New Media

Hosted by Matt McGarry and Kolby Hatch

Business Entrepreneurship

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Episodes

118

Latest episode

Jul 2026

Language

EN-US

About the show

New Media is a podcast for founders and creators building independent media businesses. We explore how to grow and monetize audiences without depending on algorithms, advertising, and platforms you don't control. Each episode shares practical insights on building profitable media and education businesses. A GrowLetter podcast, hosted by Matt McGarry and Kolby Hatch.

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60 recent

July 29, 202651 min

$1.2M In 70 Minutes: The Playbook Behind A Viral Creator Product Launch

In today's episode, Matt and Kolby break down Alex Hormozi's three big content bets , his CAA signing and reality-show push, and Jessi Jean's $297 "Yap on Camera Challenge" that reportedly made $1.2M in a single day — pulling out what's working, what's being left on the table, and what every media founder should take notes on. Timestamps: 00:00 Intro 02:25 The $1.2M Launch in 72 Minutes 07:34 Why Cohorts Are a Superior Business Model 11:54 Inside the Hybrid Cohort Format 17:15 Public Homework as a Viral Engine 17:57 Do You Even Need a Community? 20:22 Don't Sleep on Instagram 24:43 How Jessie Could Scale to $1M/Month 32:44 Hormozi's Content Bets: Show, Don't Tell 36:14 Bet #2: Netflix-Level Production ("Scale or Fail") 41:00 Bet #3: Live and Interactive Content 43:24 Replicating It Without a Big Budget 46:30 Legacy Media: CAA, Netflix, and Radio 50:07 Distribution Is King 📌 Resources: Jessi Jean — Yap On Camera Challenge Alex Hormozi — "Scale or Fail" Starter Story (acquired by HubSpot) Enjoying the show? Leave a 5-star review on Apple or Spotify, then email matt@growletter.co or kolby@growletter.co with a screenshot and a question — we'll answer it on the show.

July 22, 202642 min

Why Forbes is WRONG about creators, beehiiv VS Kit, magazines are back?

This episode is brought to you by Circle — the all-in-one platform to run your community, courses, and memberships in one place. Try it free 👉 https://circle.so/eclipse In today's episode Matt and Kolby break down Forbes' 2026 Top Creators list, the surprising revival of luxury print media, and Kit's biggest product launch ever—pulling out what's working, what's being left on the table, and what every media founder should take notes on. Timestamps: 00:00 Forbes Top Creators 2026 01:14 The $1B Milestone & MrBeast's $300M 02:10 Breaking Down the Top 10 05:44 YouTube-to-Hollywood Crossover 06:41 Mark Rober's Subscription Box Playbook 09:42 Cody Sanchez & the Creator Capital Allocator 11:42 Hot Takes: Who Forbes Missed 14:36 Streamers & the Entrepreneurship Score Debate 17:35 Is Print Back? The Mountain Gazette Story 22:41 Why Print Is the Next Vinyl: Firecrown & Colossus 28:05 Building Fandom With Physical Products 30:38 New Media Summit 2027 in Austin 31:25 Kit's Craft + Commerce Launch: SMS & Subscriber Signals 37:29 Beehiiv's July Launch & the "Everything App" Trap 43:02 Circle's Focused Launch & Wrap-Up Resources: Forbes List Mountain Gazette Firecrown Media Colossus New Media Summit

July 16, 202635 min

REACTION: beehiiv's Summer Release: Is This The Future or Just Hype?

In this episode, Matt McGarry, Ryan Carr, and Kolby Hatch analyze the recent beehiiv summer release, discussing new features like community, podcast integrations, and ad networks, and sharing insights on how to effectively leverage these tools for business growth.

July 15, 20261 hr 5 min

Why Nobody Cares About Newsletters Anymore

In today's episode Matt and Kolby break down historic media disruptions—from cable TV's ESPN and CNN to Joe Rogan's $250M Spotify deal—pulling out what's working, what's being left on the table, and who actually has a real thesis on AI today, from The Rundown's $10M+ newsletter to HubSpot's media buying spree. Timestamps: 00:00 Intro: AI Anxiety and Plateauing Founders 03:59 The Framework: How Founders Should Respond to AI 05:14 Is This an AI Bubble? Cable TV's ESPN and CNN Bet 08:35 Web 1.0: Huffington Post's $315M Exit and Motley Fool's Billion-Dollar Run 09:32 Viral Video Era: BuzzFeed's Rise, Barstool's $551M Sale 12:23 Mobile Wave: Industry Dive's $525M Exit 14:12 Axios's Smart Brevity and $525M Sale 17:27 The Athletic's $500M Sale, Joe Rogan's $250M Deal, and Mr. Beast 19:54 The Common Thread: Every Disruptor Needs a Thesis 22:40 Who Has a Real AI Thesis Today? 24:59 The Rundown AI's $10M+ Newsletter and Its PE Deal 29:31 HubSpot's Strategy of Buying Up Media Companies 34:55 Local News, AI-Generated Content, and 6AM City 46:06 Breaking Points, Ground News, and the Rise of Trusted Filters 53:03 Owning a New Category: Latent Space's AI Engineer Events 59:13 Every's Bundled AI Tools and Software-Funded Media 📌 Resources: The Rundown AI Every Ground News Latent Space Enjoying the show? Leave a 5-star review on Apple or Spotify, then email matt@growletter.co or kolby@growletter.co with a screenshot and a question — we'll answer it on the show.

