As a consumer of your work, I enjoy your perspective on topics which are interesting and meaningful to me. I appreciate your ability to convert important concepts and feelings into the written word, and you frequently repost things I had not seen. The photos and video are reminders of the work you are putting into your property and the beauty of rural Iowa, which I feel connected to, having visited.
I don't spend that much time on Substack, but I started off with a long response to your question regarding growth, and then deleted it, realizing what I would do is ask ChatGPT how to grow my substack account. I could share that, but I'm not sure that's what you're asking of me. But personally, I like your content, hope you don't leave, and also understand it's a lot of work!
Dear Phil, thank you for this human response! I'll take it any day over AI. This gives me plenty of guidance. Hope to see you at the farm someday soon!
Don't give up - you're a great writer! Do what you can when you can. I think it also depends on your goal with the platform. Do you want to generate income from this audience, create a community, both? Only you can answer that. What brings you more joy?
If your goal is to generate revenue from Substack, personally, I don't look at Substack itself as a way to do that. Paid subscriptions are a really tough, often not scalable revenue stream unless you already have a very large audience. Instead, are there things you can offer your audience off Substack that would generate more revenue? A live monthly Q&A call with a BTS look at your operation? A weekly "town hall" type private Zoom to discuss the most pressing issues agriculture in your area is facing right now. Charge a fee to register.
If your goal is to build a community, then maybe revenue isn't part of the equation and you can look for ways to systematize your time on here rather than let it dictate your day. I set a timer on my phone for 15 minutes - for the first 5 I comment thoughtfully to people's Notes. For the next 5 I send out simple cross-promotion requests to other writers in my niche - both larger and smaller than me. For the last 5 minutes I quickly review my metrics and write down 1 thing that worked well in the last 24 hour and one thing that didn't. It helps me to reflect and double down on what's moving the needle.
That's a huge help Charlie, both the encouragement and the advice. Right now it seems all-consuming except for the days when I have to be outside farming all day or running errands in town. I haven't actively been asking fellow farmers or environmentalists to cross post. I think I'll get on that. And I do think I have to give up on the revenue stream. I thought it might help offset some farm expenses, but there's too much noise on Substack now and too hard to find the people who will pay (and who would with all this uncertainty?)
Post what makes you happy. I think folks spend to much time trying to be all things to all people.
If you feel like posting.. post, you want to restack.. restack. Don't let this define or run your life, pleasing strangers is nice but is way down on my list.
Thank you for this! It's truly universal wisdom. It's not so much about pleasing strangers than finding out what I can do MORE of that I'm already doing...(hence no offer of interviewing other farmers, which I really don't want to do!) because I'd like to both have a greater impact and to keep giving away eggs or hosting free events. The readership here helps determine if that's a wise direction to keep going in.
I meant to write and let you know I thought your May 28 postcard was one of the best ones I've read of yours yet, and I shared it with appreciative friends. One commented, "this is a sobering and frightening read. Thanks for sending."
Thank you Jean! I truly appreciate the feedback and support. For every one comment like yours, I get multiple "email disabled" or unsubscribes. It's a tough row to hoe.
As a consumer of your work, I enjoy your perspective on topics which are interesting and meaningful to me. I appreciate your ability to convert important concepts and feelings into the written word, and you frequently repost things I had not seen. The photos and video are reminders of the work you are putting into your property and the beauty of rural Iowa, which I feel connected to, having visited.
I don't spend that much time on Substack, but I started off with a long response to your question regarding growth, and then deleted it, realizing what I would do is ask ChatGPT how to grow my substack account. I could share that, but I'm not sure that's what you're asking of me. But personally, I like your content, hope you don't leave, and also understand it's a lot of work!
Dear Phil, thank you for this human response! I'll take it any day over AI. This gives me plenty of guidance. Hope to see you at the farm someday soon!
Don't give up - you're a great writer! Do what you can when you can. I think it also depends on your goal with the platform. Do you want to generate income from this audience, create a community, both? Only you can answer that. What brings you more joy?
If your goal is to generate revenue from Substack, personally, I don't look at Substack itself as a way to do that. Paid subscriptions are a really tough, often not scalable revenue stream unless you already have a very large audience. Instead, are there things you can offer your audience off Substack that would generate more revenue? A live monthly Q&A call with a BTS look at your operation? A weekly "town hall" type private Zoom to discuss the most pressing issues agriculture in your area is facing right now. Charge a fee to register.
If your goal is to build a community, then maybe revenue isn't part of the equation and you can look for ways to systematize your time on here rather than let it dictate your day. I set a timer on my phone for 15 minutes - for the first 5 I comment thoughtfully to people's Notes. For the next 5 I send out simple cross-promotion requests to other writers in my niche - both larger and smaller than me. For the last 5 minutes I quickly review my metrics and write down 1 thing that worked well in the last 24 hour and one thing that didn't. It helps me to reflect and double down on what's moving the needle.
Hope this helps!
That's a huge help Charlie, both the encouragement and the advice. Right now it seems all-consuming except for the days when I have to be outside farming all day or running errands in town. I haven't actively been asking fellow farmers or environmentalists to cross post. I think I'll get on that. And I do think I have to give up on the revenue stream. I thought it might help offset some farm expenses, but there's too much noise on Substack now and too hard to find the people who will pay (and who would with all this uncertainty?)
Post what makes you happy. I think folks spend to much time trying to be all things to all people.
If you feel like posting.. post, you want to restack.. restack. Don't let this define or run your life, pleasing strangers is nice but is way down on my list.
Thank you for this! It's truly universal wisdom. It's not so much about pleasing strangers than finding out what I can do MORE of that I'm already doing...(hence no offer of interviewing other farmers, which I really don't want to do!) because I'd like to both have a greater impact and to keep giving away eggs or hosting free events. The readership here helps determine if that's a wise direction to keep going in.
I meant to write and let you know I thought your May 28 postcard was one of the best ones I've read of yours yet, and I shared it with appreciative friends. One commented, "this is a sobering and frightening read. Thanks for sending."
Thank you Jean! I truly appreciate the feedback and support. For every one comment like yours, I get multiple "email disabled" or unsubscribes. It's a tough row to hoe.