Propel Earth — Private Network
Propel is a private network of 21,000 founders, operators, and investors — a vetted community, curated warm intros, a 350-strong founder WhatsApp, and the weekly NYC events where deals actually happen. You do not join for contacts. You join for the room you would spend years building alone.
Two ways in: Private Network at $200/mo, or the $2,000/mo concierge tier for founders who want hands-on access and priority.
Founding-member pricing · 350+ founders in the group chat, weekly in NYC · talk to Stephen before you commit.
21,000 opted-in subscribers — and these are the active core you'd stand beside
Most "sponsor our newsletter" pitches sell you a big number and hope you don't check the open rate. Propel leads with the number that matters.
Reach is vanity. Attention from people building things that matter is the whole game — and it's the one thing you can't buy from an ad network.
The choice you're actually making
Your budget could go to a LinkedIn ad or a generic newsletter slot. Here's what the same dollars buy in each.
What your brand gets to stand for
Propel exists to make the world's most critical challenges radically accessible — and its community is 21,000 people building toward exactly that. Sponsoring here isn't an impression. It's your brand standing, publicly, with the founders solving climate, health, and education. That association is the one thing a LinkedIn ad or a rented list can never sell you.
A note from Stephen
"What makes a brand do well here isn't the size of the list. It's that these founders trust me to only put things in front of them that are worth their time. Sponsor Propel and you inherit that trust. I read every reply, and I'll treat your brand like I'd treat my own."
— Stephen Michael, Founder, Propel Earth
01 — Who's in the room
Propel's 21,000 are New York's tech and social-impact community — decision-makers and builders, not a broad consumer list.
02 — What you get
A Propel sponsorship isn't one banner. Your brand shows up across every place the network actually gathers.
Your logo, a line, and a link inside Stephen's weekly note — the issue ~8,700 people actually open.
Your listing sits at the top of the network — above 80 founders and 67 providers, seen by everyone browsing.
Co-host or headline a Propel event — your brand in front of the community in person, where relationships form.
A 350-strong group of active founders. A well-placed mention lands in the daily conversation, not a marketing tab.
Where founders buy the tools they need. A featured listing puts your offer in the path of active buyers.
Something specific in mind? We'll build the placement around your goal — a cohort sponsorship, a demo day, a co-branded resource.
03 — Why it lands
Every subscriber opted in for Propel's events, cohort, and Stephen's point of view. Your placement is welcome mail — not an interruption they've learned to ignore.
It goes out under Stephen Michael, Propel's founder. A partner featured here borrows a peer's credibility, not a rented banner slot.
You get the opens and clicks after every send. One brand per category — so you're the only voice of your kind in the room.
You're early — so we make it safe. Start with a single issue before you commit to a month. If a placement opens below 30% — still well above the ~20% email norm — your next one is on us. Founding sponsors lock founding rates, and we share results openly as the program grows.
04 — Membership
Founding-member pricing. The Private Network gets you the room you can't build alone — the operators, investors, and event organizers, plus the intros and events where things actually happen.
Inclusions are a founding-rate starting point — Stephen is finalizing exactly what each tier carries.
The core membership — into the vetted founder and operator network.
Founding rateConcierge tier for founders who want hands-on access and priority.
By applicationWhy pay $200 when you already have a network? Because you get everyone else's too — cross-network intros, the investor and operator room, and the NYC events where deals actually close. You are not buying contacts; you are buying the room you would spend years building. Ask Stephen for a walk-through.
Good to know
If you sell to founders, operators, or the investors who back them — especially in impact and NYC — yes. Ask for the audience breakdown and a sample issue and see for yourself before you commit.
Yes. Start on the $200/mo Private Network, meet the room, then move up to the $2,000/mo concierge tier when you want hands-on access. Month to month.
If an issue opens below 30% — well above the ~20% email norm — your next placement is on us. You see the real opens and clicks after every send.
Founders who want concierge intros, hands-on deal support, and priority access to investors and partners. It's by application so we can actually deliver it.
Most placements run to the full community. For an in-person NYC push we can build a New York segment first — just ask.
Roster and newsletter slots book into the next available issue. Event and Partner placements we plan together around the calendar.
Let's build something
Tell Stephen who you're trying to reach and what a win looks like. You'll get a sample issue, the full audience breakdown, and the placement that fits — no forms after this one, no runaround.