Thank you for sharing this post—it’s packed with insights that really hit home for me. I appreciate your transparency and thorough breakdown of the challenges you've faced on social media and how that led you to Substack. It's a breath of fresh air to see someone lay it out so openly, especially regarding the "game" social platforms seem to make us play.
I’ve been re-evaluating my own approach, and your perspective helped me solidify the idea of investing more in my newsletter and connecting on a deeper level with my audience. It’s encouraging to hear how you've leaned into Substack despite the hurdles, and I’m definitely taking notes on your tips for drawing followers over from social. It sounds like that’s a long game, but one worth playing!
Thanks for helping me redirect my focus. Looking forward to seeing how “Coffee with John” develops and following your journey. I’m sure a lot of us are watching and learning from your experience!
Thanks so much Freda, and I'm glad you found my post helpful. It's always good to look at the big picture, right? There's a place for social media, certainly, but I think I've felt the best when I began focusing on long-form and integrating snippets into my social outlets. It just feels more satisfying. The other thing is I've always wanted to be an author, so the greater your body of work in a specific area, the more you have to include in a collection for a book-- creating a product. Keep at it and wishing you much success!
That was a great piece, very personalized and educational too the way you broke down the platforms! I really enjoyed reading it and learned a lot about the different platforms in a way much different than ever before. I'm writing on a niche topic (pro wrestling, mostly all 80s/90s centric from direct experiences in that time period) that has a vast potential audience but there's also tons of content out there across platforms and much of it from "celebrity" wrestling personalities from the current scene. It's been challenging growing an audience in the wrestling fan segment and have been wondering how I might be able to use other platforms to grow an audience more and make others more aware. Your piece gave me some things to think about.
Thank you so much, and appreciate your reading this and commenting. I just read your post on Sting. It was fantastic! Subscribed to your publication also. I grew up watching wrestling (WWF mainly) and I enjoy reading about my favorite wrestlers from the 80s and 90s, especially from someone that was there. There are many more like me. It is certainly a niche topic but the audience is loyal. Just like my content, our audience has to find us. When they do, they will usually support out content. I believe the biggest thing that will set the edutainment writer apart (since I don't mainly write about writing or entrepreneurship) is creating our own product (digital or tangible). We can use links to get folks over to our publication here.
Also, I have noticed I attract more readers when I write about current events occasionally and marry them to the past. I hope this helps also.
I wish you much success, please stay in touch. Cheers!
Thanks for checking out my work and subscribing. I appreciate the additional insight on writing about current wrestling events occasionally and linking it to the past. I was thinking about incorporating some current stuff and that sounds like a great way to do it and introduce the ‘80s centric stuff to the newer wresting fans.
The idea of offering a digital product is interesting as well and thanks for sharing that too. Would you suggest using a social platform to offer that there as a free item to increase visibility/subscribers to the wrestling substack and then track on substack where the subscription came from to see who gets the free digital item? Or should it be the free digital item is included as part of being a paid subscriber (kind of like the print wrestling magazines did decades ago)? Again, thanks for sharing any wisdom!
I was just circling back through my comments and realized I had not responded to yours. Appreciate your reading. Let me clarify on the product part.
If you're considering offering a complimentary product for someone's email, I'd say create a simple, but helpful/entertaining giveaway. Anything complex, that's taken you a lot of time, I would not giveaway. I recently created a landing page for my book so I will place that link into all my social media. That item will be linked to a cart. I've shared some of the excerpts from my book here but all those posts will be paywalled. In this way, those interested in my work can either enjoy the content through my newsletter as an upgraded subscriber or purchase the book.
I decided some time ago that I did not want to be an entertainment provider that was constantly under the pressure of producing content. I simply don't have the time for that. But in creating a product, I can reference it and use it in my material across platforms. I'll share more about that in the future as well. I hope that helps. Thank you for opening and reading my posts. Stay rad!
Love how you wrote this! Love the breakdown and all that.
I tried my hand at getting into being a creator a bit "too late". YT, IG and TT were really changing their algorithms sooo much that it was nearly impossible to get any engagement. YT was probbaly my most "successful" at 124 subs LOL. But I gave up on that 4 months in because it wasn't sustainable with the content I was doing (makeup reviews). I keep thinking I"ll revive it, but it'll have to be a different niche.
