Commenting on other people's content is the most underrated activity to get visibility here on substack and in social media. Especially if the author of the content you are commenting on has a sizable audience
What I find is, you convert a lot more subscribers when you comment on large audience newsletters with some insightful comments.
When you comment on newsletter with a similar size audience, you get a lot more activity (likes, shares, recommendations, comments) and collaboration opportunities from fellow writers.
I read something about commenting. The more insightful and meaningful the comment the more likely it will stand out. If I'm going to comment on something I try to at least make it more than a three word response. It has seemed to work a little bit at least. My biggest issue right now is that Substack really isn't as viable for most fiction it seems but I'm trying to crack that code.
Like we said before, if the first reply is "congrats" or something similar, it won't have much effect.
But if you are early to comment and you provide a helpful comment or a controversial one that people agree on... That's another story.
This week I got 500 likes on LinkedIn when I commented about Crowdstrike's issue on a influential profile. Out of that I managed to get 130 new followers in 2 days. My average is 3 likes and 4 new followers in the same timeframe.
I think similar effects are true everywhere but maybe on a smaller scale in Substack.
I’m writing about the science of self improvement, including how to use the Think-Do-Be method to adopt a growth mindset. It’s made a big difference after practicing law for many years and I’m finally giving myself more time to pursue creative work. Substack’s been a great blessing…there are so many kind and talented writers and artists here!
This is absolutely right on. I discovered this platform by accident and because of it I'm taking risk I hadn't taken before. I'm also setting up creative things and attempting to build that audience. Substack is a fantastic tool and has become something I intend to use going forward. Thank you for the article.
Networking truly is one of the biggest things. So many people sleep on this ability but I don't know why. I have trouble promoting myself however, I realize that conversation and talking to people can make a difference for sure. It's why I don't delete things even if it takes forever to finally read them.
I'm doing a mini-study of popular (in terms of subscribers) newsletters (from Substack) in Mexico, and I see that most of them have paid posts (at least, those of the last months). Something similar seems to me to happen in the case of Substack newsletters from Spain.
I wonder if they are popular in subscribers because they have almost all their posts under payment, or if, because they are popular, they have decided to put their posts under payment.
Something like: which came first, the chicken or the egg?
Reverse-engineering creators (or anything else) at a certain point in time, trying to guess how they got there is dangerous. You always miss critical elements.
In any case, success is a combination of interdependent factors.
"Reverse-engineering creators (or anything else) at a certain point in time, trying to guess how they got there is dangerous. You always miss critical elements.
In any case, success is a combination of interdependent factors."
I like it, and true. But I didn't expect so many newsletters with almost all paid posts.
Well said, Alberto! I joined Substack a month ago, and learning that commenting on other people's work is a great way to connect. I'm sure later on momentum will start to pick up. Thanks for the golden nuggets!
I created my substack newsletter 3 years ago and recently, I had to reboot my entire publication and start from scratch. I only just posted my first 2 videos explaining why and what my future audience can expect!
I can't believe the changes and results I am seeing now that I have returned back to substack, only having a few months off! And reading an article like this is exactly what I need.
I love the advice of "choosing a platform you like" - so many new writers/creators waste endless time looking for the "perfect" platform, which basically doesn't exist. Go with the one you find most appealing. Each platform has its difficulties anyway.
Commenting on other people's content is the most underrated activity to get visibility here on substack and in social media. Especially if the author of the content you are commenting on has a sizable audience
Actually, I found more benefits when commenting on authors with an audience size similar to mine.
Commenting on authors with large audiences probably works best if you're among the first commenters.
What I find is, you convert a lot more subscribers when you comment on large audience newsletters with some insightful comments.
When you comment on newsletter with a similar size audience, you get a lot more activity (likes, shares, recommendations, comments) and collaboration opportunities from fellow writers.
I read something about commenting. The more insightful and meaningful the comment the more likely it will stand out. If I'm going to comment on something I try to at least make it more than a three word response. It has seemed to work a little bit at least. My biggest issue right now is that Substack really isn't as viable for most fiction it seems but I'm trying to crack that code.