July 8, 202649 min

How ONE Book Drove $7M in Sales (and Helped Build an $80M Business)

This episode is brought to you by Circle — the all-in-one platform to run your community, courses, and memberships in one place. Try it free 👉 https://circle.so/eclipse Chandler Bolt (SelfPublishing.com) joins Matt to break down how one niche book generated $7M in 12 months, why "the riches are in the niches," how to turn tactics into ownable frameworks, and the value ladder that grew SelfPublishing.com past $80M. Timestamps : 00:00 Intro 02:25 Can a Niche Expert Really Write a Book? 03:59 Why a Book Is the Ultimate Lever 06:36 "I'm Not a Good Writer" — Write Like You Talk 09:06 Is My Idea Too Niche? Strategies vs Tactics 11:05 How "Published" Made $7M in 12 Months 13:37 Turning Tactics Into Frameworks 17:19 Does a Book Have To Be 250 Pages? 19:55 Selling Books Without a Huge Audience 24:13 Book Royalties Explained (20–70%) 25:47 Amazon Discovery + Vertical SEO 28:19 How To Use AI To Write a Book 33:37 Will a Book Cannibalize My Course? 38:09 One-to-One vs One-to-Many: Packaging Expertise 42:12 Are Courses Dying? The Services Pivot 48:03 Where To Find Chandler 📌 Resources: SelfPublishing.com Book a call with the team Sign and Thrive by Bill Soroka 🔗 Connect with Chandler Bolt: Linkedin Website YouTube

July 1, 20261 hr 18 min

Best and Worst INCOME STREAMS For Creators In 2026

Build a community product with nothing but a prompt, try Circle AI free 👉 https://circle.so/eclipse Kolby and Matt rank 25 creator income streams and reveal the simple consulting-call-to-agency funnel that took Growletter to 7-figures. Timestamps: 02:28 Is Speaking Worth Your Time? 06:03 One-on-One Coaching's Underrated Upside 10:29 Sponsorships and Brand Deals 14:32 Programmatic Ads and MrBeast's $20M Month 20:00 Affiliate Marketing's Race to the Bottom 24:02 Digital Products in the Age of LLMs 29:02 Vibe Products: AI's New Frontier for Creators 34:50 Subscriptions vs. Memberships 44:34 Live Cohorts vs. Group Coaching 51:41 Why Courses Fell to F Tier 55:48 Done-for-You Services and the Funnel That Built Growletter 1:04:09 Licensing Deals: Feast or Famine 1:08:36 Masterminds and Peer Groups 1:13:53 Should You Write a Book? 1:20:41 Events and the Final Tier List 📌 Resources: New Media Summit The Lab (Jay Clouse) StoryBrand Enjoying the show? Leave a 5-star review on Apple or Spotify, then email matt@growletter.co or kolby@growletter.co with a screenshot and a question — we'll answer it on the show. This episode is sponsored by Circle.

June 24, 202641 min

$1M+ Email Marketing HACKS You’ve Never Heard Of With Daniel Bustamante

Daniel Bustamante (Velocity, Ship 30 for 30) joins Matt and Kolby to break down the email launch tactics that add 20% to every launch—the mid-launch bonus that kills the dead middle, the $99 product that made $25K in 48 hours, the post-launch downsell, and the feedback email that makes your next launch better. Timestamps: 00:55 Expiring Mid-Launch Bonuses (Kill the U-Shape) 03:18 What Bonus to Offer & Ideal Launch Length 07:36 The 48-Hour Flash Sale: $25K From a $99 Product 12:24 Hormozi's "Sold Out" Email & Waitlist Flywheel 16:24 Should You Cap Enrollment? 18:46 The Post-Launch Downsell (+15–20% Revenue) 22:15 Downsell Ideas & Checkout Upsells 24:12 When to Offer Payment Plans 28:44 The "Why Didn't You Buy?" Email 30:49 AI Hyper-Personalized Lead Magnets 35:39 Quiz Funnels Done Right 36:45 Why Cohort Courses Work (Ship 30 Lessons) 43:01 One Piece of Advice for Launching a Cohort 44:22 Where to Find Daniel 📌 Resources: Kit (email platform) ScoreApp (quiz funnels) Ship 30 for 30 🔗 Connect with Daniel: LinkedIn Website Newsletter Enjoying the show? Leave a 5-star review on Apple or Spotify, then email matt@growletter.co or kolby@growletter.co with a screenshot and a question — we'll answer it on the show.

