His free business directory finds most of his sponsors

This is the second half of my conversation with Ken Jee, co-founder of Austin Founders Feed, a local newsletter for about 6,500 business owners in Austin, Texas. If you missed it, part 1 covers why he went local, his expert column sponsorship and the connectors list that made his growth organic. This part is about the machine behind the money: a free business directory that brings in his sponsors, how he sells, and why curated events matter more as AI spreads.

A clubhouse for Austin creators

Ken is most excited about elevated events for content creators. Keeping the room to people further along makes the experience better for everyone there. Longer term, he wants to open a physical space in Austin for creators: a fairly high price point, nice amenities, and a promise of close relationships where bigger names don't feel pestered.

His reason is personal. He thinks content creation can be even lonelier than running a company. A YouTuber can script and record at home, trade emails with sponsors, and rarely see peers. Austin has plenty of big creators, he notes, but only about one creator event a week and no real gathering place. Creators he's talked to are willing to put money down. He's looking for an investor to lower the risk, and admits it might only break even for the first couple of years.

He has models to point to. The Red Fridge Society, a founder club run by Chris Taylor, charges about $2,000 a month by Ken's count, and people pay because of who they meet there. The Rosedale Society, which grew out of the Austin Writing Club, is a lower-priced space for writers. Ken sees his creator space landing somewhere in between. He also gave Chris credit for sitting down with him and sharing everything, with nothing to gain.

TJ pointed out the lesson for everyone else: you don't need Austin's creator scene. Find a niche inside your local area, like home service companies, professional services or parents of young kids, and bring them together.

The directory is the sponsor funnel

When TJ asked about directories, Ken didn't hedge.

Here's how it works:

Not every lead fits, and they've said no to plenty. But Ken calls it the single secret of inbound sponsor activity, and it works especially well for him because every reader on a business owner list is a possible sponsor. Featured listings add a little revenue too, about $20 a month for a prime spot.

The directory also opens doors for cold outreach. Ken and Warren send cold emails and LinkedIn messages that simply offer a free spot in front of their 6,500 readers. Nothing is for sale, many people have probably seen their ads, and both have decent LinkedIn followings. The response rate is "actually pretty good."

TJ added a warning: a directory nobody promotes doesn't do much. If you build one in an afternoon and mention it on Facebook once in a while, don't expect Ken's results.

Be ready to sell

Ken's blunt advice is that local newsletters run on sales. If sponsorships are the plan, you'll send a lot of emails and take a lot of calls. Early on, a call is usually the easiest way for a business to see what you offer. Apart from featured directory listings, he doesn't think they've closed a deal without a phone call.

Other revenue helps but isn't enough on its own. SparkLoop doesn't quite cover their cost to get a subscriber every month. So he aims for bigger, longer deals, like three months for $2,000, instead of many one-off $200 ones. Fewer to sell, fewer calls.

Sell what fits, and don't promise sales

Their first sponsor was a SaaS company that wanted traffic to a webinar. It flopped, and they offered a refund. Software never worked for their readers, so they got creative:

• Founder interviews for companies raising money, since the interview tells their story and doubles as proof for investors.
• Expert columns for most businesses, which want to show their thinking and build long relationships.
• Ad slots only rarely, and as part of a package that repeats one message over time. People usually need to see something several times.
• Exclusivity instead of promises. Don't tell a realtor one sale will pay for the year. Tell them they'll be the only realtor in the newsletter.

That last one, Ken says, has been a huge lesson: position it as win-win and don't promise what you can't deliver.

A safe way to sell your first sponsors

Early on they sold prepaid pay-per-click: a sponsor pays $200 up front and the ad runs until the clicks are used up. They don't do it anymore, but if Ken were starting again he'd lean on it for the first ten or so sponsorships. You can sell out your slots, the cash helps you grow the list, and the sponsor is protected too.

Build your community, then curate it

Asked what to leave listeners with, Ken said the biggest question for the future is how you build and invest in your community so it supports you long term. A newsletter is a great tool for that, and so is meeting people face to face. He'd say almost everything good in his life over the last year and a half came from deeper relationships, online and in person.

He's a heavy AI user who thinks it will outpace a lot of jobs. That's why he writes The AI Survival Guide, alongside The Growth Account, his weekly notes on what they're testing at Austin Founders Feed. Community, relationships and reach help him either way.

It doesn't have to be complicated. Every quarter or every other month, Ken hosts a cookout for 20 to 40 interesting people near him. It costs about $100 at Costco. His rule is to curate the room and invite only people he finds interesting.

His last tip: use Luma for events. One event got 30 signups from the newsletter, then Luma featured it. Luma also lets you build a list and send invites that often arrive by text. None of these is huge alone, he says, but they add up.