Then I came here...to be able to grow organically and get to engage with your followers is huge for me. I started 4 months ago and I don't plan on stopping. I guess until this platform gets throttled and we all move to the next ...
Thanks Kathy! You know, it's interesting you said "too late" because I thought I was the last person to be on YouTube Lol, and Tiktok, but it turns out, there was still room for similar content but with my own unique voice. i say get back to YT because there is certainly an audience there and they have generous payouts. One of my videos went somewhat viral after three months of having posted it, so you never know.
I think coming to substack was one of the best decisions I've made. It's allowed me to slow things down a bit and enjoy writing again, which was always my first love... well, Cookie Crisps were really my first love, but writing too ;)
Haha thanks for the push John! In that case, if you dont mind me asking, if I have a current channel already, think I can just build on that and change directions? If those one it already don't like it, then can feel free to unsub which they always do anyways haha. It was really fun when I was doing it. Maybe I'll treat it like a podcast but with video instead.
This platform is so awesome! It's also fixing my attention span. We've been fed with short content for sooo long it ruined us haha.
Hi Kathy, I've seen creators pivot and erase all other videos they've posted from the channel to start fresh. If you like your channel name and it aligns with your style of videos/content, than there's no reason to start a new channel. You're right, if someone is not interested in the videos they will unsubscribe, and that's ok. You want the subscribers that look for and enjoy your content.
Most of my longer videos are scripted like a podcast conversation. I go off script occasionally. That's a good approach.
Yes! Substack has totally saved my attention span also Lol!!
Thank you so much for the advice! I appreciate that! I’ll probbaly go the route of keeping mine. I like the name and some of the stuff I was doing. I’ll just pivot the content haha.
Thanks again and looking forward to seeing more content from ya on here!!
Thanks Dan, glad you enjoyed this post and found it useful. Been at it for a while, but always learning. Glad to be on here with writers such as yourself. Cheers!
You’ve done a great job breaking down a lot of the hurdles that creators face in the modern market.
One reason I’ve turned to Substack is that I thought people would be more apt to consume something that was delivered straight to them…something they didn’t have to seek out. I’m not sure my rationale is correct, but I’m still exploring it.
I think your rationale is sound, and I thought the same thing. There are people that prefer this, and they are the ones I've decided to write for. I've tried to reframe all of this and view Substack as my primary residence for content. The social apps is where I go fishing for the readers. Especially since IG is really a visual app that attracts the kind of folks looking for the kind of stuff we write. I don't take social apps for granted, and as long as we can remain consistent here, building up a quality body of work, our readers will come. Cheers my friend!
I feel you about the Instagram experiences. I had been on Instagram for many years to share my street photography. Very much like my writing (😄), my street photography was not exactly trendy and so connecting with others took a little bit of time, but I was able to after awhile. It had some moderate success.
Then, well, TikTok hit the scene, Reels became a thing and follower counts meant nothing because it was all about the Discovery. I really didn't like that because I wasn't trying to distract strangers, I was trying to have sustained connections with people.
I dropped all that and started up on Substack, going back to the weird thing I've been doing in secret for about 20 years, which was writing and poetry.
Hey James!! Totally feel ya on the IG photography. That's how I started also. I used to write and produce content for iPhone Life magazine when it was around. Early days of iPhone photography 🤣 Honestly, the early days on the gram were great when it was just photography!
I think I was the last person on tikytok lol Never was a fan of super short videos, and I had no interest in watching people dance or lip sing, I mean, I grew up on Millie Vanilli 😅😆 I agree with you, the folks on that platform are probably better for large brands looking for brand recognition rather than writer/creators like us. Although I've seen a few very successful creators on there, but believe me, I've spoken to a few and creating over a minute videos consistently, daily, on that platform is very difficult and there's a ton of burnout.
I think we've made a wise choice coming to Substack. Plenty of people can create quick videos, but not everyone can write high quality content on a regular basis. Substack definitely weeds out the viral video rifraf.
You and I and others like us can slow down a little and create and deliver something with greater connective tissue and far more evergreen. Thanks for reading and commenting my friend 🙌
Thank you for sharing this post—it’s packed with insights that really hit home for me. I appreciate your transparency and thorough breakdown of the challenges you've faced on social media and how that led you to Substack. It's a breath of fresh air to see someone lay it out so openly, especially regarding the "game" social platforms seem to make us play.
