Feat. Email marketing and funnel strategist, Allison Hardy
THE EMAIL GROWTH SHOW EPISODE 201
Let’s be real: If you’re exhausted by the algorithm and wondering if bundles are worth the hype… this case study is going to blow your mind.
Alison Hardy – email marketing strategist, mom of two, and all-around badass – used my Bundle Like a Boss system inside The Email Growth Club to grow her list from 4,000 to over 10,000 engaged subscribers.
No paid ads.
No dancing on Reels.
No burning out.
Just a repeatable system that works.
In this episode of The Email Growth Show, Alison breaks down exactly how she did it and why she now runs multiple bundles every year with ease (and epic ROI).
Listen to this episode here:
TL:DR:
What you’ll learn in this episode:
– Allison used a bundle strategy to drive thousands of targeted email signups.
– She repurposed existing freebies instead of creating new ones, keeping it simple and sustainable.
– Her success came from choosing the right bundles: aligned audience, high-quality curation, and visibility beyond just opt-ins.
– She nurtured new subscribers with intention, showing up, sharing stories, and building connection from day one.
– No ads. No dancing reels. Just relationship-first growth that feels aligned and gets results.
Allison Hardy’s strategy for email list growth without ads
Alison had been using Facebook ads and dabbling in summits, but she craved faster, more sustainable list growth.
“I was spending either a ton of money or a ton of time. Bundles gave me a way to grow without sacrificing both.”
After participating in a couple of my bundles and seeing opt-ins jump from 150… to 300… she had a lightbulb moment: “If I’m getting this much growth as a contributor, what would happen if I hosted my own?”
Spoiler alert: She hosted her first bundle in December 2020 and hit 1,200 subscribers in five days.
Implementing bundles for email list growth
In 2024, Alison ran eight bundles, some broad, some niche, and every one taught her something new.
- Which topics convert best
- How list quality matters more than quantity
- Why niching down leads to better leads and higher revenue
By the end of the year, she’d grown her list to over 10,000 subscribers and was generating consistent sales from her email funnel.
“I finally had a program I knew worked. I just needed more people to see it.”
Bundles helped her do just that and now she’s hosting 3 more in the next two months.
The real secret? The bundle marketing system.
Allison didn’t reinvent the wheel. She used the Bundle Like a Boss dashboard inside The Email Growth Club and followed it step by step.
“Once I figured out the process, it was easy to not only use your system but also make it my own.”
The structure gave her freedom to play with topics (like her new AI bundle!), test different contributor sizes, and create a rinse-and-repeat growth engine.
And the ROI? “For the amount of work I put in, it was like tenfold. More signups. More sales. Way less stress.”
More bundle tips from Allison:
Here’s Allison’s advice (and I couldn’t agree more):
💡 Start small – 10 contributors is enough for your first try.
💡 Get super niche – broad topics = more unsubscribes.
💡 Ask for referrals – contributors love recommending others (and it expands your reach!).
💡 Track what works – test and tweak as you go.
Your next step:
If this convo lit a fire in you, you’ll LOVE what’s waiting inside The Email Growth Club, including the exact dashboard Allison used to grow her list (and her confidence) like crazy.
Join the Email Growth Club here
or
Book a $44 Business Growth Audit to find your best next visibility move.
Don’t wait for perfect – your people need help now.
Guest Spotlight: Allison Hardy
Allison Hardy is an Email Marketing Strategist, and she helps coaches and experts sell on autopilot, through email marketing. Allison is the creator of the 6-Figure Secrets Podcast, a Huffington Post Contributor, has been featured in YFS Magazine, and was named one of Washington, D.C.’s most influential professionals under 40 by Washington Life Magazine.
She and her husband Teer, two kids, eleven year old Camden and six year old Nora, and Beagle, Rosie Penelope, live right outside of Washington, D.C., in Arlington, Virginia.
Website: https://www.allisonhardy.com
Podcast: https://www.allisonhardy.com/blog
Free Resource: $80,000 Email Template
My interview on Allison’s podcast: Super charge your email list growth through bundles featuring kylie kelly
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Full Transcript:
Allison Hardy [00:00:00]:
So that’s why I wanted to do bundles. That’s why I, like I enrolled in your membership was because I was like, I need to grow my email list because I want to make more money, I want to help more people. And I finally felt like I had a program that I know is good, I know it helps people. I know I could scale it. I just need more people to see it. That’s why I was interested in bundles to begin with, because I could get that growth more people buy. It’s a simple numbers game sometimes. So yes, as a direct result of the bundle, more enrollments have come 100%.
