How to Start a Successful Substack (And Actually Build an Audience)
Okay, if you’re anything like me, and talking to the camera is something that makes you want to crawl into a hole, then you’re in the right place. Maybe you’re looking for ways to bring in a bit of extra income, or you’re looking for that creative outlet that other platforms can’t give you. Whatever your reason is, you’ve come to the right place because we’re going to be discussing how to start a successful Substack.
Social media can feel a bit like renting an apartment from a landlord who changes the rules every second week. Algorithm tweaks can be great, but they can also really dampen the mood when they decide to work against you.
Enter Substack.
What is Substack?
Have you been looking for ways to build your own audience (that belongs to you), and potentially get paid for your thoughts? Substack is the perfect way to do this, I’ve heard. I did a little research of my own, and definitely give this one a thumbs up!
Substack is an all-in-one publishing platform that leverages traditional blogs, an email newsletter and a payment processor all in one space. Substack also handles all the techy bits of hosting a website, including plugins and email delivery software. All for free! Who’s complaining?
So, when you publish a piece of writing, it will automatically post to your dedicated website and send it to your subscribers’ email inboxes. This means that creators hold complete ownership and control over their content and their subscriber list, making it lemon squeezy easy to build a loyal community and monetise when the time comes.
Here, in this Substack newsletter guide, we’ll walk through each step of the process that will help you launch your publication and help you make your first bit of income. Let’s go!
Step 1: Find Your Angle (You Don't Need to Be a "Guru")
You probably would have heard this a million times before, but you need to find your niche. The first thing you need to ask yourself is: Why would anyone want to open my email each week? Now, let’s be clear - you definitely don’t need to be a guru in order to gain a loyal following. You don’t need a Ph.D., or 20 years of experience to launch a newsletter that will land the way you want it to. All you need is clear focus. The best Substack publications fall into one of the following two categories:
Curated content: You dig through the noise in a specific topic (like AI tools, cosy mystery books, or indie music) and bring the absolute best bits to your readers' inboxes.
Specific perspective: You document your journey, break down complex topics, or share personal essays through a unique lens.
Pro-Tip: "Thoughts on life" is a tough sell for strangers. "A weekly deep-dive into retro gaming for busy parents" gives people an immediate reason to hit Subscribe.
Step 2: The 15-Minute Substack Setup
It’s fairly easy to set up your Substack account, especially if you’ve managed to set up a social media profile before.
1. Pick a Clear Name & URL
Make sure your name is memorable, specifically hinting at what your subscribers will get from your newsletter. If you already have a following on any other platform, you’ll be able to get away with using your personal name. Examples can include:
The Weekly Habit
Desk Notes
Marketing Mindset.
Try your best to avoid anything general and vague like John’s Random Thoughts Blog #42.
2. Design Your Visual Identity
Substack is known for keeping things intentionally minimalistic so that your writing is what takes centre stage. All you need are these three assets:
Publication Logo: A clean 256x256 square image.
Cover Image: A wide banner for social previews and your home page.
Short Bio: One or two sentences explaining your value proposition.
3. Customise Your Welcome Email
Next, you’ll need to look at customising your welcome email. Substack will automatically send out a welcome email when someone subscribes to you, so make sure you change this to reflect your personal brand and to ensure you sound like an actual human.
Thank them for joining, tell them how often you'll be in their inbox, and ask them a quick question to boost your email deliverability (e.g., "Hit reply and let me know what topic you're hoping I cover next!").
Step 3: Write Your Launch Post (The "Manifesto")
Your first post will need to be something of a short manifesto, and definitely shouldn’t be kept empty. Here’s a structure you can use:
The Hook: Why are you starting this publication now?
The Promise: What will you deliver, and how often? (e.g., "Every Thursday morning, you'll get 3 practical tips...")
About You: A quick, relatable intro to who is writing behind the screen.
The CTA: Ask them to subscribe and share it with a friend who might like it.
Once you hit publish, you can officially add ‘run a successful newsletter’ to your CV!
Step 4: Grow Your Free Subscriber Base
Now that you’ve managed to set yourself up on Substack, you’ll need to start growing your free subscriber base. When comparing Substack vs blog platforms from ten years ago, Substack’s biggest win is that it has its own growth engine.
Substack recommendations: Substack allows creators to recommend one another. When someone subscribes to a newsletter in your niche, Substack might pop up your publication as a suggested read. So, make sure you connect with writers in your space early!
Substack Notes: Notes are like a Twitter/X feed allowing you to post short thoughts directly into the Substack ecosystem. You can post your thoughts, quotes from your articles and engage with other creators. This is the quickest way to gain an audience organically.
Bring your existing network: You can also leverage your other social media platforms to mention your launch.
Step 5: How to Make Money on Substack
Okay, so you’ve managed to build an audience and you feel confident enough to take the next steps in scaling your newsletter. You may be wondering how to make money on Substack.
Free readers will receive your weekly newsletter or free essays, but once they become a paying subscriber, they’ll receive deep dives into your content, community chats and bonus audios.
When should you turn on paid subscriptions?
The general rule is that once your free audience hits between 500 and 1000 active readers, you should begin implementing a paid subscription. The main thing is that you need to grow an engaged audience first. Typically, 2% to 5% of free subscribers will convert to paid subscribers.
What should you put behind the paywall?
Usually, creators will keep their best reach posts free so that new readers can find them, and put more depth behind the paywall. This can look like:
Exclusive bonus posts or deep-dive tutorials.
Access to the community comment section or subscriber-only chat.
Full access to your archive of older posts.
Monthly Q&As or live hangouts.
Standard pricing usually starts around £4-£5, or £40-£50 annually.
Ready to Push Publish?
This process can feel overwhelming right up until you publish your first post, but there’s a secret that most top creators won’t tell you, and that is that no one has it fully figured out on Day 1. You’ll probably change your design a few times, and your writing style will also evolve. That’s completely normal. Your audience will grow alongside you, so don’t worry too much.
Pick a topic you genuinely care about, follow the setup steps above, and get your first post out into the world. Your future readers are waiting for you to share your craft!
