Let me tell you why I’m here — and why you might want to stick around.
I spend nearly every day talking with media companies and newsletter operators about how to build smarter, more sustainable audience development strategies. It’s the best part of my job — helping people find the right mix of data, content, and community to grow their business in meaningful ways.
But most of those conversations end at the whiteboard. We map out the strategy… and then I step away.
Audience Insiders exists because I wanted to stay in the work — not just shape the strategy, but build it, test it, and share what actually works.
This isn’t just a newsletter. It’s a front-row seat — and a co-pilot role — in shaping the next generation of media growth strategy.
🛠️ Why I Started Audience Insiders
There’s a certain itch that only shipping something solves.
After years of helping companies find clarity and direction, I wanted to go deeper — not just talk about ideas, but implement them. Not just recommend tests, but run them. Not just watch what works, but contribute to it.
That’s what Audience Insiders is for me:
- A space to roll up my sleeves
- A way to work alongside the builders, not just advise them
- A real-time lab where strategy meets execution
đź“Ł Why Audience Insiders Exists
Audience development is more than a department. It’s the connective tissue between content, product, marketing, and revenue.
But it’s often misunderstood, under-resourced, or tacked on as an afterthought.
We’re in a pivotal moment:
- Search is changing (zero-click, AI summaries)
- Platforms are volatile
- Email is more competitive than ever
- Bots and bloat are eroding signal
In this environment, the audience work matters more than ever — but only if it’s intentional, rigorous, and executed well.
Audience Insiders exists to serve the people doing that work.
👥 Who It’s For
This is for media professionals who care about the craft.
You might be:
- A newsletter operator trying to build a cleaner growth engine
- A media exec navigating subscriber plateaus
- An audience manager juggling lifecycle, segmentation, and channel performance
- Or a founder doing all of the above yourself
If you’re tired of empty playbooks and want:
- Real-world tactics
- Operator-tested strategy
- Contextual commentary on what’s working (and what’s not)
Then you’re in the right place.
🧠What to Expect
This newsletter will deliver:
- Sustainable growth frameworks (not hacks)
- Smarter segmentation and lifecycle insights
- Thoughts on first-party data, email strategy, and retention
- Experiments I’m running or advising on in real time
- Profiles of operators and case studies from the field
It’s not 101.
It’s for pros who are building for what’s next, not what worked last year.
Final Thought
Audience development is changing fast — but the fundamentals still matter.
Clarity. Trust. Connection. Relevance.
I’m here to help make sense of the chaos and offer a signal that supports your work.
Thanks for being here.
Let’s build together.
-Tony
✉️ Forward this to someone who cares about audience building as much as you do. Or reply and tell me what challenge you’re facing — I’d love to hear what you’re working on.