WiFi Moolah — The Layman's AI: Update #2

The Layman's AI: Update #2 (70 subs, 50% open rate, and keeping it real)

Slow progress is still progress

Hey buddy,

Another quick update on Experiment #2.

Quick recap if you missed it: I launched a second newsletter called The Layman's AI — practical AI guidance for small business owners, no jargon, no hype. I'm documenting the whole build in real time here on WiFi Moolah. Here’s the previous update post, if you missed it:

Here's where things stand.

The numbers

Four issues sent. 70 subscribers. 50% open rate.

That's it. No viral moment. No sudden spike. Just slow, steady movement.

I'm not going to spin that into something it's not. 70 subscribers is a small list. But the open rate tells a different story — 50% is genuinely strong. Industry average for newsletters hovers around 30-35%. That means the people who signed up are actually reading it, which matters a lot more than a big list full of people who never open anything.

The sponsor is still in

Justin French from The Revenue Ronin is still on board. No new sponsors yet — I'm not aggressively pitching while the list is this small. But the fact that the first one stuck is a good signal.

What's working

Reddit. Same as WiFi Moolah — value-first posts, soft mention at the end. It's slow but it's real subscribers, not inflated numbers from a swap or a giveaway.

The "Skip This" section keeps getting the most feedback. People love being told what to ignore. If you're building a newsletter in a crowded niche, a "what NOT to do" angle is worth experimenting with.

What's not working (yet)

Cross-promotion from WiFi Moolah is moving slower than I expected. Most of you are here for the side hustle breakdowns — and that's exactly what you should be here for. The overlap with small business AI is real but narrower than I assumed.

Where I'm at on the goal

Original target: 1,000 subscribers in 90 days. I'll be honest — that's looking ambitious now. Not impossible, but it would require a growth inflection I haven't hit yet.

I'd rather give you the honest update than manufacture optimism.

If you're a small business owner — or know one

That's exactly who The Layman's AI is built for. One practical AI tip per week, four short sections, five minutes to read.

→ Subscribe free: thelaymansai.com

Back to the regular side hustle breakdowns next issue.

Talk soon, Kris

P.S. If you've been following this experiment — thank you. The whole point is to show what building something actually looks like, not just the highlight reel. The next update will be most probably in the first week of the April.

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