5 ms·

Mailman – Find email newsletters you can sponsor to promote your product/service

89 points by pixelfeeder 9y ago

deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
cozzyd 9y ago
I'm sure you're aware of the name clash with the well-known (at least in my circles...) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Mailman https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Mailman
- pixelfeeder 9y ago
  Updated for now. Working on rebranding it.
jatsign 9y ago
Love the idea. Really appreciate the upfront pricing information. Obviously, needs more than developer-focused mailing lists.
pryelluw 9y ago
Do this, but for devs with big social followings. Have them name the price for a tweet, post, like, etc. There is nothing like it right now and its a huge market.
- pixelfeeder 9y ago
  Thats a good idea. Let me see what I can do. If there are devs in the house with a solid following, send me your details.
  - pryelluw 9y ago
    Wrong approach. Contact them with a quote on how much they can make.
- petercooper 9y ago
  The problem is the devs you'd most likely want to do it are the least likely to want to (at least, indiscriminately and in a marketplace style) because they have the most reputation to lose. Now dev oriented accounts on the other hand..
  - mprev 9y ago
    I've often wondered how you feel when you see other newsletters that use the "$TECH Weekly" name format. I know that in the history of the world it's not unique but, in recent years, it has become likely that a newsletter with that sort of name might be a Cooper Press publication.
    - petercooper 9y ago
      Mostly okay. I was on the leading edge of a wave that was going to happen anyway, and the term is relatively generic. As long as someone doesn't start one with the same name as any of ours, I'm good. Many of the people behind other * Weekly dev newsletters have become good acquaintances. We have a rebrand in the works, however, as due to our reluctance to heavily promote or send arbitrary emails to subscribers, we have a lot of subscribers who don't know about the other publications.. and our stable is not very cohesive branding wise. This will be resolved by the end of the year :-)
    - stevekemp 9y ago
      There are always trends in naming, especially when it comes to spamming - err, I meant to say growth hacking. Scroll back over Hacker News over a few months and you can spot the moment when people caught on that putting "Machine Learning" in their titles got clicks, regardless of how valid that was. "$TECH weekly" is a similar level of branding to all those lists of projects which are "curated". Seriously search past submissions for "A curated list of ..". They're cookie-cutter posts that could probably be generated by machine-learning!
      - pryelluw 9y ago
        It does get insane. I saw a newsletter that sold itself as a "hand curated list of hand curated newsletters". Almost emailed the "curator" to ask WTF.
- no1youknowz 9y ago
  I think Hypr: https://hyprbrands.com/ https://hyprbrands.com/ comes pretty close?
mrbill 9y ago
Horrible choice for product name, too close / collision with the widely-used Mailman mailing list software.
rdl 9y ago
Great idea, but I'd rebrand due to the main mailing list software being called Mailman already. (the "mailman" part is probably the wrong thing for branding, anyway -- I'd pick branding focused on the sponsor/trust/endorsement/patron aspect, so you can extend to other channels like video. You should decide if you're selling single branded links or (limited duration?) sponsorship. If it's a sponsorship marketplace, the value is a lot higher to both sides -- if there were a great "devops security bulletins" newsletter or alert list, it would easily be worth $10-20k/mo for a remediation vendor, platform vendor, or specialist recruiter to sponsor it, and you'd get a larger amount of money than selling a bunch of $100 links. There are probably thousands of valuable niches out there.)
- pixelfeeder 9y ago
  Great feedback! Tnx. Will rework the branding and positioning in the coming days.
  - bradknowles 9y ago
    Good, because I was just about to send a note to Barry Warsaw about this. However, I do look forward to seeing where this project goes.
colinbartlett 9y ago
Fantastic idea! I am always struggling with ways to reach devops/IT/developer communities to promote StatusGator.
timsayshey 9y ago
Really cool but it would be even cooler if it offered sponsored newsletters in other industries like finance, real estate, faith, gaming, etc. Are there other services like this or is this the first of it's kind?
- pixelfeeder 9y ago
  I'm planning on expanding for sure. I couldn't find anything like this, that's really why I built it. So I didn't have to google them every time I was looking for one.
shortformblog 9y ago
I like the idea (barring name issues) but the cost for getting on the list ($25/month) is a little high considering the idea is untested and, unlike the orgs on the list, I don't know how big your potential audience is. As a NL owner with 8k subs, I would recommend offering a test plan of some kind.
- pixelfeeder 9y ago
  cool, how would a 'test plan' ideally work for you?
  - shortformblog 9y ago
    I would offer a limited trial of some kind—probably a few days, enough to get a taste of the service without giving away the whole thing. That way I can get an early idea if the idea is effective. (My list, by the way, is also not not dev-related—which might help you branch out your offerings some.)
    - pixelfeeder 9y ago
      quick 2 Q's: What industry is your list for. & what price would be low enough to not need a 'free' trial?
      - shortformblog 9y ago
        It's a history/pop culture NL with a lot of pieces on vintage technology (located here if you want an idea: http://tedium.co http://tedium.co). I think if the cost were closer to $10 a month, it'd be closer to impulse territory for me.
        pixelfeeder 9y ago
        done & done. I'm also letting go of the Dev only niche since I've been getting a bunch of feedback from other niches.
no1youknowz 9y ago
How is this any different from udimi.com / clickdrop.com / soloadx.com / safe-swaps.com ?
sah2ed 9y ago
Neat idea. Is there a way you can link to the source of your information regarding the List Size, Average Clicks and Sponsor Rate?
vit05 9y ago
Cool, but why do I need to open a mail program to send a message? I think it would be better to be able to send a direct message from the site and receive more information about the newsletter. How long they exist, how the company will appear in the message and other things.
swanson 9y ago
Interesting model -- I went to add a niche newsletter* I help run, but saw that you are charging newsletter operators $9/month to post their list. It makes sense, but I was expecting you to basically be the broker that takes a cut on the ad buy side from potential sponsors instead. * Hyper-local newsletter for developers in Indianapolis: http://www.indyhackers.org/
haaen 9y ago
Please add your contact info and the sending frequency of the newsletters.
Dowwie 9y ago
Was this hacked together at breakneck speed since the HN discussion made the other day about mailing lists [1] or just happy coincidence? :) [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14086259 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14086259

