained traction for newsletters
So much of marketing is the long game. And for newsletters, we have to play both the long game and the short game.
Isabelle Novinska
Director of Partnerships
,
Growth Daily
Running a marketing newsletter in 2025 is no easy feat. The past year brought a whirlwind of challenges—from email marketing metric changes, an oversaturated ad market, and competing with industry giants.
To understand what’s working for senders, we spoke with Isabelle Novinska, Director of Partnerships at Growth Daily, about the tactics that have helped her team not only survive but thrive. The daily newsletter has been called "the WSJ for marketers" and is read by over 200,000 marketers in B2B and B2C.
Tracking dilemma: One of the biggest hurdles for newsletters has been email tracking. Changing regulations and unreliable data from ESPs have forced many to rethink how they measure success.
"2024 was a bit up and down when it came to just correct tracking," Novinska explained. "Tracking was our biggest issue—whether it be from the ESP or what we were hearing from partners. So we pivoted to an alternate click-tracking service that runs all of our links through two different sources of truth which has helped a lot."
For smaller newsletters, this kind of adjustment is critical. Unlike their deep-pocketed competitors, they don’t have access to the same high-end tools, making it essential to find creative, cost-effective solutions.
"When we’re working with partners, it’s imperative that we give them the correct number of clicks back in their report because that’s what leads to renewals," she added. "Tracking in general is changing all the time, but I think smaller newsletters like us are more impacted than the big guys."
Newsletter ad market: "It seemed like everybody and their brother was creating a newsletter," Novinska said. "So demand for ad slots went down, but the inventory went up."
Despite this, Growth Daily has continued to book advertisers—thanks to a strong focus on quality content. "If you keep your content up to par and keep improving it, you won’t have an issue finding sponsors," she explained. "Brands that understand the value of newsletter marketing will always be curious and want to learn more."
However, Novinska noted that selling ad space often means reframing the value of newsletters for brands that aren’t already convinced. "My job is to frame it as lead-gen content marketing," she said. "For some advertisers, that’s what clicks."
It seemed like everybody and their brother was creating a newsletter. So demand for ad slots went down, but the inventory went up.
Isabelle Novinska
Director of Partnerships
,
Growth Daily
A smarter approach to ad sales: In terms of outreach, Novinska has shifted her focus away from traditional platforms like LinkedIn, which she finds too costly for lead generation. Instead, she’s taken a more unconventional route—targeting brands that advertise on platforms like Reddit.
"If you advertise on Reddit, you know that it can be a fickle beast, for lack of a better term," she said. "But it signals to me that they’re open to testing new things, and that’s been doing really well for outreach."
Meanwhile, making ads feel natural within a newsletter’s flow has proven to be an effective tactic.
"We really try to contextualize ads—specifically the headline—so they feel like a piece of news," she explained. "That way, it doesn’t feel like an interruption, and readers stay engaged."
Authenticity vs AI: Growth Daily’s team remains cautious about overreliance on AI. While AI can streamline operations, Novinska is wary of sacrificing a human stance.
"There’s been a lot of pressure to lean into AI, but we resist because it could make the newsletter feel phony," she says. "I can tell when a piece or ad is AI-written, and we're really trying to stay away from that and keep authenticity."
The long game: Despite the obstacles, Novinska remains optimistic about the future of newsletters—at least for those willing to adapt. "So much of marketing is the long game," she reflected. "And for newsletters, we have to play both the long game and the short game."
Related articles
Solutions