I’ve been re-evaluating my own approach, and your perspective helped me solidify the idea of investing more in my newsletter and connecting on a deeper level with my audience. It’s encouraging to hear how you've leaned into Substack despite the hurdles, and I’m definitely taking notes on your tips for drawing followers over from social. It sounds like that’s a long game, but one worth playing!
Thanks for helping me redirect my focus. Looking forward to seeing how “Coffee with John” develops and following your journey. I’m sure a lot of us are watching and learning from your experience!
Thanks so much Freda, and I'm glad you found my post helpful. It's always good to look at the big picture, right? There's a place for social media, certainly, but I think I've felt the best when I began focusing on long-form and integrating snippets into my social outlets. It just feels more satisfying. The other thing is I've always wanted to be an author, so the greater your body of work in a specific area, the more you have to include in a collection for a book-- creating a product. Keep at it and wishing you much success!
That was a great piece, very personalized and educational too the way you broke down the platforms! I really enjoyed reading it and learned a lot about the different platforms in a way much different than ever before. I'm writing on a niche topic (pro wrestling, mostly all 80s/90s centric from direct experiences in that time period) that has a vast potential audience but there's also tons of content out there across platforms and much of it from "celebrity" wrestling personalities from the current scene. It's been challenging growing an audience in the wrestling fan segment and have been wondering how I might be able to use other platforms to grow an audience more and make others more aware. Your piece gave me some things to think about.
Thank you so much, and appreciate your reading this and commenting. I just read your post on Sting. It was fantastic! Subscribed to your publication also. I grew up watching wrestling (WWF mainly) and I enjoy reading about my favorite wrestlers from the 80s and 90s, especially from someone that was there. There are many more like me. It is certainly a niche topic but the audience is loyal. Just like my content, our audience has to find us. When they do, they will usually support out content. I believe the biggest thing that will set the edutainment writer apart (since I don't mainly write about writing or entrepreneurship) is creating our own product (digital or tangible). We can use links to get folks over to our publication here.
Also, I have noticed I attract more readers when I write about current events occasionally and marry them to the past. I hope this helps also.
I wish you much success, please stay in touch. Cheers!
Thanks for checking out my work and subscribing. I appreciate the additional insight on writing about current wrestling events occasionally and linking it to the past. I was thinking about incorporating some current stuff and that sounds like a great way to do it and introduce the ‘80s centric stuff to the newer wresting fans.
The idea of offering a digital product is interesting as well and thanks for sharing that too. Would you suggest using a social platform to offer that there as a free item to increase visibility/subscribers to the wrestling substack and then track on substack where the subscription came from to see who gets the free digital item? Or should it be the free digital item is included as part of being a paid subscriber (kind of like the print wrestling magazines did decades ago)? Again, thanks for sharing any wisdom!
I was just circling back through my comments and realized I had not responded to yours. Appreciate your reading. Let me clarify on the product part.
If you're considering offering a complimentary product for someone's email, I'd say create a simple, but helpful/entertaining giveaway. Anything complex, that's taken you a lot of time, I would not giveaway. I recently created a landing page for my book so I will place that link into all my social media. That item will be linked to a cart. I've shared some of the excerpts from my book here but all those posts will be paywalled. In this way, those interested in my work can either enjoy the content through my newsletter as an upgraded subscriber or purchase the book.
I decided some time ago that I did not want to be an entertainment provider that was constantly under the pressure of producing content. I simply don't have the time for that. But in creating a product, I can reference it and use it in my material across platforms. I'll share more about that in the future as well. I hope that helps. Thank you for opening and reading my posts. Stay rad!
Thanks for the additional details on how to potentially offer complimentary products. Much appreciated!
Love how you wrote this! Love the breakdown and all that.
I tried my hand at getting into being a creator a bit "too late". YT, IG and TT were really changing their algorithms sooo much that it was nearly impossible to get any engagement. YT was probbaly my most "successful" at 124 subs LOL. But I gave up on that 4 months in because it wasn't sustainable with the content I was doing (makeup reviews). I keep thinking I"ll revive it, but it'll have to be a different niche.
