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HELP MY NEWSLETTER

Triage for sick newsletters that should be printing money

Valuation

M&A

Exit Strategy

The Year of Newsletter M&A

2026 is the year you sell your newsletter (or find out it's worth more than you think)

Newsletter acquisitions are heating up. Media companies are consolidating. Individuals are cashing out. And most newsletter operators have no idea what their asset is actually worth.

Here is the problem: sellers think their newsletter is worth what they want. Buyers calculate based on what they will actually pay. The gap between those two numbers kills deals before they start.

Today you get: A conservative valuation calculator built from buyer psychology. The 3 mistakes that tank your price. And what to fix before you even think about listing.

This edition covers: why 2026 is different, the buyer vs seller valuation gap, a realistic pricing calculator, red flags that kill deals, and the pre-sale optimization checklist.

Part 1

Why newsletter M&A is heating up right now

Three things are converging:

1) Platformification is forcing exits
Substack, beehiiv, ConvertKit are making newsletters portable. For the first time, you can sell the asset without selling your soul to the acquirer's tech stack.

2) Media companies need owned audiences
Social reach is dead. Ads are expensive. Email is the only channel you actually control. Smart operators are buying newsletters instead of building from scratch.

3) Creators are burning out
Five years into the newsletter boom, early creators want to cash out. They built the asset. Now they want the exit. Timing is perfect for both buyers and sellers.

Translation: if you have been thinking about selling, this is the year to get serious. If you have been ignoring what your newsletter is worth, you are leaving money on the table.

What buyers are actually looking for

Proven revenue (not potential revenue)
Engaged subscribers (not vanity metrics)
Clean operations (not founder dependency)
Growth trajectory (or at least stability)
Niche clarity (not "we serve everyone")

If your newsletter checks those boxes, you have an asset. If not, you have homework before you list.

Part 2

The 3 mistakes that tank your valuation (and how buyers spot them instantly)

Most newsletter operators overvalue their asset by 2-3×. Not because they are greedy. Because they do not know what buyers actually discount.

Mistake #1

Confusing total subscribers with engaged subscribers

You have 10,000 subscribers. You think that means 10,000 buyers. But your open rate is 28%. Buyers only count the 2,800 who actually open.

Worse: if your open rate is under 25%, buyers assume your list is dirty. They discount another 20-30% on top of that. Your "10K list" is now worth 1,960 engaged subscribers in their math.

Mistake #2

Showing weak revenue as proof of monetization

You make $300/month from sponsors. You think this proves the newsletter has revenue potential. Buyers see it as proof you cannot monetize effectively.

If you have 5,000 engaged subscribers and only pull $300/month, that signals either: your audience does not buy, your niche is low-value, or you have no sales skills. All three are red flags.

Better to show zero revenue and position as "non-monetized with opportunity" than to show pathetic revenue that proves the audience is dead.

Mistake #3

Ignoring growth trajectory (or worse, hiding decline)

Declining newsletters lose 40-60% of baseline value. Flat newsletters lose 15-25%. Growing newsletters get a 15-30% premium.

If your subscriber count is dropping 3% per month and you try to hide it, buyers will find out during due diligence. Then they walk. Or they slash the offer by 50% and make you take an earnout.

The rule: buyers are not dumb. They know the tricks. They have seen 100+ pitch decks. Your job is to show honest numbers and let them decide. Lying just makes you look amateur.

TOOL DROP

Find out what buyers will actually pay

I built a conservative valuation calculator based on real buyer psychology. Not what you hope to get. What acquirers actually offer.

This tool gives you:

A-F deal quality grade from buyer's perspective
3-tier valuation range (floor / expected / ceiling)
Red flags analysis showing what kills deals
Buyer's perspective breakdown of your economics
Pre-sale optimization roadmap to increase value

Calculate Your Valuation ->

Takes 2 minutes. Shows you the brutal truth.

Why conservative?

Because I would rather you be pleasantly surprised by a higher offer than crushed by reality. This calculator uses buyer multiples, not seller fantasies.

Run the numbers. Face the truth. Then fix what is broken.

Gut check: Are you actually ready to sell?

Pick the statement that is most true right now.

Part 3

What to fix before you even think about listing

The calculator told you what you are worth today. Now here is how to increase that number by 20-50% in the next 90 days.

Priority 1: Fix engagement (biggest value lever)

If your open rate is under 30%, you are leaving 30-50% of valuation on the table. Clean your list aggressively. Remove everyone who has not opened in 90 days. Test new subject lines. Segment by engagement level.

Priority 2: Add revenue (or remove pathetic revenue)

If you are non-monetized and have 3K+ engaged subscribers: launch a paid tier NOW. Even $500/month proves monetization works and doubles your valuation. If you are making under $500/month: either scale it to $1,500+ or cut it entirely and position as "non-monetized opportunity."

Priority 3: Document everything

12 months of verified metrics. Revenue breakdowns. Growth attribution. Content SOPs. Tech stack documentation. Buyers pay 10-20% more for clean documentation because it signals operational maturity.

The timeline: 3 months of focused optimization can increase your valuation by $20K-$80K depending on your starting point. Worth it.

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Want me to walk you through it?

Pre-Sale Valuation & Optimization Session

One 60-minute session where we run your numbers, identify the biggest value levers, build your 90-day optimization roadmap, and decide if you should sell now, later, or never. You leave with a clear plan and realistic expectations.

Book the Session

Or reply "VALUATION" and I will tell you if this makes sense for your situation.

Last thing

Most newsletter operators will never know what they built is worth

They will either: burn out and abandon the list, sell for 30% of true value because they have no leverage, or hold forever because they are scared to find out the number.

You are different. You ran the calculator. You know what buyers see. Now you get to decide: optimize and sell, optimize and hold, or accept current value and list.

Hit reply with your gut check number (1-5) and your valuation range. I read every response. And I will share aggregated results next edition.

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