Propel Earth — Sponsorship
You've sponsored a newsletter before and never found out if a single human opened it. Propel is different: of 21,000 opted-in founders, operators, and investors, 41.5% — about 8,700 — open every single issue, roughly double the ~20% email average. You get a standing endorsement from a founder they trust, with your category held for you alone.
The only sponsorship that's a standing endorsement — one founder, one brand per category, vouching for you to a community he built. Not a slot in front of a rented list.
One brand per category · 350+ founders in the group chat, weekly in NYC · see a sample issue first.
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 — Sponsorship
Prices are founding-sponsor starting points — tell us your goal and we'll shape the fit. One brand per category on the top tier.
For context: a PR retainer runs $3,000–$10,000/mo, and LinkedIn ads bill by CPM — both for colder, anonymous reach you can't stand behind.
A deliberate on-ramp — get into the network with a placement that's live today.
Live nowOne sharp appearance — straight to ~8,700 open inboxes and ~670 clicks. Roughly $2,000/mo at weekly cadence.
One sponsor per issueOwn your category and show up everywhere the community looks, all month.
One brand per categoryBigger than a category? Title sponsorships, annual programs, and demo-day partnerships start at $10k — ask Stephen about a custom activation built around your goal.
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. Test one $500 issue or the $100 roster spot, see the real numbers, then hold your category as a Network Partner. No monthly lock-in to begin.
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.
On Network Partner, we hold your category for as long as you're in — one brand of your kind in the room, no direct competitor beside you.
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.