--- title: "How Half Baked Grew to 100K Subscribers in Just Over a Year with beehiiv" canonical: https://www.beehiiv.com/case-studies/half-baked description: "The Metrics, Tools, and Strategy Behind Half Baked’s Massive Growth" source: live-converter generated: 2026-05-09T16:00:13.874Z --- # How Half Baked Grew to 100K Subscribers in Just Over a Year with beehiiv # How Half Baked Grew to 100K Subscribers in Just Over a Year with beehiiv ## The Metrics, Tools, and Strategy Behind Half Baked’s Massive Growth ![How Half Baked Grew to 100K Subscribers in Just Over a Year with beehiiv](https://images.prismic.io/beehiiv/aXcHJAIvOtkhB7CH_Untitleddesign-2-.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%2Fhalf-baked&title=How%20Half%20Baked%20Grew%20to%20100K%20Subscribers%20in%20Just%20Over%20a%20Year%20with%20beehiiv&summary=The%20Metrics%2C%20Tools%2C%20and%20Strategy%20Behind%20Half%20Baked%E2%80%99s%20Massive%20Growth)[](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beehiiv.com%2Fcase-studies%2Fhalf-baked&text=How%20Half%20Baked%20Grew%20to%20100K%20Subscribers%20in%20Just%20Over%20a%20Year%20with%20beehiiv)[](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beehiiv.com%2Fcase-studies%2Fhalf-baked)[](https://www.threads.net/intent/post?text=How%20Half%20Baked%20Grew%20to%20100K%20Subscribers%20in%20Just%20Over%20a%20Year%20with%20beehiiv%20https%3A%2F%2Fwww.beehiiv.com%2Fcase-studies%2Fhalf-baked) ### Table of contents ## Situation: Half Baked began as a creator-led experiment from John O’Keeffe and Darragh Lucey- two founders with _no_ media background, no list, and zero momentum. Their first newsletter went out to six people (friends and family). Their goal: share actionable business ideas for indie builders. That niche hit a nerve. By focusing on _ideas worth building_, the duo started attracting a passionate audience of founders hungry for clarity, inspiration, and execution. Within 13 months, Half Baked grew from 6 inboxes to 100,000+ subscribers, becoming one of the fastest-growing creator-led business newsletters on beehiiv. ![Half Baked newsletter growth on beehiiv numbers.](https://images.prismic.io/beehiiv/aXmzlAIvOtkhCBBK_image9.avif?auto=format,compress) ## Challenge: Early momentum was encouraging, but Half Baked ran into classic growth roadblocks: 1. Organic reach plateaued at ~3,000 subscribers. Sending emails to friends-of-friends was no longer enough. 2. Both founders were still working full-time. They needed leverage, not more hours. 3. They lacked funding for paid acquisition. Growth required cash and they didn’t have it. 4. They needed a publishing system that didn’t slow them down. Shipping consistently was core to their strategy. The question became: How do you scale a newsletter like a startup without burning out? ## Solution: ### 1\. Use YouTube to validate early content Lucey’s existing YouTube channel drove the first 1,000 subscribers, combined with: - Headline testing - Consistent feedback loops - Iterations to sharpen clarity and storytelling This created the foundation for a high-retention audience. ### 2\. Unlock paid growth with Meta ads + Omnis At 3,000 subscribers, growth stalled. So they made a strategic shift: - Meta ads became the #1 growth lever - Omnis helped optimize paid acquisition - 99% of their top 1,000 paid subscribers came from Meta But ads required funding, which came in the form of a prepaid, yearlong sponsorship. That upfront capital allowed them to scale acquisition aggressively. This loop fueled the jump from 10,000 → 100,000 subscribers. ### 3\. Build deep reader engagement through consistency Half Baked published 83 consecutive weekly issues without missing a beat. That consistency compounded: - Reader trust - Reply volume - Churn reduction - Word-of-mouth They also introduced a new site using beehiiv’s website builder, which: - Boosted open rates (35% → 50%) - Increased CTR by 4x - Improved long-term retention Their site redesign became a _growth lever_, not a cosmetic upgrade. ### 4\. Create loyalty through “Daily Office Hours” Every weekday, O’Keeffe hosts 15-minute live calls with readers. These sessions: - Give personalized feedback - Help readers validate startup ideas - Build emotional connection - Turn readers into evangelists This community-centric approach drives retention and LTV more than any tactic. ### 5\. Build the business entirely on beehiiv Half Baked runs every layer of its operation through beehiiv: Favorite Features: - The Editor: “Fast, clean, never breaks.” - 3D Analytics: Track LTV, conversions, and reader behavior - Website Builder: “A complete game changer… now a growth lever.” They even hired a designer from the beehiiv Slack community to redesign their entire site in weeks and now run weekly A/B tests _inside_ beehiiv. “Everything about our business lives inside beehiiv.” ![Half Baked co-founder quote on why he loves beehiiv](https://images.prismic.io/beehiiv/aXmzwQIvOtkhCBBQ_image3.avif?auto=format,compress) ## Results: Half Baked scaled to 100,000 subscribers in 13 months by treating their newsletter like a startup: - Paid acquisition → Meta ads + Omnis - Retention → consistency + live reader calls - Tooling → beehiiv’s full publishing stack - Feedback → content built with readers, not for them - Focus → actionable ideas, not news recaps Key outcomes: - Open rate: 35% → 50% - CTR: 4× increase - 50% long-term retention - Churn below industry benchmarks - Weekly replies increasing month over month From six inboxes to a six-figure audience, Half Baked proved that newsletters can become high-performance businesses when creators: - Pick a high-leverage niche - Commit long-term - Stay consistent - Double down on what works - Use the right tools According to O’Keeffe and Lucey: This is still just the beginning. ## 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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