How Jennifer grew to 14k newsletter subscribers in 2 weeks organically

Hey Jen, Tell us more about what you are working on

Hey, I’m Jennifer AKA unhinged productivity girl AKA Vegan Tech Nomad! I organically grew to 14k newsletter subscribers and 49k IG followers in 2 weeks.

Ended up hitting some $5k months by experimenting with different revenue streams, and now I’m focusing on some new info products (playbooks, courses, etc.).

Tell us More about your background, and how you came up with the idea of Vegan Tech Nomad

It happened by accident. I wanted to post content about vegan food + travel, but ended up going viral for productivity and tech (which was the content that was most fun and easiest for me to make anyway).

I first got practice creating short-form video content for work (I work for an edtech startup) and my first videos were really bad.

I stayed consistent and slowly the videos got better, until I went viral multiple times (on my work account and my Vegan Tech Nomad account).

I always loved sharing cool things so I genuinely enjoyed making videos and having a positive impact on others’ lives.

How did you get your first Subscribers for Vegan Tech Nomad?

I put “coming soon” on my newsletter and popped it in my IG bio.

When I went viral, I got 10k subscribers in a week or two. This made me actually start writing weekly newsletters, but also ensured I wouldn’t be wasting my time writing for no one.

I ended up getting the most subscribers using lead magnets and DM automation. My full list of tools are mentioned in this YouTube video.

Why did you pick Instagram as your marketing strategy?

I’m an active Instagram user so I was already familiar with the platform.

I actually post short-form videos everywhere – it doesn’t take a lot of extra work for me to schedule posts across all platforms.

Instagram just happened to be the one where my content takes off the most (probably because I use the app every day)

What is your process to increase the chances of going viral on Instagram?

I covered this process in detail, and ran an experiment in this youtube video, but here’s a Summary of what happened

Experiment Setup and Objectives

1. Setup: Filmed one video with five different hooks.
2. Objective: Test which hook performs best to optimize future content.

Importance of Testing Content:

1. Ad Budget Optimization: Test on TikTok organically before investing in ads.
2. Efficiency: Determine what to double down on for better time investment.
3. Disproving Assumptions: Validate or challenge initial content ideas.

Experiment Details

1. Filming: Recorded all variations at once.
2. Editing: Same video with different text overlays for hooks.
3. Posting: Simultaneously on TikTok and YouTube.

Variants and Their Hooks

1. Variant 1: Face with data dashboard background.
   • Text: “Three ways to do unhinged life tracking.”
   • Performance: 3.2k views.
2. Variant 2: Face with laptop and desk.
   • Text: “Tracking my entire life as a product.”
   • Performance: 1.5k views.
3. Variant 3: Face with blank wall.
   • Text: “Three of my best unhinged tracking tips.”
   • Performance: 800 views.
4. Variant 4: Face with dashboard background.
   • Text: “Exposing my unhinged life tracking system.”
   • Performance: 5k views.
5. Variant 5: Face with blank wall.
   • Text: “Exposing my unhinged life tracking system.”
   • Performance: 1.5k views.

Key Learnings

1. Effective Hooks:
   • “Exposing my system” generates curiosity.
   • Visual elements (e.g., data dashboard) attract more views.
2. Content Strategy:
   • Prefer straightforward, story-based hooks.
   • Avoid purely educational hooks (e.g., “Three ways to…”).

Tips for Applying This Strategy

1. Focus on Value: Address the problem and provide value to the audience.
2. Test Different Angles:
   • Fear-based: “Avoid these ETF mistakes.”
   • Outcome-based: “Make $5,000 from $100 with this ETF.”
   • Experience-based: “I wish I knew this before investing.”
   • Entertainment-based: “If ETFs got you feeling like WTF, watch this.”
   • Curiosity-based: “Exposing my ETF system.”
3. Execution:
   • Film and edit with different hooks.
   • Post simultaneously with the same caption.
   • Analyze performance after a few days or a week.

What Marketing Channels are working for you now?

Remember, I’m posting the same video but across these different platforms.

It’s not that much extra effort to post them everywhere once I’ve made the video.

My scheduling tools + more can be found in the video I linked above:

Instagram: went viral a few times
YouTube: some people discover me for the first time there
TikTok: didn’t go viral, but new people discovered me here too
Twitter: #BuildInPublic and newsletter community

My audience on each platform is a bit different, it just comes from lots of experimentation and learning.

How is your business doing now?

Each month’s revenue is different. I started in Jan 2024 (went viral Dec 2023 and didn’t charge $ for anything other than sponsorships until Feb 2024).

Here are my full income reports that I send out

Look under “Screenshot of my income reports from the premium newsletter”

What has been your biggest achievement in business thus far?

Going viral multiple times.

I always felt imposter syndrome (even now), but the fact that I was able to go viral for my work account and my Vegan Tech Nomad account helped me gain confidence.

I also learned a lot just by taking action and getting that experience.

What were the worst mistakes you’ve made since launching?

Delaying taking action – thinking “planning” was effective (planning without action is procrastination)

Thinking other people had the answers (I can learn from them but need to take action and get experience for myself)

Not trusting my intuition – wasting time on different tasks/hiring when I should’ve listened to the warning bells in my head

What advice would you give to new entrepreneurs?

Just take action! Make your first post after reading this article. And keep making posts every day. Ask a friend to keep you accountable.

What resources do you recommend for entrepreneurs?

Soft skills > hard skills. 

Learning to communicate effectively and succinctly has helped me the most, but that’s mostly from experience and not really from specific books or podcasts.

That’s why I always tell people to take action and be consistent.
I really like https://growth.design/ though!

Lastly, Where can we learn more about you?

You can find me on all social media like Instagram, Twitter, Tiktok, and LinkedIn.