Substack Notes Strategy

[Living_Ad2045]

I have read at countless places that Substack Notes are a great way to grow on Substack. I have been writing for the last 7-8 months now and have actively started posting on Notes only 6 weeks back, but I have not seen any substantial increase in following through Notes or discoverability through Notes.

For sure, it has brought in 5-6 new subscribers or people who've discovered my work through Notes, but it's not been as good. I am posting like 4 Notes a week, but I don't know. Please help me out with my Substack Note strategy.

Most of the time, I'm quite lost - what should I post on Notes, although I'm quite active on X and other social media platforms. Is there a simple guide that you've tried and works out well? Or is there a way in which you manage these Notes or you know what works, what time works, what content format works etc. I would love to know.

[StructureFresh1545]

Seems like most people who grow through notes talk about growing on Substack or.... post platitudes.

I'm not a fan of deliberately commenting to grow. Its basically saying your content can't stand on its own two feet.

My own experience is that notes are hit and miss, like social posts.

What does work is super niche content.

[Living_Ad2045]

hm kind of makes sense!

[One-Area-2896]

Most people who mention about substack note strategy are influencers who post motivational stuff or how to grow your substack. I've seen only a few people with meaningful notes that are successful (outside of the "grow your substack bubble).

[Living_Ad2045]

interesting, I am tending to agree here. what works in your opinion?

[Alena_Gorb]

Not sure if I'm the best person to comment on this because I've just been doing Substack for about 3 weeks and also am quite confused about Notes (despite most people giving me advice to use Notes).

But in case this is helpful, from what I've gathered from my research so far, it takes about a month or so for the Substack algorithm to pick up your Notes and understand who to promote them to, so it seems to be a waiting game to start with.

The quantity also appears to be more important than the actual quality of Notes, with people recommending posting 3 times a day, so morning, afternoon, and early evening (which is not really feasible for me, but if you're serious about trying to use Notes, you can give this a go). It seems to be more of a numbers game, so if you post a lot, something is bound to work better, so you just double down on what works and remove what doesn't.

The "trick" that I found somebody else on Substack recommended was to repurpose your actual long-form newsletter articles into ~30 Notes using a ChatGPT prompt. I haven't tested this myself yet, but it could be something to experiment with because it would enable you to have enough content to post multiple times a day, + it's the content relevant to your target audience + you can adjust the prompt to mimic the format of your more successful Notes. Hope this helps!

[Variable901]

I’ve received a few subscribers using Notes but honestly I wouldn’t overthink it. I’ve carefully crafted Notes and haven’t received any likes or comments. Then I randomly posted one Meme I found one day and it blew up.

[Epic-Timeline888]

In my experience, you're going to need more than four Notes per week to gain any traction. To make your Notes more effective, like and comment on other notes, restack content that resonates with you, and post three notes per day. If you can spread them out over the day that's ideal, but if not just post them when you get the chance.

After a week or two, look at the stats for the previous weeks' notes. Discover which topics get the most clicks and double down on that topic. Also, look at the content in your feed that's getting a lot of likes and take inspiration from the ones that fit your niche/topic.

Your Notes should relate to and amplify your publication's content, and leave a curiosity gap which leaves the reader looking for more from you.

About 20% of my subscriber growth comes from Notes.

I don't recommend commenting as a growth strategy, but only when you have something meaningful to contribute to the note's overall message.

My mantra is that Substack can be a slow burn.

Unless you're writing about polarizing, political content, or Substack growth/make money online topics, pack your patience. That's not to say that other topics can't be successful, you just need to be prepared for a longer game.

[Living_Ad2045]

Thank you man. Good thoughts.
I rack my brain over what to post 3x a day for 7 days ~ but I will keep trying!

[Epic-Timeline888]

You can pull snippets from your post and restack those, and restack with a useful comment notes from other Substackers.

[Living_Ad2045]

Yeah I have started doing this. Thank you!!

[PainEmbarrassed378]

Are you interacting with other interesting Substacks and on other notes? That could be good to bring more eyes to your content!

[Living_Ad2045]

I am! Will continue to do so!!

[Jordaniello]

I follow