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Why 700k people (including me) love Contrarian Thinking
It has a rare combination of clever teasers, strong writing, and a banger value prop
šš» Welcome to Newsletter Examples, where I highlight cool sh*t Iām seeing in newsletters that you can steal for your newsletter.
This week, Iām showing you 4 things I love about Contrarian Thinking, my front-runner for best business email of the year. Reading time: 2 minutes.
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1ļøā£ Engaging openers
I ā¤ļø what Codie Sanchez is building at Contrarian Thinking, a multimillion-dollar business that helps people take control of their financial lives. Her October 24 issue, āThe 5 Habits That Changed My Life,ā is a model of how to write a newsletter from top to bottom, including this sick openeršļøā¦
What I ā¤ļø about it: She shuns traditional business advice, instead teaching people to look at their own habits.
How to apply it: Show your readers what youāve learned that they can apply to their lives.
Codie is a master at getting people to click. Go to school on these subject linesā¦
What I ā¤ļø about it: These teasers all build anticipation in different ways, making you wonder:
What business she could possibly be talking about
How something as boring as paint could make big profits
If they succeeded (and what you could learn from it)
How to apply it: Provide commentary and ideas that go against the grain. Be experimentalādo stunts.
3ļøā£ Conversational writing
Codie and team (including Jacob Cohen, who I hired at The Hustle and who has more talent than 99% of the writers Iāve worked with) write like they talk, from their subject lines to their headlines to every word after.
What I ā¤ļø about it: Codie uses lots of first person and a personal pic to make her story relatable. And she doesnāt just describe her own habits, she pushes people to build better habits of their own.
How to apply it: Like Codie, āplay a little gameā with your readers to drive home the lessons youāre teaching them.
4ļøā£ Clear value prop
Codieās media ambitions go way beyond this lil newsletter, with each property playing off the other:
She hosts a podcast where she shares unfiltered truths about business.
She has a community to help you buy your first business.
Sheās a YouTube star.
And sheās the author of Main Street Millionaires, a forthcoming book about how to make extraordinary wealth buying ordinary businesses.
The common thread? Sheās sharing smart, contrarian views on money, helping her audience gain financial freedom.
What I ā¤ļø about it: She makes people feel special (āYouāre part of a rare breedā) and inspires them to build for themselves (āBe an owner in a world full of victimsā).
How to apply it: Donāt just build a tribe of your own, name it (āOwner Nationā). And make your people feel special (āWeāre built differentā).
Hope you enjoyed this weekās examples. Iāll be back next week with a new set.
ā®ļø -Brad
P.S. Iām running a contest for Best Newsletters of the Year, and I need help rounding out a list of nominees. If you have favorite newsletters in the entertainment, politics, or general interest categories (especially independent newsletters), send āem my way!
P.P.S. Want to work with me? I just started a content consulting businessāhit me up if youāre interested in learning more.
ICYMI: Links to recent issues
āØ How to make long emails engaging
š©āš¼ How Napkin Notes builds buzz for startups
š°ļø The path to making money with your newsletter
š§ Why less is more in newsletters
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