For Programmatic Email Ads Scale is King

Programmatic email advertising is one of the most promising revenue streams available to newsletter publishers—especially those who don't have the time or resources to sell ads directly. Its only real caveat is scale.

Whether running a massive editorial operation like "The New York Times" or writing a niche newsletter like "Science Fiction Classics," there are only a few reliable ways to generate income from your newsletter: sell a product, land sponsorships, or accept advertising.

Of these, programmatic advertising offers the best effort-to-return ratio. It's low maintenance, requires no sales outreach, and can generate at least some revenue regardless of your list size.

What Is Programmatic Email Advertising?

Programmatic advertising uses software to buy and place ads automatically. In the context of email newsletters, ad units are filled and served dynamically—often at send time or even open time—based on available inventory and audience data.

As a newsletter publisher or creator, you integrate a small code snippet or "ad tag" into your newsletter template. The ad provider —think Paved— handles the rest, pulling in relevant offers and rendering them when the email is opened. You get paid based on impressions or clicks.

Why Targeting Matters

Programmatic ads in email work similarly to display ads on the web. The ads don't necessarily match the newsletter's content—they match the person receiving it.

If you send a newsletter to 500 people, there's a good chance that each subscriber will see a different ad tailored to his or her interests, demographics, or location. This targeting makes programmatic appealing to advertisers and allows publishers to earn revenue without chasing sponsors.

The Economics

The most common ways publishers are paid for these ads are:

• CPM (cost per thousand impressions)
• CPC (cost per click)

From your side, this is usually measured as RPM (revenue per thousand impressions) or RPC (revenue per click).

Here is a rough guide to typical payouts:

That means if your newsletter has 10,000 subscribers and earns a $2 eRPM per send, you'd generate about $20 per send—or around $80 per month if you publish weekly.

Is that a lot? Not really. But it's automatic, and it scales.

Scale Is King

Programmatic email advertising is technically available to even the smallest newsletters. But revenue is tightly tied to scale and frequency. One subscriber might be worth half a penny per open. To generate meaningful income, you need either:

• A large subscriber list
• A high send frequency
• Or both

The math is simple:

• 10,000 subscribers × $2 eRPM × 4 sends/month = $80/month
• 100,000 subscribers × $2 eRPM × 4 sends/month = $800/month

For many small publishers, programmatic ads won't replace a day job. But they can cover expenses—or become a base layer of revenue while you grow or pursue other monetization paths.

Tracking Subscriber Value Over Time

While one email open might only earn you a fraction of a cent, subscribers stick around. Over time, a single subscriber might see dozens or hundreds of your newsletters.

This is where subscriber lifetime value (LTV) comes in. If a subscriber stays on your list for 12 months and opens one email per week, they might generate $1–$2 in revenue through programmatic ads alone. Multiply that by thousands, and the numbers become more interesting.

Knowing your average subscriber value can also guide your paid acquisition strategy—how much you're willing to spend to gain a new subscriber through ads or partnerships.