Thank you so much, Angelina! It took a while to figure out, but niching down has made everything so much easier. Now, I know exactly what to write about, what message to share, and who to reach out to—and it’s already paying off.
Wow, 4000 newsletters one by one! Really impressed by your ambition. Glad to have you back on Substack, I think it really managed to own the newsletter space. I've actually decided to stop my paid subscription (I only keep it on as a "support" tool rather than a regular paid offfering) but I'll be interested in your usual insights. Good luck with all.
Thank you so much, Stéphanie! I’ll do my best to provide the most useful insights for Substackers.
If you’re open to sharing, I’d love to hear more about why you prefer to turn off your paid subscription. Understanding different perspectives and the reasoning behind them is so valuable for all of us.
1) the conversion rate is so low that unless you have tens of thousands of free readers, then the income you'll get is not worth all the extra effort required to create specific paid content.
2) as a Substack user I get really tired of the paywall and I'd rather support writers by buying their products (a course, a template, a guide, a webinar, a book...). I wish there was an option in Substack whereby, if you are not a paying subscriber, then you don't get notified/don't receive the paid for ones.
3) my Substack is a side hustle so I don't rely on it to bring me an income. And as above, to generate a meaningful income, I would have to dedicate way much time to it
4) I do have afilliate links in my newsletter (not many clicks) so I'm hoping to get more income from that if the newsletters are free (once I reach a bigger volume of subscribers).
5) I like the freedom for myself and the generosity for my readers that removing the paid options give me. It makes things much more simple. I trust that I will get value in return via other ways.
Ultimately - but I know that might not be the most valuable business model for Substack - what would really work for me and has been requested by many users is the ability to do ad-hoc purchase of a post. Or to have "credits" that you buy in advance and can put towards a variety of articles across different publications.
Those are all fair points. I’m planning to write an issue about why some creators decide to leave paid subscriptions in the future. Would it be okay to reach out to you for this later?
Happy New Year! 🎉 So happy you're back on the Stack and looking forward to more collabs and being part of your paid community. Appreciate this analysis as we always think the grass is greener on the other side, walled gardens, future web, subscription fatigue etc. But I've planted roots here and am happy to keep growing my garden. Thanks for a stellar Substack report too!
Hi Lex. I have no idea what your data set is. As I mentioned in the issue, the source is my "Understanding Substack Landscape Report" where I analyzed 75K Substack newsletters. You can see more details here: https://newslettercircle.com/substack-report/
Welcome back!
Thank you so much, great to be here again!
Welcome back, Ciler!
Indeed: Substack network effects are strong with an engaged community, something that you don't see in Beehiiv
Thank you so much Ezra. Your support and kind comments are the best proof of the community spirit here. :)
Welcome back and I like how you have narrowed your target audience and your niche.
Thank you so much, Angelina! It took a while to figure out, but niching down has made everything so much easier. Now, I know exactly what to write about, what message to share, and who to reach out to—and it’s already paying off.
Welcome back!
Welcome back to The Stacks! I’m looking forward to your insights.
Wow, 4000 newsletters one by one! Really impressed by your ambition. Glad to have you back on Substack, I think it really managed to own the newsletter space. I've actually decided to stop my paid subscription (I only keep it on as a "support" tool rather than a regular paid offfering) but I'll be interested in your usual insights. Good luck with all.
Thank you so much, Stéphanie! I’ll do my best to provide the most useful insights for Substackers.
If you’re open to sharing, I’d love to hear more about why you prefer to turn off your paid subscription. Understanding different perspectives and the reasoning behind them is so valuable for all of us.
There are a variety of reasons:
1) the conversion rate is so low that unless you have tens of thousands of free readers, then the income you'll get is not worth all the extra effort required to create specific paid content.
2) as a Substack user I get really tired of the paywall and I'd rather support writers by buying their products (a course, a template, a guide, a webinar, a book...). I wish there was an option in Substack whereby, if you are not a paying subscriber, then you don't get notified/don't receive the paid for ones.
3) my Substack is a side hustle so I don't rely on it to bring me an income. And as above, to generate a meaningful income, I would have to dedicate way much time to it
4) I do have afilliate links in my newsletter (not many clicks) so I'm hoping to get more income from that if the newsletters are free (once I reach a bigger volume of subscribers).
5) I like the freedom for myself and the generosity for my readers that removing the paid options give me. It makes things much more simple. I trust that I will get value in return via other ways.
Ultimately - but I know that might not be the most valuable business model for Substack - what would really work for me and has been requested by many users is the ability to do ad-hoc purchase of a post. Or to have "credits" that you buy in advance and can put towards a variety of articles across different publications.
Happy to talk in more detail if you need !
Those are all fair points. I’m planning to write an issue about why some creators decide to leave paid subscriptions in the future. Would it be okay to reach out to you for this later?
Of course
Happy New Year! 🎉 So happy you're back on the Stack and looking forward to more collabs and being part of your paid community. Appreciate this analysis as we always think the grass is greener on the other side, walled gardens, future web, subscription fatigue etc. But I've planted roots here and am happy to keep growing my garden. Thanks for a stellar Substack report too!
Happy New Year Nika! I'm super happy to collaborate with you and welcome to my paid community again. We'll continue growing our gardens together!
It is great to have you here! Hope to read much more at newsletter circle 🏵️
Hi Lex. I have no idea what your data set is. As I mentioned in the issue, the source is my "Understanding Substack Landscape Report" where I analyzed 75K Substack newsletters. You can see more details here: https://newslettercircle.com/substack-report/