June 17, 202639 min

The Truth About Local Newsletters No One Wants To Admit with Daniel Berk

Daniel Berk (Moneywise Podcast by Hampton) joins Matt and Kolby to talk about why the local newsletter isn't the business—the audience is, how AI services are the untapped green space for local brick-and-mortars, why the viral Substack tweet got email wrong, and how an X DM with Sam Parr turned into a podcast hosting gig. Timestamps: 00:00 Intro 02:00 Palmetto Parents: Three Local Newsletters 06:40 How Local Newsletters Actually Make Money 11:00 "Own The Town" — Arbitraging Your Audience 14:30 Axios, 6AM City & The Big-Metro Model 17:00 Local AI Services: The Untapped Greenspace 23:15 The Nonprofit (501c3) Newsletter Play 26:15 Is Email Dead? The Viral Substack Tweet 33:00 What "Owned Audience" Really Means 37:30 Moneywise & Two Dads In Tech 40:00 How A Twitter DM Became The Moneywise Gig 45:30 Command The Room Like A Nine-Figure Podcast 📌 Resources: Palmetto Parents Moneywise by Hampton 🔗 Connect with Daniel Berk: LinkedIn X / Twitter Newsletter Enjoying the show? Leave a 5-star review on Apple or Spotify, then email matt@growletter.co or kolby@growletter.co with a screenshot and a question — we'll answer it on the show.

June 10, 202647 min

Monetization Brainstorm with Justin Moore - Events, Paid Challenges, Books, Best Funnels For Creators, and More

Justin Moore (Creator Wizard) joins Matt and Kolby to talk about how Sponsor Games lost ~$10K in year two but still turned a profit, why 22% of his challenge attendees upgrade to VIP every single time, the great event food debate, and how to find your real ICP with a book funnel. Timestamps: 00:00 Intro 00:26 Sponsor Games Year Two: A $10K Loss and a Reality Show 03:50 How the Mastermind Offer Made It Profitable 04:15 Marketing a Novel Event With No Speakers 05:56 Changing the Date and Venue for Year Three 09:30 Should the Event Go on Tour? 11:50 Pre-Selling 20% of Next Year's Tickets 12:09 Ryan Deiss's 3 Types of Events 16:15 The Halo Effect of Hosting an Event 22:56 The Great Event Food Debate 26:14 Do You Actually Need a VIP Tier? 30:16 Inside the 10K Brand Deal Challenge 36:09 The Partner Challenge That Flopped 42:00 Book Funnels and Finding Your Real ICP 50:07 The Case for Focus Over Shiny Objects 51:42 Where to Find Justin 📌 Resources: Sponsor Games Sponsor Magnet 🔗 Connect with Justin: LinkedIn Newsletter

June 4, 202644 min

This Guy Makes $1,500,000 PER MONTH From Texting

Matt Paulson (MarketBeat) joins Matt and Kolby to talk about the SMS playbook that's now 25% of MarketBeat's revenue, why he pays Twilio $400K a month to make it work, and the case for treating digital media as a depreciating asset he'll shut down at 65 rather than sell. Timestamps: 00:00 Intro 03:30 SMS Is The New Email 06:00 SMS Is Now 25% Of MarketBeat's Revenue ($1.5M+/Month) 10:00 Promoting Advertiser Offers Over Your Own 13:30 $100 Paid Webinars That Sell $2,500/Month Coaching 14:30 SMS Sunsetting, Short Codes, And Deliverability 17:00 Confirming Phone Numbers To Avoid TCPA Lawsuits 19:00 SMS Tech Stack And Twilio's $400K/Month Bills 23:00 Why Newsletters Are Still Worth It (Gmail's March 20 Change) 28:00 Multi-Channel: Spending $500K/Month On Meta Ads 33:00 The Co-Reg Wars: IMS vs AfterOffers 35:00 Every Tech Company Will Eventually Buy A Media Company 38:00 Why MarketBeat Won't Be Sold Or Acquired 41:00 Beehiiv, Substack, And ESP Feature Bloat 46:00 Marketers Matt Watches: Hormozi, Sanchez, Deiss 50:00 Where to Find Matt Paulson 📌 Resources : MarketBeat AfterOffers The Email Copywriter (Chris Orzechowski) 🔗 Connect with Matt Paulson: LinkedIn Twitter/X Leave a 5-star review on Apple or Spotify, then email matt@growletter.co or kolby@growletter.co with a screenshot and a question — we'll answer it on the show.