Building an Obsessive Audience with theSkimm

TL;DR

The key to building a loyal audience is understanding your target demographic and integrating into their daily routines. theSkimm achieved this by creating a daily email newsletter for female millennials, developing a strong community through word-of-mouth marketing, and expanding with products like the Skimm Ahead app. Their success demonstrates the importance of voice, community, and strategic growth in audience development.

Transcript

well thank you for joining us here in New York where you're headquartered thank you for having us we're so excited we're so excited this is our first disrupt really uh excited to be here awesome thank you so the skim for for those of you who don't know is an email newsletter it's geared towards young women and it's basically a cliff notes of the ne... Read More

Key Insights

• theSkimm is a multiplatform audience company targeting female millennials with the mission to make it easier to be smarter.
• The company's success began with a daily email newsletter that fits seamlessly into users' morning routines.
• Word-of-mouth marketing and community building were crucial, utilizing 'Skimm'bassadors' to expand their reach.
• The Skimm Ahead app integrates with calendars to keep users informed about upcoming events, enhancing user engagement.
• The company employs a native advertising model, ensuring ads are clearly marked and do not interfere with news content.
• Co-founders Danielle Weisberg and Carly Zakin emphasize the importance of a strong partnership and understanding their audience.
• theSkimm's growth strategy includes focusing on engaged audiences rather than just scale, maintaining a high open rate.
• Future plans involve expanding product offerings while maintaining the brand's core mission of simplifying information consumption.

Questions & Answers

Q: How did theSkimm initially grow its audience?

theSkimm initially grew its audience through a strong word-of-mouth marketing strategy. Co-founders Danielle Weisberg and Carly Zakin began by emailing their personal contacts and leveraging social media to spread the word. They encouraged early subscribers to share the newsletter with friends, leading to organic growth. This community-driven approach was further enhanced by the creation of 'Skimm'bassadors', who actively promoted the newsletter, significantly contributing to audience expansion.

Q: What is the Skimm Ahead app and how does it work?

The Skimm Ahead app is an iPhone application that integrates with users' calendars to provide a curated list of upcoming events, from major news events to entertainment releases. Priced at $2.99 per month, the app aims to make users smarter about future events by notifying them in advance, allowing them to plan accordingly. This product complements the daily newsletter by focusing on future happenings rather than past news, further embedding theSkimm into users' daily routines.

Q: What advertising model does theSkimm use?

theSkimm employs a native advertising model, where ads are seamlessly integrated into the content without disrupting the main news sections. Advertisements are clearly marked and placed in lifestyle sections, ensuring transparency and maintaining audience trust. This approach allows theSkimm to work with premium brands, providing them with authentic advertising opportunities that resonate with the audience while supporting the company's revenue model.

Q: Why is theSkimm's audience engagement strategy effective?

theSkimm's audience engagement strategy is effective because it focuses on building a community and integrating into the daily routines of its audience. By creating content that resonates with female millennials and encouraging word-of-mouth sharing, theSkimm fosters a sense of belonging and investment among its subscribers. Their high open rates and active 'Skimm'bassador' program demonstrate the success of this approach, as it prioritizes meaningful connections over mere audience size.

Q: How do the co-founders of theSkimm view their partnership?

Co-founders Danielle Weisberg and Carly Zakin view their partnership as a unique and integral part of theSkimm's success. They emphasize collaboration and shared decision-making, leveraging their complementary skills and perspectives. Their strong friendship and mutual respect have been foundational in navigating challenges and growing the company. This partnership model, though uncommon, has been a key factor in their ability to lead theSkimm effectively and maintain a unified vision for the company.

Q: What challenges did theSkimm face in its early days?

In its early days, theSkimm faced challenges such as skepticism about launching an email-based product, with many believing email was an outdated medium. Additionally, as first-time entrepreneurs, co-founders Danielle Weisberg and Carly Zakin had to navigate the complexities of building a business without prior experience in technology or fundraising. Despite these obstacles, their belief in their vision and the untapped market of female millennials motivated them to persevere and innovate.

Q: What is the primary mission of theSkimm?

The primary mission of theSkimm is to make it easier for female millennials to be informed and engaged with the world around them. By providing concise, accessible, and relatable content, theSkimm aims to bridge the gap between news and its audience, empowering them to have intelligent conversations and stay updated on current events. This mission guides the company's product development and content strategy, ensuring that all offerings align with their goal of simplifying information consumption.

