Anyone using Substack?

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   paolaenergyaposted 8 months ago

   Is anyone on here using Substack for their newsletters and have any subscribers? Just curious. Thanks!

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      Kenna McHughposted 8 months agoin reply to this

      I took a glance. It helps writers or platforms send newsletters, large or small, podcasts, videos, etc. The subscribers do not have to pay or can pay. The company started in 2017, so it's seven years old. The platform has prominent names, and I can see why they'd use Substack because they have an extensive subscription database.

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         paolaenergyaposted 8 months agoin reply to this

         Good point Kenna, I guess if you already have a huge following you are more likely to do well on Substack.

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            Kenna McHughposted 8 months agoin reply to this

            It seems so.

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      Lady Dazyposted 7 months agoin reply to this

      What is Substack, and how do you use it?

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   PaulGoodman67posted 8 months ago

   I've toyed with the idea of doing Substack. It's a big commitment, though, as it takes time to build up followers unless you have a bunch of them already that you can bring over from somewhere else.
   
   It's certainly in fashion at the moment. Quite a few Medium writers have started accounts there.
   
   I think my main concerns (aside from acquiring enough followers) are that it isn't an easy place to earn and I'm not keen on the idea of a site based on sending out emails. I really don't like receiving lots of emails myself(!)
   
   Like with most online things, I think there's a small minority who're successful and a large amount of strugglers.

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      paolaenergyaposted 8 months agoin reply to this

      Thanks for your insights, Paul. I used to send a newsletter through MailChimp and even after many years I didn't manage to build a good user base and when I posted links to my articles the click-through rate was very low.
      
      I guess getting paying subscribers on Substack would be a huge challenge.
      
      Like you, I also don't enjoy receiving too many emails!

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         PaulGoodman67posted 8 months agoin reply to this

         I also think that you'd likely need to have a desirable niche (e.g. self-help, fashion tips, healthy living, political commentary..) and stick to it to build a large and loyal readership.
         
         One of the appeals of HP is that you don't necessarily need to cover the same topic over and over, you can vary your subject matter, but I don't believe that approach would generally work with Substack.

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            paolaenergyaposted 8 months agoin reply to this

            True. Looking at YouTube for comparison, niche channels tend to do well but unfortunately trends change and people can move on even from their favourite creators.

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   GwennyOhposted 8 months ago

   I am testing it now. I have made two posts and already regret it. Between how complex it is to set up Stripe when you had an old, abandoned account, the need for receiving tons of ongoing spam mail to participate effectively in their community, and how hard it is to break into the community in order to gain subscribers, shakes head, it isn't for me. I think I will just shut it down.
   
   I get that there are people who do well with it. I wonder how. Because a couple of points that jump out are: we can't categorize posts. So what kind of reading experience does it provide? And, how am I going to get subscribers if I choose not to subcribe (to other authors' posts)? I have a strong stance on this. I will not invest in anything until I am sure I will make money or have a use for a service. At this point I do not see any reason to subscribe to other readers.

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      paolaenergyaposted 8 months agoin reply to this

      Thank you for sharing your experience, it sounds very frustrating! Gosh I didn't realise you can't categorise posts, that's a nightmare when you want to look up something. Like many other things before, probably the early adopters are the ones who are truly benefiting from this platform.

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         GwennyOhposted 8 months agoin reply to this

         I feel your hunch that the early ones are the only ones benefitting may be right. It doesn't feel right for me. It seems technologically underwhelming. More on the categorization, I read a post by a techie that left, who said that there is no simple way to add a categorization function either, and any way it can be done is challenging and poses further obstacles, even to a techie. That's what stalled me. I am no techie but have taken some IT training.

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   paolaenergyaposted 8 months ago

   I've decided to give Substack a go, mostly because I want to write a review about it here on Hubpages.
   
   One thing I've noticed browsing through the site is that many writers link to their own website or other external sites in their posts, so I think I will share a few of my hubs there and see if they gain extra traffic.
   