Kylie Kelly [00:00:29]:
Are you a female business owner frustrated with battling the algorithm and looking for growth strategies that don’t involve awkwardly pointing or dancing online or throwing cash at paid ads? Welcome to the Email Growth Show. I’m your host, Kylie Kelly, visibility and email marketing strategist. I grew my email list from 0 to almost 10,000 subscribers in less than.
Kylie Kelly [00:00:49]:
Two years and the same is possible for you too.
Kylie Kelly [00:00:52]:
Are you ready to build your email.
Kylie Kelly [00:00:54]:
List and start making more money in your online business? Let’s head into today’s episode.
Kylie Kelly [00:01:01]:
Before we get into today’s episode, I have to tell you, if you want to grow your email list fast like Allison Hardy did from 4,000 to over 10,000 subscribers, you need to check out my membership, the Email Growth Club. That’s where Alison learned how to host her first bundle using my bundle like a boss dashboard and our monthly support calls to turn a simple experiment into a visibility powerhouse. If you are tired of throwing spaghetti at Instagram and ready for a list growth strategy that actually works, come and join us inside the membership. The link is in the show notes. Now let’s get into the episode.
Kylie Kelly [00:01:38]:
Hey.
Allison Hardy [00:01:39]:
Hey.
Kylie Kelly [00:01:39]:
Welcome back to the Email Growth Show. I’m your host Kylie Kelly, visibility coach, list building strategist and your biz bestie. Here to remind you that yes, email is still the most powerful way to grow your online business. And today we have a special case study conversation with the brilliant Alison Hardy. Alison is an email marketing strategist who used my bundle system inside of the Email Growth Club to grow her list from 4,000 to over 10,000 subscribers without paid ads, without dancing on reels and without burning out. Together we are breaking down how she did it, what changed in her revenue and her confidence and why she now hosts multiple bundles every single year and makes it look damn easy. And if you have ever wondered if bundles are worth the hype, this episode is going to show you exactly why they are. Let’s welcome, Alison, to the podcast.
Kylie Kelly [00:02:31]:
Alison, welcome back to the podcast. I’m so excited to have you here today. Before we dig into all the things we’re going to talk about, I would love if you would just tell us a little bit about yourself for anyone that might not know you.
Allison Hardy [00:02:42]:
Yeah. So, hi, thanks for having me. I’m Allison Hardy. I’m an email marketing strategist. Um, I live in Arlington, Virginia with my two kids and my husband. I always say I help people sell their offers on autopilot through the magic of a. A strategically written email funnel and email marketing system.
Kylie Kelly [00:02:58]:
My goodness, I’m here for that. We were just talking before we hit record about boring businesses. Right? Like, come on, let’s. Let’s build the boring businesses that sell without us. I’m here for that 100%.
Allison Hardy [00:03:07]:
What a pleasure. What a privilege, right, to have a boring business that does stuff for you while you’re, you know, you’re living your actual life.
Kylie Kelly [00:03:13]:
Absolutely. So today we’re talking all about digital bundles and I wanted to have you on the podcast to talk about this because I have seen what they have done for your email list growth and I’m so excited to share that with everyone tuning in. Let’s rewind, rewind a little bit. Can you tell me a little bit about what your email list was like before you started hosting digital bundles?
Allison Hardy [00:03:32]:
Yeah. So I have leaned into Facebook ads pretty early on. Like, I remember when ads came out and I was like, oh, I can pay it again in front of other people. Like, yes. Because I’ve never gotten a ton of reach on social participating and hosting things like summits. Like, you get, like, some traction, but it was never like this massive email list growth. So, like, you know, things were growing, but I wish and wanted them and quite honestly needed them to grow faster. And so the only way I could figure out how to do that was by spending more money on Facebook ads or hosting bigger, like, summits.
Allison Hardy [00:04:07]:
Either way, it was either like, you are sacrificing a ton of money or you’re sacrificing a ton of time. And so, like, pick one, pick your poison and like, go for it. So it was kind of like this weird, like, back and forth between the two kind of modalities. And, you know, they worked to a point, but I really wanted things to grow faster.
Kylie Kelly [00:04:26]:
Yes, I love that. So when did bundles come across your write up for the first time?
