- African Hustle
- Posts
- Email Is Not Dead
Email Is Not Dead
Own Your Audience With Email.

From The Editor’s Desk
Today’s newsletter is all about gems - literally!
We take a trip to Botswana, the African hotspot for precious gems. But before that, we shine a spotlight on another absolute gem - Tsitsi Masiyiwa.
Plus, our book of the month, 'Psychology of Money,' is a real gem, too!
Not to forget our Startup of the Week - it's a gem, and even our proverb choice is a hidden gem.
As for our main issue; we talk about something often overlooked by African entrepreneurs but incredibly powerful: Email Marketing.
We hope you will be an absolute gem and read right through to the end.
What's more, you can recommend our newsletter to your friends and have them subscribe for free.
In This Issue
Word Of The Day
Email Marketing
: is a direct marketing channel that lets businesses share new products, sales, and updates with customers on their contact lists. Because subscribers choose to sign up for emails, it’s more likely to convert than other channels.
Main Issue
EMAIL IS NOT DEAD
There are 4 billion daily email users.
Say WHAT again?

Gif by abcnetwork on Giphy
You heard that right, a whopping 4 frickin’ billion people visit their inboxes every day.
Whereas elsewhere people are getting increasingly disconnected, here is something to give you ‘something’ to think about:
77% of marketers have seen an increase in email engagement over the last 12 months
If that has not gotten you itching to write your first email, then check this out;
99% of email users check their inbox every day, with some checking 20 times a day. Of those people, 58% of consumers check their email first thing in the morning. 84.3% of consumers say they check their emails at least once a day.
By now I think you get where all this is going, right?
Right?
Email offers the highest and most measurable ROI (return on investment) of all types of marketing.
I think the point has been made.
Entrepreneurs need an email list. It’s as simple as that.

Social media is fantastic for engaging with your audience and building brand awareness.
But here's the catch: you don’t own your followers. Algorithms can change, platforms can shut down, and your reach can become unpredictable.
To make matters even worse, you can be banned or get hacked. Email, on the other hand, is a direct line to your audience that you fully control.
Why Email Still Matters
We are trying to convince you to own your audience with email. Here is why we think email is still such a good idea.
You own your email list. No algorithm can decide whether your message gets seen. No petty influencer’s post is going to be ranked higher than yours!
Emails land straight in your subscribers' inboxes, offering a personal touch that social media can’t match.
Email typically boasts higher engagement rates compared to social media, giving you better opportunities to build relationships and drive action.
Whatever you are selling, whatever product you have, why don’t you send an email about it? Now that’s an idea worth a million dollars!

Gif by yvngswag on Giphy
Now you may be wondering, “How the heck do you go about building an email list?” We have got you! Here is a step-by-step guide.
A Step-by-Step Guide To Build Your Email List
Time is a precious commodity, so if you are to take up someone’s time, make sure you are offering real value. Offer something worth subscribing to, whether it’s an exclusive guide, a discount, or valuable insights. Your content should be compelling enough for people to want to receive it in their inbox.
Set Up Sign-Up Forms: Use tools like Beehiiv, Mailchimp, ConvertKit, or Sendinblue to create sign-up forms and embed them on your website. Make sure they’re easy to find and fill out. We use Beehiiv and we love it.
Promote Your List: Share the benefits of subscribing on your social media platforms and through other channels. Let your audience know what they’ll get and why it’s valuable.
Use FOMO(Fear Of Missing Out) & Hooks to grab attention. And what do you know? We have written about Marketing Psychology and How To Write Compelling Hooks. You definitely need to check those past articles out.
Engage and Nurture: Send regular, valuable content that your subscribers will appreciate. Keep your emails personal and relevant to build a strong relationship.
Analyze and Optimize: Use analytics to track open rates, click-through rates, and other key metrics. Adjust your strategy based on what’s working and what’s not.
Social media and email aren’t in competition - they’re complementary. Use social media to attract and engage, but leverage email to build deeper, more personal connections with your audience.
Omni-Channel Approach
Email Marketing is one piece of a larger puzzle. Most successful entrepreneurs are present everywhere their audience is. Whether it’s social media, email or websites - everything should all work together to create a seamless brand experience. When all the pieces fit together, you create a powerful, unified presence that keeps your audience engaged wherever they are.
Join us on Beehiiv by pressing the button above
Knowledge Corner
Data Is The New Gold
Owning your data puts you in control. While social media platforms gather valuable insights, your email list is data you own and control. This means you’re not just playing in someone else’s sandbox; you’re building your own. The more you know about your audience, the better you can serve them and the stronger your business becomes.
Book of The Month
The Psychology of Money
Does your wallet seem to have a mind of its own? Well, it’s not all mysticism, goblins and curses at play!
Morgan Housel explores in his book The Psychology of Money how your psychological quirks and experiences influence how you handle your finances.
Housel’s book isn’t just another finance book; it helps you understand why you make certain money decisions.
It provides valuable insights into the psychology of long-term investments and the very real human factors influencing investment decisions and money management approaches.
The book reveals the connection between money, emotions, biases, and uncertain long-term strategies.