It's just that you have to give people a reason to read your comment. If it doesn't add anything, they just scroll through.
There are successful fiction writers here. It's not my area, but I heard case studies and guides. Some things that seem to work are:
- serializing books
- publishing short stories, maybe complementing the stories in your books
- documenting the behind the scenes.
I'm in the midst of trying a lot of those things actually coupled with doing a set of post that are opinion based
Good plan!
Absolutely!
In your experience, did you get better results when you were among the first to reply?
I'm not sure about being first to reply.
Like we said before, if the first reply is "congrats" or something similar, it won't have much effect.
But if you are early to comment and you provide a helpful comment or a controversial one that people agree on... That's another story.
This week I got 500 likes on LinkedIn when I commented about Crowdstrike's issue on a influential profile. Out of that I managed to get 130 new followers in 2 days. My average is 3 likes and 4 new followers in the same timeframe.
I think similar effects are true everywhere but maybe on a smaller scale in Substack.
Lots of helpful advice here. I’m pretty new to Substack and appreciate these insights 🙏 Thanks!
Thank you!
What are you going to write about?
I’m writing about the science of self improvement, including how to use the Think-Do-Be method to adopt a growth mindset. It’s made a big difference after practicing law for many years and I’m finally giving myself more time to pursue creative work. Substack’s been a great blessing…there are so many kind and talented writers and artists here!
This is absolutely right on. I discovered this platform by accident and because of it I'm taking risk I hadn't taken before. I'm also setting up creative things and attempting to build that audience. Substack is a fantastic tool and has become something I intend to use going forward. Thank you for the article.
Thank you for replying and good luck!
Very good, as always 😊
You're great. Thanks!
Networking truly is one of the biggest things. So many people sleep on this ability but I don't know why. I have trouble promoting myself however, I realize that conversation and talking to people can make a difference for sure. It's why I don't delete things even if it takes forever to finally read them.
Networking my weakest point, by far. In real life, too.
But I’ve already experienced positive results.
It’s freaking simple, but definitely not easy.
Exactly. Buckle up and be patient.
Awesome advice - networking is key to so many things!
I’m the worst at it. But writing the best content you can is useless if you don’t do your best to promote it too.
Does having paid posts increase subscriptions?
I'm doing a mini-study of popular (in terms of subscribers) newsletters (from Substack) in Mexico, and I see that most of them have paid posts (at least, those of the last months). Something similar seems to me to happen in the case of Substack newsletters from Spain.
I wonder if they are popular in subscribers because they have almost all their posts under payment, or if, because they are popular, they have decided to put their posts under payment.
Something like: which came first, the chicken or the egg?
I agree with Giuseppe.
Reverse-engineering creators (or anything else) at a certain point in time, trying to guess how they got there is dangerous. You always miss critical elements.
In any case, success is a combination of interdependent factors.
"Reverse-engineering creators (or anything else) at a certain point in time, trying to guess how they got there is dangerous. You always miss critical elements.
In any case, success is a combination of interdependent factors."
I like it, and true. But I didn't expect so many newsletters with almost all paid posts.
If they have multiple traffic sources outside Substack, they don't need that much content to be seen on this platform.
For example, Nicolas Cole's newsletter about AI has always been almost 100% paid. But he was already well-known when he started it.
Yes, you are right.
My experience tells me they got popular first
Yes, this is more logical. First distribution, and only later monetization.
I agree. I took for granted we were talking about helpful comments.
Well said, Alberto! I joined Substack a month ago, and learning that commenting on other people's work is a great way to connect. I'm sure later on momentum will start to pick up. Thanks for the golden nuggets!
I created my substack newsletter 3 years ago and recently, I had to reboot my entire publication and start from scratch. I only just posted my first 2 videos explaining why and what my future audience can expect!
I can't believe the changes and results I am seeing now that I have returned back to substack, only having a few months off! And reading an article like this is exactly what I need.
Thank you so much!! 🙏
I love the advice of "choosing a platform you like" - so many new writers/creators waste endless time looking for the "perfect" platform, which basically doesn't exist. Go with the one you find most appealing. Each platform has its difficulties anyway.