Thank you, Anne 🙂 I really appreciate the support.
I’ve actually stopped doing automatic sub-for-sub, so now I only subscribe when I genuinely want to keep reading someone’s work. But I’m always happy to support through reading and engagement.
100 to 150 subscribers in a week largely through subscribe4subscribe threads isn't really a growth experiment, it's a reciprocity thing from the times of Twitter & Tumblr. The piece even admits it doesn't know how many of the 150 are "real readers" and I think that's the actual finding. The Late Page already said the quiet part, where are the real readers, and got a polite non-answer.
Really good information !
I subscribe 🤟🏼
Thanks !
Great information, thanks. Thanks for sharing and kindly sub back too, please, for support. Thank you.
Thank you, Anne 🙂 I really appreciate the support.
I’ve actually stopped doing automatic sub-for-sub, so now I only subscribe when I genuinely want to keep reading someone’s work. But I’m always happy to support through reading and engagement.
100 to 150 subscribers in a week largely through subscribe4subscribe threads isn't really a growth experiment, it's a reciprocity thing from the times of Twitter & Tumblr. The piece even admits it doesn't know how many of the 150 are "real readers" and I think that's the actual finding. The Late Page already said the quiet part, where are the real readers, and got a polite non-answer.
You’re right about the main limitation.
The result proves I could acquire subscribers quickly inside the Substack network. It does not prove that I built 150 genuine readers.
I should distinguish those two outcomes more clearly.
My next 30-day experiment is specifically about retention: opens, replies, returning readers and unsubscribes. I’ll share the real numbers.
That's a real answer, credit where it's due. Looking forward to see the actual retention numbers when the 30 days are up.
It keeps getting interesting
But I am starting to cultivate an ick from “follow = follow / sub = sub”
where re the real readers?
But one has to do whatever to publicise i guess ;)
Exactly — that’s the part I’m most interested in now.
Reciprocal support helped with initial visibility, but I don’t see the subscriber count as proof of readership.
The next experiment is measuring who actually opens, returns, replies and keeps reading.
I am studying this one too; ,your article has outlined the curiosity clearly.