Allison Hardy [00:04:30]:
You. You hosted a bundle. You invited me to be in it, and I think I was in, like, two of your bundles. Before I was like, kylie, tell me about this bundle magic, because I think one of them I got like 150 opt ins. And I was like, oh, that’s the most amount of opt ins I’ve ever gotten from like participating in something. And I was like, okay. And then I think you invited me in another one. And I think I got like 300.
Allison Hardy [00:04:50]:
And I was like, all right, sold. Like, I love this idea of particip in bundles, but I also had this, like, thought that was like, what if I was the one that hosted them? If, like my contributors are getting a 300, like, what does that look like for me? And I had realized my, like, biggest lever that I could pull in my business was like getting more people into my funnel. So, like, what does that look like? So that’s when bundles became like, super attractive to me.
Kylie Kelly [00:05:17]:
Oh, I love that I had to.
Kylie Kelly [00:05:18]:
Ask that question because I wasn’t 100% sure it was my bundle to start with. So I’m glad we could say that.
Allison Hardy [00:05:23]:
I think, and I think I had been in like a couple of bundles to that point. Like, I’d been in, you know, I had seen results, but I think I really started paying attention when you started hosting them because I was like, this is, number one, I know you and I like you and I trust you. And number two, I was getting more opt ins from it. So, like, your bundles, I was like, something, something magical is going on here.
Kylie Kelly [00:05:42]:
And I love that you point that out too, because I think that there is, in the online space right now, there’s a lot of bundles. Right. But there’s a difference between a really niched intentional bundle, which I think we both do really well now when compared to like a more generic one that just attracts anyone. So did you find the leads coming from my bundle when you’re a contributor were really aligned?
Allison Hardy [00:06:00]:
Yes. I could see a direct correlation between membership enrollments and participating in your bundle. Yeah. And even if people didn’t enroll on that, like, first, you know, pitch of the membership, they would come to the other things that I hosted and then eventually, like, they would either be really engaged or open all the emails or click on all the emails like they were doing stuff and then they would come to the events and then, you know, a normal conversion rate from there. But like, the quality was higher and people wanted, like, I felt like people wanted to hear what I had to say.
Kylie Kelly [00:06:29]:
Yeah, amazing. So, okay, let’s talk about the very first time you hosted your first bundle. What was that like? Did you love it? Talk me through how that felt and what that was, what that was like.
Allison Hardy [00:06:38]:
Yeah. So I hosted things like summits up to that point. And I mean, you both know and your listeners know, like they are a ton of work and they’re valid. They have a place and a time and like, that’s great. But when I first hosted my first bundle, I wanted to be like, I was doing it all myself. So I was like, this needs to be like, streamlined. It needs to be simple and it needs to actually produce results for me. And so I hosted my first one and I had your.
Allison Hardy [00:07:03]:
I think it was your dashboard that I used. And I just followed that thing step by step. Like I never, whenever I enroll in a course or membership or anything, like there’s certain things I want out of it. And I wanted this gosh darn dashboard. Cause I was like, this is going to tell me how to actually do this. And you organize it so beautifully. And it was so easy to do. But I just worked through step by step by step and did exactly what you told me to do.
Allison Hardy [00:07:25]:
I went to the membership and asked you questions every now and then. But like, really it was all laid out for me right there. It was super easy to follow. I had to get like the hang of it. You know, there’s always like that learning curve. But once I got that learning curve done and I like figured out the process, it was easy to not only use your process, but also like, adjust it to be more of like me. Cause we’ll have different styles so like, I could apply like my perspective and how I wanted to run things to it. And it just made it so much easier.
Kylie Kelly [00:07:52]:
And what was the results like? Do you remember what the number of signups were from that very first bundle that you did?
Allison Hardy [00:07:56]:
Yeah. So it was December 2020, so a little bit ago. And I think it was 1200 opt ins because I remember we passed the thousand mark like the last day and I was like, holy guacamole. Like we did it. Like we got thousand people in this gosh darn thing. I think we finally ended it at 1200, like when the bundle expired. And like, I had never seen that kind of growth ever in that. Especially in, in, you know, literally five days.
Allison Hardy [00:08:24]:
So I was, was very happy with those results.
Kylie Kelly [00:08:27]:
And did that make you like, okay, I need to do this more often. Was this like that you were in?
Allison Hardy [00:08:32]:
Oh yeah. For the amount of work that I put in, if we equate that to like money, I like, it was like tenfold. Like, yes, we’re going to do More of this. So in 2024 I hosted, I think it was eight bundles. And yeah, that sounds like a lot. But because I had your system and I was able to plug it in and then I was able to like make it my own, it made it a lot easier to execute. And I did some like broader ones, I did some more niched ones and they all got different results, which is fine. So it was cool to like be able to like kind of play with like the different focuses and the different contributors and the amount of contributors and to really see like what works best for conversions.
