--- title: "How Jon Finkel Grew Books & Biceps by Blending Fitness + Reading on beehiiv" canonical: https://www.beehiiv.com/case-studies/books-and-biceps description: "From a clunky Mailchimp setup to 6,000+ “sophisticated meatheads” with Boosts, referrals, and better design" source: live-converter generated: 2026-05-15T04:11:04.802Z --- # How Jon Finkel Grew Books & Biceps by Blending Fitness + Reading on beehiiv # How Jon Finkel Grew Books & Biceps by Blending Fitness + Reading on beehiiv ## From a clunky Mailchimp setup to 27,000+ “sophisticated meatheads” with Boosts, referrals, and better design ![How Jon Finkel Grew Books & Biceps by Blending Fitness + Reading on beehiiv](https://images.prismic.io/beehiiv/aXcOJAIvOtkhB7Dv_Untitleddesign-19-.png?auto=format,compress) Written by Kanishka Kumawat Published on 07 Apr 2025 [](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beehiiv.com%2Fcase-studies%2Fbooks-and-biceps&title=How%20Jon%20Finkel%20Grew%20Books%20%26%20Biceps%20by%20Blending%20Fitness%20%2B%20Reading%20on%20beehiiv&summary=From%20a%20clunky%20Mailchimp%20setup%20to%2027%2C000%2B%20%E2%80%9Csophisticated%20meatheads%E2%80%9D%20with%20Boosts%2C%20referrals%2C%20and%20better%20design)[](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beehiiv.com%2Fcase-studies%2Fbooks-and-biceps&text=How%20Jon%20Finkel%20Grew%20Books%20%26%20Biceps%20by%20Blending%20Fitness%20%2B%20Reading%20on%20beehiiv)[](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beehiiv.com%2Fcase-studies%2Fbooks-and-biceps)[](https://www.threads.net/intent/post?text=How%20Jon%20Finkel%20Grew%20Books%20%26%20Biceps%20by%20Blending%20Fitness%20%2B%20Reading%20on%20beehiiv%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beehiiv.com%2Fcase-studies%2Fbooks-and-biceps) ### Table of contents ### Snapshot - **Creator:** Jon Finkel (author + longtime fitness/media writer) - **Newsletter:** Books & Biceps (books + workouts + motivation + author Q&As) - **Audience:** **27,000+ subscribers** - **Growth:** ~**1.5K → 6K+** in **~6 months** after switching platforms ### **Challenge:** Jon’s newsletter started on Mailchimp, but it was overbuilt for a solo creator: slow, clunky, and not designed for newsletter-first growth. He needed: - A faster writing + publishing workflow - Better design control (landing page + email templates) - Built-in growth tools (referrals, Boosts) - A path to turn the newsletter into a real brand (not just book promo) ### **Solution:** Jon moved Books & Biceps to **beehiiv** after seeing trusted creators recommend it and noticing it repeatedly in his Twitter/X feed. What changed: - **Simpler publishing** (write and build directly in-platform) - **Design Lab + templates** to improve presentation without extra tools - **Boosts + referrals** to accelerate acquisition - **Better distribution workflow** (easy link-sharing across social) ### Execution Key levers Jon used: - **Consistent weekly issues** with a repeatable format (books + biceps) - **Timely, personal content** (training goals + progress updates) - **Social promotion** (links in threads/posts, always pointing to the signup) - **Backlist activation** (reintroducing past books to new subscribers at the right moments) - **Community flywheel** (readers joining challenges, replying, sharing) ### **Results:** - **4x subscriber growth** in ~6 months (**~1.5K → 6K+**) - **Higher-quality subscribers** from Boosts/referrals + better targeting - Newsletter evolved from “author update email” into a **standalone brand + community** - Increased inbound opportunities (including **ghostwriting leads**) driven by credibility + visibility ### Why It Worked Books & Biceps wins because it’s: - **Niche + differentiated** (fitness _and_ reading for the same person) - **Community-driven** (readers participate, not just consume) - **Built on owned audience** (not dependent on algorithms) - **Supported by platform-native growth tools** (Boosts, referrals, design, forms) ### Key Takeaway If your newsletter is stuck in “tooling hell,” switching to a newsletter-first platform can unlock consistency + growth fast—especially when the content is already differentiated. ## Related Case Studies ![How AdQuick Scaled Industry Sponsorships with beehiiv's Ad Network](https://images.prismic.io/beehiiv/Z_VpXHdAxsiBwdKG_adquick.png?auto=format,compress) ### How AdQuick Scaled Industry Sponsorships with beehiiv's Ad Network Solving scale and visibility challenges in B2B marketing [ Read Case Study → ](/case-studies/adquick) ![How Particle for Men Generated a 1.73 ROAS Through Newsletter Ads](https://images.prismic.io/beehiiv/abfLOrbci2UF6CEY_Untitleddesign-34-.png?auto=format,compress) ### How Particle for Men Generated a 1.73 ROAS Through Newsletter Ads Scaling newsletter advertising to 8.3M readers while achieving 809 conversions with beehiiv [ Read Case Study → ](/case-studies/particle-for-men) ![The Founder Who Turned His 400k+ Newsletter Into a Negative CAC Machine](https://images.prismic.io/beehiiv/afL59cBOoF08xfCT_Untitleddesign-36-.png?auto=format,compress) ### The Founder Who Turned His 400k+ Newsletter Into a Negative CAC Machine How Open Source CEO pioneered model where newsletter ad revenue offsets customer acquisition costs with beehiiv. 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