89 points by pixelfeeder 9y ago

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

I'm sure you're aware of the name clash with the well-known (at least in my circles...) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Mailman https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GNU_Mailman

pixelfeeder 9y ago
Updated for now. Working on rebranding it.

jatsign 9y ago

Love the idea. Really appreciate the upfront pricing information. Obviously, needs more than developer-focused mailing lists.

pryelluw 9y ago

Do this, but for devs with big social followings. Have them name the price for a tweet, post, like, etc. There is nothing like it right now and its a huge market.

pixelfeeder 9y ago
Thats a good idea. Let me see what I can do. If there are devs in the house with a solid following, send me your details.
- pryelluw 9y ago
  Wrong approach. Contact them with a quote on how much they can make.
petercooper 9y ago
The problem is the devs you'd most likely want to do it are the least likely to want to (at least, indiscriminately and in a marketplace style) because they have the most reputation to lose. Now dev oriented accounts on the other hand..
- mprev 9y ago
  I've often wondered how you feel when you see other newsletters that use the "$TECH Weekly" name format. I know that in the history of the world it's not unique but, in recent years, it has become likely that a newsletter with that sort of name might be a Cooper Press publication.
  - petercooper 9y ago
    Mostly okay. I was on the leading edge of a wave that was going to happen anyway, and the term is relatively generic. As long as someone doesn't start one with the same name as any of ours, I'm good. Many of the people behind other * Weekly dev newsletters have become good acquaintances. We have a rebrand in the works, however, as due to our reluctance to heavily promote or send arbitrary emails to subscribers, we have a lot of subscribers who don't know about the other publications.. and our stable is not very cohesive branding wise. This will be resolved by the end of the year :-)
  - stevekemp 9y ago
    There are always trends in naming, especially when it comes to spamming - err, I meant to say growth hacking. Scroll back over Hacker News over a few months and you can spot the moment when people caught on that putting "Machine Learning" in their titles got clicks, regardless of how valid that was. "$TECH weekly" is a similar level of branding to all those lists of projects which are "curated". Seriously search past submissions for "A curated list of ..". They're cookie-cutter posts that could probably be generated by machine-learning!
    - pryelluw 9y ago
      It does get insane. I saw a newsletter that sold itself as a "hand curated list of hand curated newsletters". Almost emailed the "curator" to ask WTF.
no1youknowz 9y ago
I think Hypr: https://hyprbrands.com/ https://hyprbrands.com/ comes pretty close?