Kylie Kelly [00:09:10]:
So tell me about your email list now. So what are you, where were you and what are you at now? Sharing.
Allison Hardy [00:09:15]:
Yeah, the end of 2023 I was at 4000, which I was very happy with. I was like, okay, that’s good. The end of 2025, I ended with, I believe it was 10,100.
Kylie Kelly [00:09:28]:
That’s fast growth, right? And imagine, like you said at the very start, imagine if you had to use Facebook ads to grow like that amount, what that would have cost, right?
Allison Hardy [00:09:36]:
Yeah. And I still run Facebook ads, you know, they have like a very specific part of my business. But if I really want to grow things quickly and get in front of a lot of people, the answer is a bundle. And again, like now that I have a system, it’s a lot easier to run one. Like I’m running three in the next two months because I’m like, I’ve got this, like, I have the network, I have the system, I had the process. And I know that because of these bundles it’s gonna produce a much higher ROI and a faster roi.
Kylie Kelly [00:10:00]:
So if you were going to start over again today, if you’re running your first bundle, anyone tuning in that wants to run one, is there anything that you do differently?
Allison Hardy [00:10:07]:
I would get more niched. So I ran a couple broader ones in 2024 and they were fine. They got massive, massive amounts of leads. Like one, I think I had like 2500 people in it, which is great. But I would argue those not every single person who registered for that bundle was my ideal client. And that’s fine, you’ll have that, right? So I did see a lot of unsubscribes. I did see a lot of you’re probably not for me type of people, which is fine. So like in 2025 this year I’m running these really like focused, niched bundles and I am anticipating them not getting as much of a reach and as much opt ins because they are more niche.
Allison Hardy [00:10:44]:
But I’m anticipating the quality being a lot higher. So while numbers are awesome and great and wonderful I think sometimes it’s also a matter of like the quality of lead. So if you’re going to run your very first bundle or you’re trying to bundle again like just get really, really niched and clear as to who it’s for and then make sure those contrib in your bundle have that same focus and ideal client.
Kylie Kelly [00:11:06]:
Yes, I love that advice I think as well like knowing from my own experience. You remember Kylie’s birthday bash that I did last year right where it was like open slather it was like B2B and B2C and just all my friends and how fun and yeah I got a lot of signups but my goodness they were the most random signups I’ve ever had in my life as opposed to when I do my email marketing bundles that are like for my ideal client. Yeah the list growth is as much but they’re all the people that want to know about email marketing so it’s like a no brainer that that’s the right move. So I love that you share that.
Allison Hardy [00:11:35]:
Yeah, I’m in the middle of the bundle right now, it closes tomorrow and it’s called Emails that make bank. So like very, very. We are teaching you how to read emails that sell like very specific and I did also did like a birthday one and I did one at the end of 2024 that was like 6 figs in 25 and same it was got lots of lots of opt ins but lots of unsubscribes and lots of like non ideal clients. So yeah I think the niching down and being very specific with who it’s for and then of course like having those contributors that like align with that mission I think is. I think it’s very very important.
Kylie Kelly [00:12:07]:
Do you have an ideal number of contributors? Like how many do you normally want in each of your bundles now?
Allison Hardy [00:12:13]:
Yeah, I love 40. It’s kind of like my sweet spot. I find it easy to like invite that many people to get the asses to set up the thank you page and everything with all the stuff. I’m doing one next month and it’s going to be smaller, it’s going to be about 30 because it’s just more niche down and it’s a newer like topic it’s on AI so I’m interested to see how that one performs because it’s so new I think people are really curious about it. So I’m interested to see even though It’s a smaller contributor number. It’s around 30 if it produces the same amount of subscribers to it. Because again, topic is so, like, new and people are super curious about it.
Kylie Kelly [00:12:51]:
Yeah. I love the fact that what I’m getting from you as well as you, as you’re talking all this through, it’s like once you have the system, it gives you the freedom to play. Right. You get to play with different niches and topics and like, contributors and. And you’re just following that same system every time.
Allison Hardy [00:13:04]:
Yeah. And something I’ve been doing that I never thought of doing, but, like, somebody suggested to me and I was like, oh, my God, it’s such a good idea, is when someone applies for a bundle, I ask them if there are other people that they would recommend would be like a great fit for this bundle and it helps me. People, like, are so happy to help with that. Right. They’re so happy to help their friends out and to recommend people. People. But it’s barely been helping me. Like, I can take those people and expand upon them, invite those people.
