7 Mistakes You're Making Trying to Grow on Notes...
Plus a Substack Diary update for June and a quick video about recent noticings on the algorithm and how it appears to promote my notes to wider audiences...
Contents:
June Substack Diary Update
7 Mistakes You’re Making Trying to Grow on Notes
The Great Substack Experiment (VIDEO): ‘I think I figured something out about the algorithm’ - a short video diary of what I’m learning from my experiments this month…
My Substack Diary is a monthly publication from me (a writer on Substack) sharing my journey, in order to try and make yours feel less overwhelming (and less lonely!). I ask for payment for some parts of the Newsletter because they take me SUCH a long time to put together (on top of my regular Substack and full time job) and I want them to provide you as much value as possible, to hopefully save you some time and stress in the process.
Please note the video diary and ‘7 Mistakes’ are only available to paid subs - so go grab your June discount before it’s too late!!
Thank you in advance for taking the time to read and engage with this post and to my subscribers and paid subscribers, you know who you are, I love being on this journey with you. Thank you for putting your faith in me.
My Substack Diary
So June has been a lot so far, NGL! Another big month in the life of my Substack and it’s definitely been a bit of a rollercoaster.
After the initial excitement of launch and a couple of viral posts, things started to calm dramatically, which was a big change of pace from my first month on the platform. The reduction in adrenaline took a moment to adjust to, I can’t lie, as the flurry of notifications and subscribers wained I had big decisions to make.
Honest confession - the post viral come down hit hard at first. Having had so much gain for doing very little, going back to shouting into the void left me feeling a little rejected, almost like I’d done something to piss people off.
I’m over it now, and quite frankly I’m enjoying the reduction in pressure as things settle into a steadier pace, however I committed to sharing honestly, so there it is!
Another benefit of slowing down is I have been left with more time to contemplate, what does this look like longer term? And some decisions I’d deferred on launch, to come back to when I became more establish with a larger subscriber base, became more pressing. I had that base WAY more quickly than I’d imagined, so I felt pressure (from myself mainly) to establish what I wanted my Substack to look like longer term.
I also needed to establish my Substack as a steady and regular routine for me in my life, alongside my existing commitments of a full time job, parent, partner, dog mum, human with needs, you get the picture.
June also brought my first 1-1 with my Substack mentor and guide Sarah Fay, which really helped me get a stronger sense of direction, as well as giving shape to my many ideas, plans and overall thinking.
June activity to date:
I’ve merged My Substack Diary into Life in the Overlap as a section (rather than two separate Substack’s). I’ve already had some requests for more detail on my thinking, so I will unpack that next month in more detail.
I’ve established a regular editorial calendar for paid and free subscribers which launches officially from March (details on my about page [LINK], if you want a nosey).
I’ve spent quite a lot of time analysing and documenting the results and my findings, from my experiments with notes. Some of which I’m sharing with paid subscribers below, based on what I’ve experienced so far.
My growth has slowed since my viral post, but reassuringly it’s still going. Now the viral post appears to have come to a standstill it’s actually become easier for me to assess the impact of my experiments in notes, as I get things into a more regular pattern (hopefully of steady growth).
7 Mistakes You’re Making Trying to Grow on Notes…
I’m not a notes expert, just an experimental writer with a passion to grow my audience and curiosity to play and analyse what is and isn’t working.
Am I perfect in my application of these lessons? Nope.
And do I get consistent results every time? Also no (see 7).
So far I’m basing this on my growth (716 subscribers from 0, in 51 days), my notes, my analysis of them and observations on the platform, because so many of you are asking. I’d be interested to hear if you’re observations match. If we as writers keep sharing on this journey, we can all grow together…
Pay particular attention to number 5: By doing the opposite of this I gain consistent subscribers, it’s quick and easy, AND it fills my writers soul. Yet I regularly see people advising people not to do it 🤷🏻♀️.
The following content is only available to paid subscribers. Upgrade to paid to get access to my honest monthly lessons and observations and let’s grow on this journey together… I try and make each diary post more valuable than multiple months of subscription, so personally I think it’s a no brainer, but then again, I’m biassed ;)…
