5 Reasons Why I Moved My Mailing List to Substack
I’ve been using Substack for over a year now to share my own stories, thoughts, and reflections, and to intertwine it with my small business as a cosy extension. After much thought, and ‘toing and froing’ about using it as my only mailing list, I just felt that it was the right decision for me and my small business.
In the past I’ve used Mailchimp, and before hopping on over to Substack I was using Flodesk. Although both of these are great platforms to use for a mailing list, there were lots of different factors to consider too, cost being the main one. After exploring Substack, and getting to know the platform better, I began to feel more drawn to using it, especially as I discovered that a lot of other writers, content creators and small business owners had made the switch too, and were using Substack as their main mailing list, not just as a standalone publication, but one that also links to their business.
As I was relaunching my business, during this process I decided to also rebrand and relaunch my monthly newsletter, hence the move over to Substack. What was Little Notes of Light, became my Journal of Soulful Reflections. I’m having so much fun creating content for Substack page. I feel that it’s given me the freedom to get more creative and create content that I’m really passionate about.
In my Journal of Soulful Reflections, you’ll find personal stories filled with inspiration and encouragement, shaped by the changing seasons and the natural world around us. I also share what I’ve been enjoying lately, my seasonal favourites, and honest reflections from daily life.
Whether you’re seeking a quiet moment of calm, a touch of inspiration, or a slower way of living, my online journal offers a peaceful space filled with simple joys, a sense of calm, and gentle reminders of the magic waiting to be found in our everyday lives.
I thought this would be a wonderful opportunity for me to share with you 5 reasons why I’ve moved my mailing list over to Substack, especially if this is something that you’ve been thinking about too, or maybe you’re interested in learning more about Substack. I’m honestly so pleased that I made the switch, and I’ve already begun to see my mailing list grow further since moving it over and creating content there.
It’s very community-driven
Not only are you able to create, share and send out posts, but also join an ever-increasing online community. Substack gives you your own profile, and it’s very easy to find and connect with other writers and content creators.
Substack has a lovely feature called Notes - a space for short, more casual posts, a bit like microblogging. I really enjoy using it, as it adds a more personal way to connect with others. You can share your own thoughts, highlight quotes you love, ‘restack’ posts from other writers, and even tag people or reply to their Notes too.
It provides more freedom on what you can post
Not only does Substack offer the freedom to create text-based posts, but it also provides an incredible opportunity to share visual elements such as photos, graphics and videos. You can also share pieces of audio and podcast episodes too! I find that with Substack, you have a lot more freedom to create more unique, personalised posts or newsletters. I find it very user-friendly, and I feel so much more comfortable writing on Substack.
Substack is free to use
As much as I loved the other mailing list platforms, it just wasn’t great financially. I loved using Flodesk, but I found that for what I wanted to use it for, it was becoming far too expensive. I feel that with Substack being free to use, it makes it a lot more accessible for people, along with providing a mailing list platform that anybody can use without having to worry about the costs.
It has a more blog type feel to it
Although Substack is primarily an email newsletter platform, I’m seeing more and more people use it just as they would a blog. (You have the option to add a domain name to your Substack publication.) Although your posts go directly to your subscribers inboxes, your posts and newsletters are available to view on your Substack page for anyone to view. I think this is lovely because I feel that it helps people to discover lots more email subscriptions that they wouldn’t have necessarily found before. I think it’s great that people can view your posts without having to subscribe, but then if it’s something they feel they want to subscribe to because they love it, they can.
There are many opportunities to grow and expand your Substack page
If you’ve been on Substack yourself, you may already know that some publications have a paid subscription option. Authors are able to set posts so that they are available for paid subscribers only, as a way to support their business further. I think this is a really good feature, as it provides an extra income if that is something that you want to do. It’s definitely something I would consider doing in the future.
Substack provides an amazing opportunity for your digital marketing. It offers more organic traffic, and also means that you don’t have to solely rely on social media and your website. You can also utilise SEO in your posts too. As a small business owner, I feel that having a mailing list on Substack provides a humongous boost in potential new traffic that I wouldn’t have had on any other mailing list platform.
I’d love know if you’re on Substack? If so, please feel free to leave your links in the comment section below. If not, I’d also love to know if this is something you have thought about doing, or if it’s something you would consider?