How I Grew My Newsletter from 0 to 5,000 Subscribers in 3 Months

When I started my SaaS journey, I knew that building an audience was going to be crucial. But I had no idea how quickly things could move with the right tools and strategy.

The Challenge

Starting from scratch is intimidating. Zero subscribers. Zero engagement. Just an idea and a lot of hope. I had tried other email marketing platforms before, but they were either too expensive for a bootstrapped founder or too complicated to set up quickly.

Finding Resletter

I discovered Resletter through a fellow founder recommendation. What caught my attention was the free tier that actually let me do meaningful work, and the promise of simplicity without sacrificing power.

The Strategy That Worked

Here's what I did differently this time:

1. Consistent, Valuable Content

Instead of sending monthly updates, I committed to weekly newsletters. Each one focused on solving one specific problem my target audience faced. The key was consistency—my subscribers knew exactly when to expect value from me.

2. Leveraging the Subscriber Groups

Resletter's subscriber groups feature was a game-changer. I segmented my audience early—by interest, by engagement level, by where they found me. This meant I could send targeted content that actually resonated.

3. Double Opt-in Done Right

The double opt-in feature helped me build a quality list from day one. Yes, my numbers grew slightly slower at first, but my engagement rates were significantly higher than industry averages.

4. The Referral Effect

As my content quality improved, my subscribers started sharing. Word of mouth became my biggest growth channel by month two.

The Results

• Month 1: 500 subscribers (mostly from my existing network)
• Month 2: 2,000 subscribers (content started getting shared)
• Month 3: 5,000 subscribers (momentum kicked in)

My open rates stayed consistently above 45%, which is well above the industry average. More importantly, these subscribers became early users of my SaaS product.

Key Takeaways

1. Start simple, but start now. Don't wait for the perfect setup.
2. Quality over quantity. A smaller, engaged list beats a large, dormant one.
3. Use the tools available. Resletter's features like groups and analytics helped me make data-driven decisions.
4. Be patient but persistent. Growth compounds over time.

If you're a SaaS founder sitting on the fence about starting a newsletter, just do it. The right platform makes all the difference, and Resletter made my journey so much smoother than I expected.