From 0 to 1,000 Subscribers with Free Recommendations
28% of my subscribers are coming from other Substack newsletters recommending my publication.
Substack’s recommendations engine is powerful.
In the middle of January, I had 3,300 subscribers and 900 subscribers from recommendations.
Today, I already have more than 4,200 subscribers, with more than 1,000 subscribers coming from other publications recommending me.
Recommendations played a huge role in my subscriber growth.
In my opinion, recommendations on Substack are the most engaged subscriber acquisition channel!
If you build genuine relationships, most reciprocate your recommendation if they think it’s a fit and their ideal readers should discover your publication.
In fact, I attribute 28% of my Substack newsletter success to — can you fill in the blank? What is it? — recommendations.
Yep, free recommendations!
I didn’t invest a single dollar in paid recommendations.
While growing my email list, I realized how powerful Substack’s recommendation engine is and that it helps me grow 28% faster.
I’m not alone.
Even
shared that 78% of his subscribers were coming from other Substack newsletters recommending his publication.Lenny writes about product and brand management, has more than 620,000 subscribers, tens of thousands of paid subscribers, and earns 7 to 8 figures with his newsletter.
The minimum implied revenue in February 2023 was $1.5M up to $15M.
Psst! Good news!
You don’t have to be an early adopter and top newsletter writer like Lenny Rachitsky to see awesome results.
You don't have to be a bestselling author, TikTok dancer, Instagram superstar, or celebrity to see your subscriber numbers skyrocket.
In February, I signed up for Kristina God’s newsletter. I started seeing new subscribers almost immediately.
Freaking bonkers!
19 subscribers were coming from my endorsement.
Obviously, there’s more to it but my tip of the day:
Give recommendations a whirl and grow from the inside out!
Want to experience the same?
Most writers don’t know…Substack updated its recommendations engine a few days back.
As Substack reported in their official announcement:
“Early data show that this approach to Recommendations increases both the number of subscriptions that Substacks enjoy and the number of followers that individuals get, helping them amass large audiences that serve as a base for ultimately finding new paid subscribers.”
Want to know what’s hot and new?
I hear you sing…
YES! Tell me more! Tell me more!
So I created a video for you (no worries, I don’t sing).
In this week’s video, we’re pulling back the curtain on how many subscribers I gained from recommendations, how Substack’s recommendations growth engine works, what Substack’s update means, and the 4 surface areas where recommendations are shown now.
✅Engagement BONUS: I love to gamify your newsletter experience, so if you leave a comment on YouTube, you could win a 15 min. coaching session with me.
New VIDEO: From 0 to 1,000 Subscribers with FREE Recommendations 🚀
✅Table of Contents ✅
00:00:00 The Potential of Substack's Recommendations Engine
00:01:57 Why I Chose Substack
00:03:16 How Substack Recommendations Work
00:04:41 My Results from Recommendations
00:05:26 How to Start Using Recommendations on Substack
00:06:56 4 Ways for Readers to See Recommendations
00:08:54 Why Recommendations Are So Powerful on Substack
🎉Access to Substack School for paid subscribers
All premium subscribers also have access to my “Online Writing School” membership with the Substack School.
Be a part of it and join a vibrant community of more than 100 writers. Find an A to your Q, chat with me, watch exclusive tutorial videos with insider tips, grow and make money writing on Substack with clarity, fun, and by doing what you love, writing.
🔥BONUS tutorial - It’s nice to know the WHAT but you want to know HOW you take the first steps towards making that kind of growth happen.🔥
I’m super excited!
Inside Substack School, I’ll show you the EXACT (baby) steps to use Substack’s recommendations growth engine to take action TODAY!
I’ve grown my email list to over 4,000 subscribers within 15 months. 1,000 are coming from recommendations.
🔥I’m handing my tactic over to you so you can start putting structure behind your 2024 list-building goals.
✨If I can make your newsletter transformation a little easier, I’m 100% here for it.
Don’t take it from me. Here’s what my members say:
I'll see you in there, friend!
Wait, please, could you do me a favor? 😘Re-stack and/or share this post, so more people can engage!😘 Thanks!
Happy Collaborating!
Kristina
You are right Kristina! As long as our intentions are good and our blogs are decent and genuine people will support irrespective of whether paid or free is immaterial. We can grow together with positive vibes in all respects at all times on all occasions irrespective of the location where we stay is irrelevant. I encourage and support your article and believe in it. Thank you very much. Kind regards.
If only this recommendation feature worked for everyone and not for the few.