Allison Hardy [00:13:28]:
They get invited and they invite someone, and it’s just a whole, like, beautiful, like, web of invitations and it’s them doing the work for me, which I feel weird saying that, but it’s like, it’s helping me to get. Just get in front of new audiences. Yeah.
Kylie Kelly [00:13:41]:
And bust out of that bubble. Cause I think it’s really easy when we are in, like a bubble of who we know in our own network. It is hard to bust out of that without the hard work of actually going out and pitching people. So I love that.
Allison Hardy [00:13:50]:
Yes. And so, like, for the AI bundle, it’s been super helpful because I am not an AI expert. I don’t network with a ton of AI people. I love AI. I use it all the time. But, like, I don’t know a ton of AI experts. So, like, having the experts I do know recommend other experts has been wonderful in getting in front of new audiences.
Kylie Kelly [00:14:07]:
Yes. Imagine just how many new people will be, you know, more aware of your brand and your business and. Yeah. Super aligned, which is really exciting. Have you noticed as well as you’ve grown, your email list, you’re making more money? Like, you know how there’s a direct correlation between revenue and email. The size. Have you seen that as well in this growth?
Allison Hardy [00:14:23]:
Yeah. So that’s why I wanted to do bundles. That’s why I, like, I enrolled in your membership was because I was like, I need to grow my email list because I want to make more money. I Want to help more people. And I finally felt like I had a program that I know is good. I know it helps people. I know I can scale it. I just need more people to see it.
Allison Hardy [00:14:39]:
So that’s why I was interested in bundles to begin with, because I could get that growth. More people buy. It’s a simple number scheme sometimes. So, yes, as a direct result of the bundle, more enrollments have come, 100%.
Kylie Kelly [00:14:51]:
And I love that I played a small part. It makes me feel really happy knowing that I played that small part helping that happen.
Allison Hardy [00:14:56]:
You did, yes. Of course you did. Yeah. I mean, I learned the entire process through. So, yeah, you had a massive part.
Kylie Kelly [00:15:02]:
Oh, I love that. Well, thank you so much for coming on and sharing so transparently with everyone. I hope that anyone tuning in. Here’s what you’re saying about the magic of bundles, obviously comes and joins the membership, but, you know, just gives it a crack. Because that’s the thing. I think sometimes we hold ourselves back because it is something new or because we don’t feel confident, I guess, in. In putting ourselves out there. But look at what can happen.
Allison Hardy [00:15:23]:
Yeah. And it doesn’t have to be this massive thing. It could be 10 people. I’m sure you have 10 friends you could reach out to be like, hey, I wanted to try out this crazy thing. Like, let’s see what happens. And then it’s all an experiment. So, like, try it out, see what happens. And then if you’re like, hey, this, this might have some legs to it.
Allison Hardy [00:15:38]:
Enroll in the membership and get all of Kylie’s resources.
Kylie Kelly [00:15:42]:
I love that. All right, so anyone listening? Alison, it’s like, oh, I’m going to go check out this selling on autopilot. Where can we send people to connect with you or even join your next bundle?
Allison Hardy [00:15:50]:
Yeah, so you can always find me on Instagram, Allison Underscore, Hardy Underscore. Or you can download my free resource $80000 email template. It’s Allison Hardy.com forward/80000 template and it’s the email that brought in $80000 in sales last year. So you’ll get access to it. You get a plug and play template and you get like a brief little ditty about why the strategy works.
Kylie Kelly [00:16:14]:
Amazing. Well, I will put all the links in the show notes, but thank you again for sharing with us.
Allison Hardy [00:16:18]:
Thanks for having me.
Kylie Kelly [00:16:19]:
Thank you so much for tuning into this episode of the email Growth Show. I hope you found valuable insights into the next steps you can take to grow your email list and boost your business without relying on social media or paid ads. If you enjoy this episode, please take a moment to rate and review the.
Kylie Kelly [00:16:35]:
Show and share it with others.
Kylie Kelly [00:16:36]:
Your feedback helps me reach more female entrepreneurs just like you who are ready to say goodbye to social media and leverage email marketing to grow their business and make a bigger impact.
Kylie Kelly [00:16:46]:
Thank you so much for listening and.
Kylie Kelly [00:16:48]:
I’ll see you in the next episode.