The Psychology Of Money by Morgan Housel
In the book, Housel emphasizes that your connection with money isn’t rooted in science or math but in emotions like fear and greed, pride and envy, and the social comparisons that shape your psychological relationship with money.
The book further explores how our backgrounds and experiences make all the difference to our risk tolerance.
If you ever suspected the devil and bewitchment to be the culprits stealing from your wallet, you need to read this book as a matter of urgency! You just might be the devil you are suspecting!
Tech
Do you ever use Google Meet for your meetings?
Google Rolling Out “Take Notes For Me” Feature
If not, well you need to try it. If yes, then your experience has just gotten a huge AI boost.
In Google Meet, you can use artificial intelligence to run efficient and productive meetings. With this feature, you can:
Automatically capture meeting notes and share them using Google Docs
Identify and create action items for meeting attendees
If you join late, catch up during the meeting with a “summary so far”
Receive a summary of the notes and action items after the call

StartUp Spotlight
What is your perception of cryptocurrency or stablecoins?
According to the United Nations digital magazine - Africa Renewal -, Africa could be the next frontier for cryptocurrency. NeoNomad seems to think so too!
NeoNomad
NeoNomad, a startup hailing from South Africa, has just rolled out Africa's first hybrid exchange platform. This awesome web app is on a mission to tackle the financial barriers and limited banking access that many people face across the continent.
The NeoNomad app introduces a South African stablecoin called ZARcoin (ZARC), which is pegged 1:1 to the South African rand. It allows for super smooth digital transactions within South Africa and soon, internationally too, blending cryptocurrency and real currency in a way that's extra reliable and fair.
ZARC is backed by reserves held by ZARC (PTY) LTD in South Africa, promising security, transparency, and simplicity through audits. It's all about providing liquidity and great rates, building a sturdy and resilient ecosystem. Plus, ZARC is fully compliant with AML, CFT, KYC, and privacy regulations, ensuring a secure and trustworthy environment.
This seems all cool, right?
Here is an even cooler read, the NeoNomad Whitepaper.
|
Local Heroes
Imagine being the wife of a billionaire and still making a name for yourself in your respective right!
Meet Tsitsi Masiyiwa
![]() | Tsitsi is an African philanthropist and social entrepreneur committed to investing in human capital development on the continent. She is a thought leader and advisor to universities, national leaders, and social entrepreneurs on issues of education, health, leadership development, gender, and youth empowerment. Over the years, she has received two honorary doctorates and several awards. |
Tsitsi Masiyiwa is in the ranks of Melinda Gates and MacKenzie Scott. She is convinced there is much more that philanthropy can do to change the world.
Be inspired by reading more about Tsitsi on here
African Proverb Of The Week
![]() | Proverb Not everyone who chased the zebra caught it, but he who caught it chased it. Meaning Trying does not guarantee success, but you can never achieve success if you don’t try. |
Inside Africa
![]() | 21-year-old Letsile Tebogo of Botswana became the first African to win the men's 200m, in an African record time of 19.46sec. |
Spotlight Botswana
There are 10 times more elephants in Botswana, than there are people in the Cook Islands. Botswana boasts the biggest population of elephants in the world which is a staggering 130,000.
Botswana, originally named Bechuanaland, has one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Africa – the Okavango Delta.
The currency is called pula, which means ‘rain’ or ‘blessing’ in English. The Pula is one of the most stable currencies on the continent and is the 5th strongest currency in Africa.
Nearly 40% of Botswana has been made into national parks and wildlife reserves, providing large areas for animals to roam
The country is one of the world’s biggest diamond producers.
All of the citizens of Botswana are collectively referred to as Batswana (plural form) or Motswana (singular form).
The official language is English, while Setswana is considered to be a national language.
Approximately 70 per cent of its territory is the Kalahari Desert.
The population is slightly over 2.6 million people
Culture
People are not individuals, living in a state of independence, but part of a community, living in relationships and interdependence
AND THAT’S A WRAP
Did you enjoy this newsletter? We kindly ask you to forward it to a friend and have them signup here.
More subscribers mean more engagement. More engagement moves us up the charts. And moving up the charts means we reach even more entrepreneurs.
With your support, we can continue creating valuable content, fostering a vibrant community, and driving entrepreneurial success across Africa.
Until next time
Happy Hustling.
Reply