Then I came here...to be able to grow organically and get to engage with your followers is huge for me. I started 4 months ago and I don't plan on stopping. I guess until this platform gets throttled and we all move to the next ...
Thanks Kathy! You know, it's interesting you said "too late" because I thought I was the last person to be on YouTube Lol, and Tiktok, but it turns out, there was still room for similar content but with my own unique voice. i say get back to YT because there is certainly an audience there and they have generous payouts. One of my videos went somewhat viral after three months of having posted it, so you never know.
I think coming to substack was one of the best decisions I've made. It's allowed me to slow things down a bit and enjoy writing again, which was always my first love... well, Cookie Crisps were really my first love, but writing too ;)
Thanks for reading and commenting. Cheers!
Haha thanks for the push John! In that case, if you dont mind me asking, if I have a current channel already, think I can just build on that and change directions? If those one it already don't like it, then can feel free to unsub which they always do anyways haha. It was really fun when I was doing it. Maybe I'll treat it like a podcast but with video instead.
This platform is so awesome! It's also fixing my attention span. We've been fed with short content for sooo long it ruined us haha.
Hi Kathy, I've seen creators pivot and erase all other videos they've posted from the channel to start fresh. If you like your channel name and it aligns with your style of videos/content, than there's no reason to start a new channel. You're right, if someone is not interested in the videos they will unsubscribe, and that's ok. You want the subscribers that look for and enjoy your content.
Most of my longer videos are scripted like a podcast conversation. I go off script occasionally. That's a good approach.
Yes! Substack has totally saved my attention span also Lol!!
Wishing you much success on your channel :)
Thank you so much for the advice! I appreciate that! I’ll probbaly go the route of keeping mine. I like the name and some of the stuff I was doing. I’ll just pivot the content haha.
Thanks again and looking forward to seeing more content from ya on here!!
Great insights John. I've not had the kind of social media presence that you have had so hearing about your experiences is extremely useful. Thanks!
Thanks Dan, glad you enjoyed this post and found it useful. Been at it for a while, but always learning. Glad to be on here with writers such as yourself. Cheers!
All of this.
You’ve done a great job breaking down a lot of the hurdles that creators face in the modern market.
One reason I’ve turned to Substack is that I thought people would be more apt to consume something that was delivered straight to them…something they didn’t have to seek out. I’m not sure my rationale is correct, but I’m still exploring it.
Thank you Mick! Much appreciated 🙌
I think your rationale is sound, and I thought the same thing. There are people that prefer this, and they are the ones I've decided to write for. I've tried to reframe all of this and view Substack as my primary residence for content. The social apps is where I go fishing for the readers. Especially since IG is really a visual app that attracts the kind of folks looking for the kind of stuff we write. I don't take social apps for granted, and as long as we can remain consistent here, building up a quality body of work, our readers will come. Cheers my friend!
I feel you about the Instagram experiences. I had been on Instagram for many years to share my street photography. Very much like my writing (😄), my street photography was not exactly trendy and so connecting with others took a little bit of time, but I was able to after awhile. It had some moderate success.
Then, well, TikTok hit the scene, Reels became a thing and follower counts meant nothing because it was all about the Discovery. I really didn't like that because I wasn't trying to distract strangers, I was trying to have sustained connections with people.
I dropped all that and started up on Substack, going back to the weird thing I've been doing in secret for about 20 years, which was writing and poetry.
Hey James!! Totally feel ya on the IG photography. That's how I started also. I used to write and produce content for iPhone Life magazine when it was around. Early days of iPhone photography 🤣 Honestly, the early days on the gram were great when it was just photography!
I think I was the last person on tikytok lol Never was a fan of super short videos, and I had no interest in watching people dance or lip sing, I mean, I grew up on Millie Vanilli 😅😆 I agree with you, the folks on that platform are probably better for large brands looking for brand recognition rather than writer/creators like us. Although I've seen a few very successful creators on there, but believe me, I've spoken to a few and creating over a minute videos consistently, daily, on that platform is very difficult and there's a ton of burnout.
I think we've made a wise choice coming to Substack. Plenty of people can create quick videos, but not everyone can write high quality content on a regular basis. Substack definitely weeds out the viral video rifraf.
You and I and others like us can slow down a little and create and deliver something with greater connective tissue and far more evergreen. Thanks for reading and commenting my friend 🙌