Why Overtime Moved Even the Odds to beehiiv

Overview

Even the Odds is a daily sports betting newsletter created by Overtime, a digital sports publisher known for cultivating a deeply engaged Gen-Z and Millennial audience. Unlike traditional betting products that rely on algorithms, spreadsheets, and advanced analytics, Even the Odds was designed as an entry point into sports betting—offering simple game previews, light betting education, and digestible context for fans who may have placed only a handful of bets (or none at all).

Launched in September 2021, Even the Odds reached 10,000+ subscribers in its first year, powered by strategic partnerships, list segmentation, and beehiiv’s built-in growth tools.

The Newsletter

Name: Even the Odds
Company: Overtime
Founder / Lead: Justin Schnell, Senior Manager, Editorial Operations
Audience: Millennial & Gen-Z sports fans
Frequency: Daily
Focus: Game previews, betting lines, and approachable sports analysis

Why a Newsletter?

For Overtime, newsletters offered something social platforms couldn’t: direct access to their audience without algorithmic interference.

Unlike social content that disappears within minutes or hours, newsletters remain relevant throughout the day and allow for deeper storytelling. Even the Odds became Overtime’s first major push into daily editorial content, complementing its video-first roots.

The Challenge

Before switching to beehiiv, the Even the Odds team was publishing on Substack. While Substack made it easy to get started, it quickly became limiting as the newsletter scaled.

Key challenges included:

• No built-in referral or ambassador system
• Reliance on third-party growth tools (many incompatible with Substack)
• Manual work to track subscriber quality and engagement
• Limited segmentation for partnerships and promotions

The team needed a platform that could support growth at scale without operational overhead.

Why beehiiv

The decision to move to beehiiv was driven by one core feature: built-in growth infrastructure.

Justin Schnell shared that the referral program alone eliminated weeks of experimentation with external tools. beehiiv allowed the team to launch ambassador-style growth initiatives—especially on college campuses, without custom development or plug-ins.

Additional reasons for switching:

• Native referral program
• Advanced subscriber segmentation
• Responsive customer support
• A clear product roadmap focused on newsletter growth

Growth & Distribution Strategy

Even the Odds tested a wide range of acquisition channels, including:

• Podcast ad reads
• Paid social (Facebook & Twitter)
• Cross-newsletter partnerships
• Large-scale email list promotions

One of the most impactful campaigns came through a college bookstore network, which distributed the newsletter to a list of over 500,000 students.

Results from that campaign:

• ~5,000 new subscribers
• 46% open rate
• Fewer than 700 unsubscribes

Using beehiiv’s segmentation, the team could immediately evaluate subscriber quality, identify high-engagement cohorts, and tailor future content and outreach accordingly.

Results

• 10,000+ subscribers in year one
• Strong, measurable engagement across campaigns
• Improved ability to identify and nurture high-quality readers
• Reduced operational complexity compared to Substack

Justin noted that beehiiv made it easy to understand which growth efforts actually worked, allowing the team to double down on what mattered.

Favorite beehiiv Feature

Referral Program

“The referral system is probably the best thing you can have. We wasted a lot of time trying to hack together third-party tools on Substack. With beehiiv, it’s already there and it works.”

What’s Next

Looking ahead, Even the Odds plans to:

• Double its subscriber base
• Launch structured ambassador programs on college campuses
• Expand integrations across other Overtime media properties
• Host in-person activations around major sporting events

Advice for Other Creators

• Test multiple growth channels and expect failures
• Focus on subscriber quality, not vanity metrics
• Build feedback loops with your readers
• Choose a platform that grows with you, not against you