REPLAY - 'Scale' sustainably, stay sane AND make money on Substack?

We can do hard things...

Hi Sparklers,

I follow a creator on instagram who sells ‘digital products’. She makes daily sales, has just hit 100k followers, has a vibrant membership and community that charges way more a month than we do here. I really like her but sometime’s I feel jealous of how easy it all looks…

Easy to show up, easy to make money, easy to exercise… repeat after me - these are all snippets of someone’s day/ life/ business.

Dream Crusher and Unrealistic Expectations…

See also this clip from The Good Dinosaur…

I like to nudge us to think about what we are really doing and chasing.

To make sure your energy is aligned with the platform you’re building on.

To make sure your business model is aligned with your dreams. To ensure we don’t burn out chasing things we weren’t ever sure we wanted in the first place.

We’ve got the joy, we’ve got the creativity in bucket loads but can we really ‘scale’ our publications sustainably?

• If we are new and small, how do we find an audience.

• As Substack becomes busier, how do we ensure we hold attention?

• On the flip side, what happens if we go viral on Notes?

• What happens if lots of people decide to subscribe or pay at once?

• What happens if someone wants a refund or starts a dispute with stripe and we get charged? What about sales tax and Substack fees?

• How do we manage comments and our community when we go on holiday?

• How do we feel properly paid for our work as we’re building up an audience.

• What happens if we loose our work?

“On average, approximately 5% to 10% of free subscribers on Substack convert to paying subscribers. This range is commonly cited by both Substack and independent creators, though actual conversion rates can vary based on factors such as content quality, audience engagement, and monetization strategies.” Platformer

Nicole Clark - image inspired from a task in my Joyful Growth to Bestseller Challenge

In today’s call we’ll explore all of these questions AND how to bring in genuine leads for your business (or new paid subs) through to Substack.

People pay for your Substack for 5 main reasons…

1. Education

2. Inspiration

3. For Fandom

4. To feel something (soothed, enraged, seen, part of a community)

5. To support you…

Can you see how your work fits in one or more of the above?

Community questions always welcome.

Remember, there is nothing ‘to do’. You earn back the cost of your membership by taking my beginners course which is included.

The archive and live calls are always an invitation, never a chore.

Sending sparkles,

Claire

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