Reflection on Building Decode Econ

Behind the Scenes of Building a Newsletter

This marks the 64th post on Decode Econ!

When I launched Decode Econ late this summer, it was more than a rebrand; it was a shift in mindset. Econ with Dr. A was a wonderful chapter, but it was deeply personal and not easily scalable. Decode Econ was built to grow beyond me, to be a platform where others can share their ideas, analyses, and stories.

If you’ve ever thought about writing or contributing a column, I’d love to hear from you. My goal for Decode Econ is for it to be a community, not a monologue.

Today, I want to provide you with an update on the behind-the-scenes data, challenges, opportunities, and how building Decode Econ has actually impacted my 9-5!

Growth and Strategy

When I transitioned from Econ with Dr. A, there were over 8,000 subscribers, but only about 2,300 were active. When I moved to Decode Econ, I brought along the most engaged readers, those who had opened an email in the previous 60 days. The 60-day cutoff was arbitrary, and sometimes I wish I had moved all of them over.

Subscriber count:

Starting base (Aug 13): 2,258
Today: 2,463 subscribers

That’s modest growth, but the engagement is what matters. Open rates hover around 58%, which is outstanding, and more readers are commenting and sharing. That tells me Decode Econ is resonating. Thank you for reading, engaging, and spreading the word.

Frequency and Focus

Decode Econ has evolved into a daily weekday newsletter, with occasional weekend bonuses like this one! Many have asked if that’s sustainable. The short answer: I’ll keep going until it isn’t fun anymore.

At first, I felt every issue needed to contain some earth-shattering insight. Now, I write what genuinely interests me that day. That small mindset shift, from “What will impress?” to “What do I want to share?”, has kept this project joyful.

With that said, I am still surprised by which posts take off. It is usually the more opinion-based or personal story that resonates with you.

Marketing and Brand Evolution

One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned: brand identity matters.

With Econ with Dr. A, sharing my own content often felt self-promotional. Decode Econ, on the other hand, feels like a community brand, something bigger than one person and something that belongs to all of us. That’s made it much easier to market and grow.

That said, I know many of you enjoyed the more personal tone of the old brand. To bring that back, I’ll start sharing more behind-the-scenes reflections and personal essays, available to paid subscribers as bonus posts, like this one.

Paid Subscribers