What does it take to thriving newsletters with over 60,000 involved readers while serving as Chief Financial Officer full-time?
CJ Gustafson, from most metrics, is sharing this week’s episode of Niche Pursuit Podcast how he built a profitable brand on the side.
In this episode, he offers a masterclass of newsletter growth, profitability and niche content power.
It’s a conversation full of actionable insights and behind-the-scenes stories, and CJ reveals how he has turned a once-surfaced project into a highly performing B2B media brand that serves over 60,000 subscribers, including CFOS, founders and business nerds, whose Benchmarks geeked geek aut guted of Flanancy and Company Benchmarks for financial models and the company.
Watch the entire episode
From CFO to full-time creator
The story of CJ Gustafson is a compelling story.
As a technical CFO, he climbed the company’s ladder, gained experience in private equity and eventually discovered his passion for financial analysis and expanding his business. But in December 2020, he started something – mainly metrics, a newsletter that would eventually become his full-time pursuit.
In the past two years, CJ has only 400 subscribers to its newsletter. He admits it was hard, but he kept writing because he believed in the process. He soon discovered that the unique way of explaining financial metrics and business concepts in ordinary English resonated with people. By simplifying complex topics and injecting humor into his content, he finds his audience.
Fast forward to today, most metrics have over 62,000 subscribers, a mix of paid and free readers. He recently took a leap away from his position as Chief Financial Officer, focusing on newsletters and related businesses.
Find the right audience
Initially, CJ wrote for “CJ Five Years ago” – someone tried to better understand financial metrics. As time goes by, his audience becomes more refined:
- 25% are working in chief financial officer or financial roles
- 20% are entrepreneurs and business leaders who are looking for better ways to allocate resources and track metrics.
- The rest are investors and business enthusiasts who love to learn how companies make money.
A key lesson learned by CJ: Niche audiences can be very valuable.
He questioned whether his target audience was too narrow, but he realized that CFOS controlled the company’s budget and made critical financial decisions, which made them a high-priced group for advertisers.
Effective growth strategies
CJ’s newsletter growth did not happen overnight. He tested several strategies, some of which worked well:
- Have a niche on Twitter
- He created a list of 20 financial-related terms and phrases
- Every night, he searches for these terms on Twitter and leaves deep comments while linking to his newsletter
- This approach helped him grow from 1,000 subscribers to 10,000
- Guest Publishing Company
- CJ uses his expertise to write posts for famous financial brands, such as famous financial brands.
- These partnerships have given him credibility and helped him attract more audiences
- Start a podcast
- His podcast runs numbers, giving him stable content creativity
- Conversations with CFOs and industry leaders provide new insights that he can turn into a newsletter topic
- Utilize alternative suggestions
- The alternative allowed him to benefit from their recommendation system, which attracted new readers who already followed similar content.
CJ noticed a shift with about 8,000 subscribers – his newsletter is now gaining over 50 new subscribers every day, purely through word of mouth and organic growth.
Monetization: Building a business
CJ’s business model has evolved over time.
This is how he made money today:
1. Paid Subscription
- He opened a paid subscription with 11,000 subscribers
- Paid newsletter costs $15 per month or $150 per year
- Paid content includes scripts, templates and in-depth research on CFO strategies
2. Sponsorship and advertising
- CJ runs an ad for each newsletter, keeping the content clean and advanced
- He sells sponsorship packages every quarter, bundling newsletters and podcasts
- This structured approach helps maintain long-term advertiser relationships
3. Data Report
- His new fintech stack 2025 report is the first report he expects to be a profitable data business
- He surveyed over 1,000 CFOs of the tools he used and benchmarked them based on the company’s size.
4. Exclusive CFO Dinner
- Host in-person dinners with 20 CFOs and have some paid sponsor attractions that can be connected and monetized
- Sponsors value opportunities to connect directly with decision makers
Key metrics for tracking
As a digital person, CJ is meticulous about tracking success. Here are the key performance metrics (KPIs) he watched:
- Share and move forward: The strongest indicators of participation and organic growth
- Subscriber growth rate: Average 1,500–2,000 new subscribers per month
- Signals for participation: More important than what he likes, he values readers’ personal replies and discussions
- Conversion rate for paid subscribers: Helps determine the effectiveness of its free paid content strategy
Lessons from aspiring creators
CJ’s journey offers some benefits for those who want to grow their audience and monetize their content:
- Write down what you know, but make it accessible.
- Find your audience by attracting where they have already been.
- Quality content leads to organic growth, rather than relying on hackers.
- The revenue streams from paid submarines to sponsorships and activities are diversified.
- Create a unique sound and lean towards your personality.
The final thought
CJ’s success in most metrics shows that great content, strategic growth and audience trust can turn niche communications into a thriving business.
By focusing on high-quality insights and making financial concepts relevant, he no longer waits for reading, building a CFO and anyone interested in business metrics.
