Email Marketing Step up

How to Profit from Your Email List Even as Costs Grow

If you’ve been building an email list and you’re starting to worry about the rising costs associated with scaling, don’t worry—you can still come out ahead. Let’s break down exactly how you can keep your email marketing profitable as your subscriber list grows, even if costs start to climb. We’ll use a simple scenario to illustrate how, by effectively monetizing your list at $1 per subscriber per month, you can still achieve impressive profits.

Monetization Rate: $1 Per Subscriber

First, let’s assume that you’re able to monetize your email list at an average rate of $1 per subscriber per month. While that may sound modest, with consistent email marketing, it can add up quickly—even when you consider the rising costs of sending emails.

For this scenario, we’re considering:

  • Monetization Rate: $1 per subscriber, per month.

  • Frequency: 3 emails per day, or 90 emails per month.

  • Email Sending Platform: GoHighLevel, with a base cost of $97/month, plus Mailgun for email sending ($0.80 per 1,000 emails after the first 5,000 free).

Let’s break down the costs and profits for subscriber lists of varying sizes.

Scenario: 500 Subscribers

  • Revenue: 500 subscribers x $1 = $500/month

  • Emails Sent: 500 subscribers x 90 emails = 45,000 emails/month

  • Billable Emails: 45,000 – 5,000 free = 40,000

  • Email Cost: (40,000 / 1,000) x $0.80 = $32

  • Total Cost: $97 (GHL base plan) + $32 (Email cost) = $129/month

  • Profit: $500 – $129 = $371/month

Even with just 500 subscribers, you can see that the costs are easily covered, leaving a net profit of $371 per month. This proves that, even at a smaller scale, your list can be quite profitable.

Scenario: 1,000 Subscribers

  • Revenue: 1,000 subscribers x $1 = $1,000/month

  • Emails Sent: 1,000 subscribers x 90 emails = 90,000 emails/month

  • Billable Emails: 90,000 – 5,000 = 85,000

  • Email Cost: (85,000 / 1,000) x $0.80 = $68

  • Total Cost: $97 (GHL) + $68 (Email cost) = $165/month

  • Profit: $1,000 – $165 = $835/month

With a list of 1,000 subscribers, your profit margin grows, giving you $835 per month in profit—an excellent return for a manageable email list size.

Scenario: 2,000 Subscribers

  • Revenue: 2,000 subscribers x $1 = $2,000/month

  • Emails Sent: 2,000 subscribers x 90 emails = 180,000 emails/month

  • Billable Emails: 180,000 – 5,000 = 175,000

  • Email Cost: (175,000 / 1,000) x $0.80 = $140

  • Total Cost: $97 (GHL) + $140 (Email cost) = $237/month

  • Profit: $2,000 – $237 = $1,763/month

Scaling up to 2,000 subscribers significantly increases the profit, now reaching $1,763 per month. At this point, even as email costs rise, they’re still a fraction of your overall revenue.

Scenario: 5,000 Subscribers

  • Revenue: 5,000 subscribers x $1 = $5,000/month

  • Emails Sent: 5,000 subscribers x 90 emails = 450,000 emails/month

  • Billable Emails: 450,000 – 5,000 = 445,000

  • Email Cost: (445,000 / 1,000) x $0.80 = $356

  • Total Cost: $97 (GHL) + $356 (Email cost) = $453/month

  • Profit: $5,000 – $453 = $4,547/month

With 5,000 subscribers, your profit margin is impressive—$4,547 per month. Even though your email costs are now $453 per month, they’re still well worth it compared to the revenue generated.

The Big Picture

The takeaway here is that, by using a solid strategy, you can grow your email list while keeping it profitable. Your costs will rise as your list grows, but your revenue will rise much faster. The key is to ensure that you’re providing enough value through your emails to keep subscribers engaged and monetizing consistently.

Whether you have 500 or 5,000 subscribers, as long as you’re effective in monetizing each subscriber at $1 per month, you’ll remain in a profitable position—even as your email costs increase. The strategy is simple: keep adding value, keep your list engaged, and your email marketing will continue to be an effective, income-generating asset.