Plan and execute Substack growth strategy for subscriber acquisition and retention. Use when developing Notes strategy, setting up recommendations, planning cross-platform promotion, optimizing for discovery, converting free to paid, reducing churn, or building long-term newsletter growth. Includes the 20-minute daily routine, leaderboard optimization, and the recommendation network strategy.
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references/REFERENCES.mdKey platform facts:
Organic discovery is getting harder as the platform grows. Many writers report 80-90% subscriber growth drop in 2025 due to:
Solution: Maximize native features (Notes, Recommendations) + external traffic sources.
Your newsletter builds trust. It's what people subscribe for.
Notes build reach. They're your organic marketing channel.
Recommendations create compounding growth through cross-promotion.
Notes is "the most efficient subscriber acquisition channel on the entire platform when used correctly."
Total time: 20 minutes/day for consistent growth (5-11 new subscribers/day reported)
Morning (7 min):
├── Post 1 Note: Community-focused (invites interaction)
├── Leave 2-3 thoughtful comments on others' Notes
└── Reply to any comments on your Notes
Midday (6 min):
├── Post 1 Note: Educational (one specific tip/insight)
└── Leave 2-3 comments on trending Notes in your niche
Evening (7 min):
├── Post 1 Note: Personal/motivational (builds connection)
├── Reply to all new comments
└── Restack 1-2 great Notes from others
Frequency:
Content Types:
Comments Matter More:
Restacking = retweeting. When you restack, it appears in your followers' feeds.
Strategic restacking:
"The algorithm now heavily amplifies Notes that actively drive subscription behavior — not just likes or comments, but actual 'go subscribe to this writer' recommendations."
Notes with explicit recommendations ("You should subscribe to [writer]") got thousands of views vs normal 300 views.
40%+ of growth can come from recommendations alone.
"Many writers click the Recommend button, but few take the time to write a blurb — that's a mistake."
A good blurb:
Notes Activity
↓
Algorithm sees audience overlap
↓
Your content shown to similar readers
↓
Recommendations amplify this
↓
Leaderboard visibility (if earning)
↓
Featured placements
Two types per category:
| Leaderboard | Ranking Factor | Update Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| Rising | Paid subscription growth | Every few hours |
| Bestseller | Annual Recurring Revenue | Daily |
To appear on leaderboards:
Category Strategy:
1. The Subscription Model (Paywall)
2. The Product Model (Free + Premium)
"People are no longer paying for 'content'. They're paying for access to solutions to their problems."
Just content isn't enough anymore. Consider:
Most successful writers:
Acquiring a new subscriber is 5-25x more expensive than retaining one. Reducing churn by just 5% can boost profitability by 75%.
Watch in your Substack dashboard:
Personalized Value:
Consistent Communication:
Community Building:
Proactive Retention Emails:
At-risk subscribers often show:
Don't rely on Substack discovery alone.
| Platform | Strategy |
|---|---|
| Twitter/X | Thread with key insights → link to full newsletter |
| Carousel summarizing post → "full breakdown in newsletter" | |
| Stories teasing content → link sticker | |
| SEO | Evergreen posts that answer search queries |
Be realistic:
| Milestone | Typical Timeline |
|---|---|
| First 500 subscribers | 1-3 months (with Notes) |
| First 1,000 subscribers | 3-6 months |
| First paid subscriber | After ~1,000 free (varies) |
| 10% free→paid conversion | 6-12 months of nurturing |
| Sustainable income | 12-24 months |
Growth compounds. Early months feel slow, then accelerate.
## Monday
- [ ] Publish newsletter
- [ ] Post 2-3 Notes promoting it
- [ ] Engage in comments
## Tuesday - Thursday
- [ ] 2-3 Notes per day
- [ ] 10+ comments on others' content
- [ ] Respond to all replies
- [ ] 1-2 restacks of great content
## Friday
- [ ] Review week's metrics
- [ ] Plan next week's newsletter
- [ ] Send any pending recommendations
## Weekend (optional)
- [ ] Light engagement
- [ ] Draft next newsletter
| Metric | Target | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| New subscribers (free) | Steady growth | Notes = 40-60% of this |
| New subscribers (paid) | 5-10% of free | Conversion rate |
| Open rate | >40% | Engagement health |
| Click rate | >5% | Content relevance |
| Unsubscribes | <1% per email | Content/frequency issues |
Veronica Llorca-Smith's "El Limonero":
Don't:
## Substack Growth Review
### Subscribers
- [ ] Free growth rate vs last quarter
- [ ] Paid growth rate
- [ ] Recommendation-sourced %
- [ ] Notes-sourced %
### Content
- [ ] Publishing consistency
- [ ] Open rate trends
- [ ] Best performing posts — why?
- [ ] Worst performing — what to avoid?
### Engagement
- [ ] Notes activity level
- [ ] Comment engagement
- [ ] Recommendation reciprocity
### Revenue (if applicable)
- [ ] MRR/ARR growth
- [ ] Churn rate
- [ ] Conversion rate trends
### Next Quarter Goals
- [ ] Subscriber target
- [ ] Content experiments
- [ ] Collaboration targets
- [ ] New promotion channels
For algorithm research, source links, and detailed tactics, see references/REFERENCES.md.
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