mrbill 9y ago

Horrible choice for product name, too close / collision with the widely-used Mailman mailing list software.

rdl 9y ago

Great idea, but I'd rebrand due to the main mailing list software being called Mailman already. (the "mailman" part is probably the wrong thing for branding, anyway -- I'd pick branding focused on the sponsor/trust/endorsement/patron aspect, so you can extend to other channels like video. You should decide if you're selling single branded links or (limited duration?) sponsorship. If it's a sponsorship marketplace, the value is a lot higher to both sides -- if there were a great "devops security bulletins" newsletter or alert list, it would easily be worth $10-20k/mo for a remediation vendor, platform vendor, or specialist recruiter to sponsor it, and you'd get a larger amount of money than selling a bunch of $100 links. There are probably thousands of valuable niches out there.)

pixelfeeder 9y ago
Great feedback! Tnx. Will rework the branding and positioning in the coming days.
- bradknowles 9y ago
  Good, because I was just about to send a note to Barry Warsaw about this. However, I do look forward to seeing where this project goes.

colinbartlett 9y ago

Fantastic idea! I am always struggling with ways to reach devops/IT/developer communities to promote StatusGator.

timsayshey 9y ago

Really cool but it would be even cooler if it offered sponsored newsletters in other industries like finance, real estate, faith, gaming, etc. Are there other services like this or is this the first of it's kind?

pixelfeeder 9y ago
I'm planning on expanding for sure. I couldn't find anything like this, that's really why I built it. So I didn't have to google them every time I was looking for one.

shortformblog 9y ago

I like the idea (barring name issues) but the cost for getting on the list ($25/month) is a little high considering the idea is untested and, unlike the orgs on the list, I don't know how big your potential audience is. As a NL owner with 8k subs, I would recommend offering a test plan of some kind.

pixelfeeder 9y ago
cool, how would a 'test plan' ideally work for you?
- shortformblog 9y ago
  I would offer a limited trial of some kind—probably a few days, enough to get a taste of the service without giving away the whole thing. That way I can get an early idea if the idea is effective. (My list, by the way, is also not not dev-related—which might help you branch out your offerings some.)
  - pixelfeeder 9y ago
    quick 2 Q's: What industry is your list for. & what price would be low enough to not need a 'free' trial?
    - shortformblog 9y ago
      It's a history/pop culture NL with a lot of pieces on vintage technology (located here if you want an idea: http://tedium.co http://tedium.co). I think if the cost were closer to $10 a month, it'd be closer to impulse territory for me.
      - pixelfeeder 9y ago
        done & done. I'm also letting go of the Dev only niche since I've been getting a bunch of feedback from other niches.

no1youknowz 9y ago

How is this any different from udimi.com / clickdrop.com / soloadx.com / safe-swaps.com ?

sah2ed 9y ago

Neat idea. Is there a way you can link to the source of your information regarding the List Size, Average Clicks and Sponsor Rate?

vit05 9y ago

Cool, but why do I need to open a mail program to send a message? I think it would be better to be able to send a direct message from the site and receive more information about the newsletter. How long they exist, how the company will appear in the message and other things.

swanson 9y ago

Interesting model -- I went to add a niche newsletter* I help run, but saw that you are charging newsletter operators $9/month to post their list. It makes sense, but I was expecting you to basically be the broker that takes a cut on the ad buy side from potential sponsors instead. * Hyper-local newsletter for developers in Indianapolis: http://www.indyhackers.org/

haaen 9y ago

Please add your contact info and the sending frequency of the newsletters.

Dowwie 9y ago

Was this hacked together at breakneck speed since the HN discussion made the other day about mailing lists [1] or just happy coincidence? :) [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14086259 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14086259