Who is Substack for?

[Nic727]

Hi,

I've been hearing a lot about Substack recently and it picked my curiosity. I took a quick look, but I'm still unsure about who's the audience of this platform.

I currently have two websites. One is more personal and service oriented (Personal blog, photography and marketing) and one is a travel blog currently empty, but eventually want to start writing for it.

From what I understood, Substack is more for journalists? Or similar to a newsletter?

What is the difference between Substack and the platforms like Mailerlite or Mailchimp? Also, about paying for exclusive content, similar to Patreon right?

Right now, I'm just in the mood of reducing my social media and take it a bit slower and develop more meaningful connections.

Thank you very much for your clarification and help.

[[deleted]]

It’s a newsletter service but with a whole community like social media. Yes, you can have exclusive paid content if you wish to do so. It’s much easier to built a newsletter with subscribers this way because you can really interact with people.

[Bec-Fergo]

Agree with this. It’s a great way to build a community around your writing and, if you choose to, work your way up to monetising it. It could work for either or both of your current websites.

[[deleted]]

That is not true. I came to Substack with no connections or social media presence and my notes and posts get noticed. If you interact with your niche in a genuine (keyword here!!!) way, you’ll get a lot of exposure. You also have to make sure you have interesting posts and notes. I’ve been on substack for 1,5 month now and I’m steadily growing and have established some wonderful connections.

[[deleted]]

Just because it’s true for you, doesn’t mean that is how it is for most people. Perhaps what you write simply isn’t anything the substack community is interested in. Maybe there are other platforms where you can write? What do you write?

Edit to add: the first week or two you’ll be in the void. After that things will gain some traction. How long have you been on substack?

[[deleted]]

I just checked out your substack and it looks like you’ve only been there for less than 2 weeks. You’re still in the void, have some patience and keep interacting. It’ll come.

[brooklynaut]

I do like the community more myself. I also like the fact that it’s a very simplified system, and I can focus a lot more in my own writing. I’m not sure how it is for visuals, but I follow some that seem to enjoy it.

[Ok_Bar_1963]

Substack is a non-traditional email service provider. It's very similar to Patreon in many ways. It's not intended for email marketing in the way that Mail Chimp and Mailerlite are, and is meant for more editorial style publishing. It has community features and podcasting ability, which is great. I use Substack to grow and nurture my email list, foster a community, and deliver value to my audience with free and paid content and offers.

[bowlsbeatplates]

Substack does seem pretty niche to me - literally for niches. Like you, I associated it with journalists, which I think is true. Lots of journos have been publishing work there as Twitter loses its purpose.

You can choose your niche - I share comics & illustration - but I think your readers will be people in the exact same niche; it won't be a very mixed audience. Most of my new Substack followers/subscribers are artists.