   Sending out my first newsletter today, wish me luck!

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      PaulGoodman67posted 8 months agoin reply to this

      Good luck!
      
      I believe that you're right that Substack is often used as part of a wider online strategy rather than alone. I remember the controversy over X/Twitter restricting Substack, I don't know how or if that was resolved.
      
      Let us know how you do!

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         paolaenergyaposted 8 months agoin reply to this

         Thanks Paul, I need all the luck in the world!
         
         Review to follow as soon as I've gathered enough information about how to navigate this platform, as it is new to me.
         
         There is a nice feature called Notes that resembles old Twitter, I am rather fond of it.

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            WriterJanisposted 5 months agoin reply to this

            Paola, Any updates on how the experience is going on Substack?

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   FatFreddysCatposted 5 months ago

   I started an account on Substack today. I'm thinkin' at the very least, I could use it as a place to archive all my old stuff that's been busted down to Discover, most of which has been getting absolutely zero views, so I've been unpublishing them bit by bit over the past couple of weeks.
   
   So if anybody there wants to "follow" me, look for keefer1970.

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      paolaenergyaposted 5 months agoin reply to this

      Subbed!

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         FatFreddysCatposted 5 months agoin reply to this

         Thank you!

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   paolaenergyaposted 5 months ago

   Hello everybody! I haven't got enough data so far for a whole hub reviewing Substack, I only launched in February. I have linked a couple of hubs in my newsletters and they got a massive 2 extra views each!
   
   So it's 10/10 as a marketing tool for me
   
   But seriously, I think it's still early days. If you want to have a peek you can find me at Life in Ireland.

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   paolaenergyaposted 4 months ago

   Hello everybody! Just a quick update about my Substack journey: currently at 66 subscribers after 4 months and 1 of them is my first paid subscriber, yay! I will wait until I have 6 months' worth of writing on Substack and then I'll publish my review here on HP.

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      PaulGoodman67posted 4 months agoin reply to this

      I'll be interested to read your review. If you don't mind me asking, how much income is there from a paid subscriber?

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         paolaenergyaposted 4 months agoin reply to this

         Hi Paul, you set your own monthly and annual fee - it really varies because famous writers and financial writers can command higher fees. I settled for a reasonable 7 euro a month for my newsletter, which is about what most people charge.

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            PaulGoodman67posted 4 months agoin reply to this

            Okay, so kind of in the same ballpark as the Medium monthly fee.
            
            One article/week is a commitment and could become a chore in the long term. I guess "Life in Ireland" gives you a wide range of potential topics, though.
            
            It does seem like a lot of work for a small amount of financial reward, but I guess it all depends on what your aims and motivation are.

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               paolaenergyaposted 4 months agoin reply to this

               The way I see it is that if a weekly newsletter becomes unsustainable/I lose interest etc I'll just shut the whole thing down and that's it (giving readers notice obvs). So far so good, I am about a month ahead with scheduled posts and a whole content plan until December.

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                  PaulGoodman67posted 4 months agoin reply to this

                  Yes, the difficulties associated with the "interest" thing are often underestimated. Many video and written blogs stop after 18 months or a two years, because the producer loses their passion and struggles to keep going on the same topic.
                  
                  I think you made a wise choice by selecting a broad topic to write about, the narrower that the subject is, the more it can seem like a straightjacket over time.
                  
                  I have the discipline to write lots of material. What I've found increasingly difficult is to make significant amount of money for my toiling. I really need something that will give me sort of income so I'll be interested to see if your number of paid subscribers increases.

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   FatFreddysCatposted 4 months ago

   I have done absolutely nothing with my Substack account since I joined a few weeks ago. I just haven't had the time to mess with it. (shrugs)

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      paolaenergyaposted 4 months agoin reply to this

      I thought I hadn't seen your posts on Substack yet! I have been publishing one post a week regularly and I try to engage in the comments section a few times a week, it does make a difference. However, I got my first and only paid subscriber from Instagram, as I share my published Substack posts there.

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