Promote your brand to 240,000 operators in tech and beyond

Connect with an active community of thoughtful, rigorous operators in tech and beyond. My readership consists of high performers looking to improve their leadership, management, and executional effectiveness. I rarely promote products or services, so when I do, my audience knows it’s something I personally endorse.

 

Read by 240,000 managers, leaders, and individual contributors at companies like:

 

LinkedIn sponsorship

Reach and impressions

  • 72,000+ followers

  • 49,600 average impressions per LinkedIn post

  • 0.9% average engagement rate

  • 8.6M impressions year-to-date (past 365 days until November 2023)

Audience demographics

  • Job titles: Product manager, co-founder, software engineer, CEO

  • Location: 60% from US, 10% from UK, 10% from Canada

  • Seniority: 40% senior (C-level and senior leaders), 10% director-level, 20% junior

 

Screenshot of Wes Kao’s LinkedIn demographics. Past 365 days, as of November 2023.

Screenshot of Wes Kao’s LinkedIn demographics. Past 365 days, as of November 2023.

 

Screenshot of Wes Kao’s SHIELD Analytics report. Report time frame: Nov 25, 2022 - Nov 26, 2023.

 
 

Newsletter sponsorship

Reach and impressions

  • 20,000+ subscribers (growing 4,000+ subscribers/month)

  • 49.97% average open rate

  • 21,500+ average views per newsletter

  • Note: My newsletter essays are evergreen, so even older posts continue to gather views and get shared.

Audience demographics

  • Job titles: Product manager, co-founder, CEO, software engineer, marketing director, UX designer

  • Location: 44% in US, 11% in India, 7% in UK, 6% in Canada

  • Seniority: Range of junior, mid-level, senior

Screenshot of Substack newsletter reader demographics

 
 
 
 

What you get as a sponsor

  • For LinkedIn

    • When you purchase a sponsorship, you get one LinkedIn post to feature your product/brand.

    • I typically publish around 10-11am ET on weekdays.

    • The investment to run the ad is $1,500.

    • Get in front of a community of thoughtful, discerning operators who trust my recommendation.

    • Creative guidelines for LinkedIn sponsored posts

      • For LinkedIn, we’ll discuss whether to do a post (a) purely about your product or (b) mention the product organically in a value-added, educational post that mentions your product. There are trade-offs. The former is 100% about your product but may have lower impressions, while the latter adds standalone value so it may get higher impressions.

      • If you have an idea of what you’d like the post to look like, please share it so I get tacit knowledge about what you’re looking for. I’ll then create my version so it fits my voice.

      • Ideally, we agree on the copy 2 weeks before the publish date. All ads are subject to editorial approval. We’ll confirm and make sure you’re happy with the copy.

  • For newsletter

    • When you purchase a newsletter sponsorship, you get one advertisement to feature your product/brand in my weekly newsletter.

    • Your ad will have preferred placement and be the only ad in the newsletter.

    • The newsletter is published at 8:00am ET every Wednesday morning.

    • The investment to run the ad is $2,000.

    • The ad will appear at the top of the newsletter, which maximizes the chances it will be seen by readers. Get in front of a community of thoughtful, discerning operators who trust my recommendation because I rarely recommend products.

    • Creative guidelines for newsletter sponsorships

      • Based on what I’ve seen perform well and what resonates with my readers, here are a few guidelines. These are meant to maximize the chances readers will engage.

      • Ads are text-only and up to 140 characters long.

      • Each sponsorship should have a call-to—action (CTA) of up to 30 characters. Example:

      • Ad copy: Acme’s new x feature helps professionals write better and faster. Whether you’re drafting a strategy memo or a Slack DM, their AI will improve your writing. Get your free 14-day premium trial.

      • CTA: Get your free Acme account

    • Ideally, we agree on the copy 2 weeks before the publish date. All ads are subject to editorial approval. We’ll confirm and make sure you’re happy with the copy.

  • Bundles:

    • Sponsor 1 newsletter and 1 LinkedIn post to promote your brand: $3,100

    • Sponsor 3 LinkedIn posts (over 2 months) to promote your brand: $3,600

    • Sponsor 3 newsletters and 3 LinkedIn posts (over 2 months): $9,300