Q: How does theSkimm ensure its content remains relatable to its audience?

theSkimm ensures its content remains relatable by maintaining a consistent and engaging voice that resonates with its audience. The company has developed a fictional character, the 'Skimm Girl', who embodies the brand's tone and personality. This character-driven approach helps guide content creation, ensuring it reflects the shared experiences and interests of female millennials. By focusing on relatable scenarios and integrating humor and wit, theSkimm creates content that feels personal and relevant to its subscribers.

Summary

In this interview, the founders of theSkimm, a daily email newsletter for young women, discuss their inspiration for starting the company and their approach to creating engaging content. They also talk about their growth and success, including their viral marketing program and their recent launch of an iPhone app. The interview concludes with a discussion about their future plans and advice for aspiring entrepreneurs.

Questions & Answers

Q: What inspired the founders to quit their jobs and start theSkimm?

The founders were inspired to start theSkimm because of their own personal experience of friends and family asking them what was going on in the world. They realized there was a gap in the market for a news source that provided the information people needed to have intelligent conversations.

Q: How did the founders grow their subscriber base?

The founders initially emailed their contacts and asked them to sign up. They also encouraged their early subscribers to share the newsletter with their friends. This word-of-mouth marketing strategy, along with coverage from the press, helped them rapidly grow their subscriber base.

Q: How many subscribers does theSkimm have?

TheSkimm has over three and a half million subscribers, which is more than the digital subscribers of the New York Times.

Q: How did theSkimm create a viral marketing program?

The founders began by asking their readers to share the newsletter with their friends. They developed a pen pal relationship with some of their subscribers and started calling them brand ambassadors. They eventually formalized this program, and now have over 13,000 desk ambassadors across the country who have brought in over 19 percent of their overall user base.

Q: What is the revenue model for theSkimm?

The primary revenue stream for theSkimm is native advertising. They work with premium brands to create sponsored content that is clearly labeled as such. They also recently launched a subscription business with their iPhone app, which costs $2.99 a month.

Q: How do the founders ensure that the sponsored content does not compromise the integrity of their news reporting?

The founders make sure that the sponsored content never touches the actual news of the day. They have fun with the lifestyle elements, such as their logo, book section, and wine section. They are transparent with their audience about the sponsored content and only work with brands that they are proud of.

Q: Are there plans to raise more funding?

The founders currently have enough funding and are focused on launching new products. They have been able to generate significant revenue with their existing revenue streams and are not currently seeking additional funding.

Q: How do the co-CEOs make decisions together?

The co-CEOs make decisions together as a partnership. They have a unique relationship that began as friends and roommates before becoming business partners. They value each other's perspectives and make decisions based on what they believe is best for the company.

Q: How do the founders cover such a wide range of topics with a small team?

The founders do not claim to be experts on every topic they cover. They see themselves as translators, breaking down complex information into layman's terms. They rely on their training as former TV producers and their ability to understand what their audience wants to know.

Q: What is the future of theSkimm?

The founders see theSkimm as an audience company and want to continue creating products that make it easier for people to be smarter. They recently launched theSkimm Ahead, an iPhone app that provides a calendar of events. They have plans to expand beyond newsletters and offer more products in the future.

Q: What advice do the founders have for aspiring entrepreneurs?

The founders advise aspiring entrepreneurs to believe in their ideas and not give up, even in the face of rejection. They also emphasize the importance of knowing your audience and creating a product that meets their needs.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• theSkimm successfully built a loyal audience by creating a daily email newsletter that fits seamlessly into users' morning routines. Their word-of-mouth marketing strategy, utilizing 'Skimm'bassadors', played a crucial role in expanding their reach. The company focuses on maintaining high engagement rates and has expanded with the Skimm Ahead app, which integrates with calendars to keep users informed about upcoming events.

• The company's native advertising model ensures ads are clearly marked and do not interfere with news content, maintaining trust with their audience. Co-founders Danielle Weisberg and Carly Zakin highlight the importance of a strong partnership and understanding their audience. theSkimm's growth strategy prioritizes engaged audiences over mere scale, resulting in a high open rate.

• Future plans for theSkimm include expanding their product offerings while staying true to their core mission of simplifying information consumption. The company's success demonstrates the importance of voice, community, and strategic growth in audience development, as well as the value of integrating into users' daily routines.