This post will be a little different than what you will usually get here.
Going forward, this newsletter will be a running log of updates, experiments, and lessons from growing Austin Founders Feed. Think of it as the behind-the-scenes account of building a local newsletter into a real business.
Before we get into weekly numbers and tactics, it helps to explain how this all started. You need to know where you began to understand where you are going.
My name is Ken. By trade, I am a data scientist working in sports analytics. For the last six years, I have also been known for my YouTube channel, where I teach data science and break down complex ideas for a large online audience.
Over the past couple of years, my thinking has shifted.
I believe AI is fundamentally changing the digital landscape. Content is becoming cheaper, faster, and more abundant. Attention and trust are becoming harder to earn. In that world, local communities matter more, not less. Real people, real places, and real relationships are becoming a premium.
At the same time, I have become increasingly bullish on newsletters as a business model. When you build a newsletter, you own the audience. You are not renting attention from YouTube, X, or Instagram. That ownership is an asset, and it compounds over time.
When I moved to Austin, it clicked.
I am an entrepreneur living in a city full of other entrepreneurs. I wanted a single place that consistently answered a simple question: what is happening in Austin that actually matters for builders, founders, and small business owners?
Austin Founders Feed started as a way to scratch my own itch. I started the business with my co-founder, Warren, with the belief that building together would create better outcomes than going solo. This is new territory for me, and I am excited about the accountability, clarity, and division of labor that comes with building alongside someone else.
Part of the Growth Account is chronicling that experience. What it actually looks like to build with a co-founder. Where collaboration accelerates progress and where it introduces new challenges.
That brings us to today.
As I am writing this, Austin Founders Feed has 420 subscribers and is on pace to grow by roughly 500 subscribers per month. We have published five issues so far and are still finding our voice.
I am experimenting with organic and paid marketing, which has already produced a lot of learning. Some things are working. Some things are very much not. That is exactly the kind of information I want to capture here.
The goals are straightforward.
I want this business to be profitable within six months. I want to reach 10,000 subscribers by the end of 2026.
In this newsletter, I will share:
What is and is not working in paid acquisition and growth
How we are acquiring sponsors and the rates they are willing to pay
How we think about retention and serving a local audience long term
Lessons from building with a co-founder, including accountability and division of labor
Experiments with systems and automation to run a lean media business
Copywriting, interviewing, and operational lessons from growing this from scratch
This is the Growth Account.
Everything counts, and everything gets logged.