Based on promising early results, we’re excited to see that when one writer recommends another, everyone wins. Writers who make a recommendation are three times more likely to be recommended in return.
Love this feature ✨Recommendations Stats blew my mind last week 🤯 Almost each of the publications recommending the 'Midweek Crisis' generates subs. So happy to grow with my favorite authors 🪴
leaderboards: i would love to see a leaderboard category for 'serial work' or 'novel' or some other category of long-form writing. so many of us are serializing works here, and it would be great to have a unique category for them.
search: maybe we could have the option to add a search bar on our own pages? this would make searching so much easier!
The recommendation feature is one of the best that Substack has rolled out in a long time! Our results have been wonderful so far. Thank you all for coming up with it.
If you were trying to make us fall in love with you, it worked. Thanks for all the tools and support you’re giving writers. It’s encouraging and bolstering and I, for one, am not taking all your hard work for granted. Many thanks again for all you’re doing.
Absolutely adore recommendations and the chance to shout out my fellow Substackers. It feels just as good to give as to get (and I'm very grateful for both!)
The recommendation feature allows niche readers and audiences to find Newsletters they are passionate about more easily.
If new Newsletters could have a badge so we can recognize them and uplift them better, that would be great. It would be so awesome if this feature was able to give new Creators a boost so they don't give up prematurely on Substack.
I've made a list of recommendations for Newsletters here: https://aisupremacy.substack.com/p/top-substack-newsletters-in-2022 - I'm more than happy to write your Newsletter a blurb, turn it into a Tweet you can embed on your about page or even a TikTok testimonial video. Just comment on this link I've given here.
I feel this pain point pretty personally: The reason is new Newsletters deserve more social proof and encouragement.
The first few months as a new Creator without an established audience can be incredibly challenging, personally I don't want others to experience what I did (and still do to some extent). Those months of getting no to few comments, etc...
The recommendation feature is certainly a huge upgrade in the product and discoverability, but I think what I have noticed is we need more community in general. Networking with other writers and creators in your niche is super important Substack now tells us. As the Substack app evolves we can look to a brighter future, the passion economy has so many elements of progress in the years to come.
Everyone starts small and every one of us has had very few subscribers at one point or another, Jessica -- don't get too discouraged, if you can manage it. Have fun, and keep going!
I must be doing something wrong with my recommendations... I jumped into this new feature immediately; I believe it is a valuable tool. Unfortunately, my stats don't reflect the experiences others are reporting. My readers/subscribers have added 28 new subscribers to the recommendations I have made. To date, I have received 1 new subscriber from those recommending my newsletter...and even more disturbing, most of the newsletters I recommend do not return the favor! That seems odd to me...
I never expected an avalanche of new subscribers either but I was hoping the tool would help generate a bit more exposure… So far, it’s more like getting a cold shoulder in a networking cocktail party – but alas, I shall keep plugging away and putting my newsletter out there because I love what I’m writing about…and I think substack is absolutely the right platform!
I think you have to consider the audience and subscriber count of the newsletters that are recommending you. They might genuinely love your work and want to send people your way, but just not have the reach (yet, or ever).
Yes, I think you are correct about the readership of newsletters making recommendations – I do indeed take this into consideration. Of course, the other issue is simply getting other newsletters to make recommendations, and that’s where I’ve landed. In the end, I believe it’s still about producing quality content and hoping for enough exposure from those who are interested in what I’m writing about…I guess the recommendations will eventually flow if I keep working and promoting my newsletter.
I think that's true -- that it's about producing quality content and hoping for exposure from people who are genuinely interested. Don't get me wrong, recommendations are great, I'm grateful when people recommend my newsletter, but they're just one (ultimately small, uncontrollable) part of a much larger (much more controllable) puzzle.
Recommendations have brought some subscribers my way and has been a welcomed surprise. I’m excited to have a big name recommend my Substack, though. Looking for that mind blowing experience some are having. 😏
Leaderboards should be a great discovery tool as well. Once again, Substack, the innovations and improvements are making for enriching experience both as writer and reader. Thank you!
I spent a few days wondering what was going on with all the new subscribers before I realised they must have been referred to me via this feature. Bravo.
The recommendations feature is *awesome*! Thank you for your tireless efforts to continually improve what is already the best platform in the world. I have gained 1,000 readers in the past month, thanks in large part to recs.
The only request I would have is that we be permitted to add more than 50 recommendations. I follow more than 200 Substackers and quickly ran out of slots :-)
Love this feature ✨Recommendations Stats blew my mind last week 🤯 Almost each of the publications recommending the 'Midweek Crisis' generates subs. So happy to grow with my favorite authors 🪴
recommendations have been great so far!
re:
leaderboards: i would love to see a leaderboard category for 'serial work' or 'novel' or some other category of long-form writing. so many of us are serializing works here, and it would be great to have a unique category for them.
search: maybe we could have the option to add a search bar on our own pages? this would make searching so much easier!
