How The Decade Investor Built a 17,000-Subscriber Newsletter on beehiiv

Situation:

The Decade Investor had a large following on social media—especially X—and used it to share long-term investing tactics. But like most creators, he was building on rented land: platforms change algorithms, restrict monetization, and can disappear overnight.

To own the relationship with his audience and deliver consistent value, he launched a weekly newsletter on beehiiv in February 2023.

Challenge:

Social reach wasn’t the issue. Sustainability was.

• He needed a channel he controlled, not one dependent on algorithm shifts.
• He wanted a system to reliably convert social followers into subscribers.
• He needed monetization that didn’t require constant sponsor outreach.
• He wanted to maintain strong engagement as the list scaled.

Solution:

He built the newsletter on beehiiv and used a simple funnel: social content → newsletter CTA → instant value → consistent weekly sends.

Key tactics and beehiiv features:

• Top-of-funnel from X: With ~194K followers, he drove early signups fast and hit 2,000+ subscribers in the first month.
• Lead magnet for immediate value: New subscribers received a guide (“25 Stock Terms Every Investor Needs To Know”).
• Monetization built in:
• Boosts to earn revenue from signups
• Ad Network to fill ad slots without chasing sponsors
• Paid subscriptions to test premium membership demand
• Engagement maintenance: He kept the newsletter valuable and predictable, supporting an ~47% open rate at scale.

Results:

Within 12 months, the newsletter reached 14,500+ subscribers, and later grew to 17,000+ subscribers.

Monetization became diversified and repeatable:

• Boosts: revenue tied to subscriber acquisition
• Ads: consistent ad opportunities surfaced through beehiiv
• Subscriptions: early traction with ~30 paid members (monthly/yearly)

The result was an owned channel that converts attention into durable distribution—and revenue.

Takeaway

The Decade Investor’s playbook is simple and repeatable:

• Use social as the acquisition engine
• Offer immediate value at signup
• Publish consistently
• Monetize with built-in options so revenue doesn’t require extra operational work

If you already have an audience anywhere online, a newsletter is how you keep it—and grow it—on your terms. beehiiv makes that transition fast.

Start using beehiiv to turn followers into subscribers and build an audience you own.