I am writing a LGBT romance novel these days, too (+ a short nonfiction book). So, I’m wondering about how this could work for me.
Substack, darling, I am unworthy of all these improvements!!!
They really are too good to us, aren’t they? As a writer, I feel so much more valued and supported by Substack than I ever have with Medium.
The recommendation feature is one of the best that Substack has rolled out in a long time! Our results have been wonderful so far. Thank you all for coming up with it.
If you were trying to make us fall in love with you, it worked. Thanks for all the tools and support you’re giving writers. It’s encouraging and bolstering and I, for one, am not taking all your hard work for granted. Many thanks again for all you’re doing.
Seriously. Just propose already.
I would, but my wife would be PISSED.
A minor setback.
Absolutely adore recommendations and the chance to shout out my fellow Substackers. It feels just as good to give as to get (and I'm very grateful for both!)
The recommendation feature allows niche readers and audiences to find Newsletters they are passionate about more easily.
If new Newsletters could have a badge so we can recognize them and uplift them better, that would be great. It would be so awesome if this feature was able to give new Creators a boost so they don't give up prematurely on Substack.
I've made a list of recommendations for Newsletters here: https://aisupremacy.substack.com/p/top-substack-newsletters-in-2022 - I'm more than happy to write your Newsletter a blurb, turn it into a Tweet you can embed on your about page or even a TikTok testimonial video. Just comment on this link I've given here.
I feel this pain point pretty personally: The reason is new Newsletters deserve more social proof and encouragement.
The first few months as a new Creator without an established audience can be incredibly challenging, personally I don't want others to experience what I did (and still do to some extent). Those months of getting no to few comments, etc...
The recommendation feature is certainly a huge upgrade in the product and discoverability, but I think what I have noticed is we need more community in general. Networking with other writers and creators in your niche is super important Substack now tells us. As the Substack app evolves we can look to a brighter future, the passion economy has so many elements of progress in the years to come.
So 80 day later, what's the result? It's not hard to see: https://basicincomeworld.substack.com/p/the-substack-network-effect-zooming
I'm just starting out and have very few subscribers. But I was so pleased to get a recommendation!
Everyone starts small and every one of us has had very few subscribers at one point or another, Jessica -- don't get too discouraged, if you can manage it. Have fun, and keep going!
Yes, fun is definitely the main motivator. Thanks for the encouragement!
Shoutout to Cole Noble at Cole's Climb for his recommendation! He's sent a bunch of new subscribers my way
Substack is killing it with new features. Onward and Forward!
I must be doing something wrong with my recommendations... I jumped into this new feature immediately; I believe it is a valuable tool. Unfortunately, my stats don't reflect the experiences others are reporting. My readers/subscribers have added 28 new subscribers to the recommendations I have made. To date, I have received 1 new subscriber from those recommending my newsletter...and even more disturbing, most of the newsletters I recommend do not return the favor! That seems odd to me...
I don’t expect the newsletters I recommend to recommend me back, especially if I’ve never interacted with them!
I never expected an avalanche of new subscribers either but I was hoping the tool would help generate a bit more exposure… So far, it’s more like getting a cold shoulder in a networking cocktail party – but alas, I shall keep plugging away and putting my newsletter out there because I love what I’m writing about…and I think substack is absolutely the right platform!
I think you have to consider the audience and subscriber count of the newsletters that are recommending you. They might genuinely love your work and want to send people your way, but just not have the reach (yet, or ever).
Yes, I think you are correct about the readership of newsletters making recommendations – I do indeed take this into consideration. Of course, the other issue is simply getting other newsletters to make recommendations, and that’s where I’ve landed. In the end, I believe it’s still about producing quality content and hoping for enough exposure from those who are interested in what I’m writing about…I guess the recommendations will eventually flow if I keep working and promoting my newsletter.
I think that's true -- that it's about producing quality content and hoping for exposure from people who are genuinely interested. Don't get me wrong, recommendations are great, I'm grateful when people recommend my newsletter, but they're just one (ultimately small, uncontrollable) part of a much larger (much more controllable) puzzle.
Recommendations have brought some subscribers my way and has been a welcomed surprise. I’m excited to have a big name recommend my Substack, though. Looking for that mind blowing experience some are having. 😏
Leaderboards should be a great discovery tool as well. Once again, Substack, the innovations and improvements are making for enriching experience both as writer and reader. Thank you!
Love this. Happy to discuss how to partner with others on recommending. Contact me.
ok... I'm definitely open to exploring some ideas...
Can you detail the improvements you’ve made for SEO?
I spent a few days wondering what was going on with all the new subscribers before I realised they must have been referred to me via this feature. Bravo.
The recommendations feature is *awesome*! Thank you for your tireless efforts to continually improve what is already the best platform in the world. I have gained 1,000 readers in the past month, thanks in large part to recs.
The only request I would have is that we be permitted to add more than 50 recommendations. I follow more than 200 Substackers and quickly ran out of slots :-)