Newsletter Traction
In January, I started a newsletter on Substack focused on building and operating high-performing software teams. I'm hoping to use the newsletter as lead generation for a book I'm writing, but I had some neat things happen as a result of writing consistently.
I'm only writing once a week, but I've been interviewed four times by various press outlets and have had 2 podcasters ask if I would appear on their show. One of my "day job" customers has asked me to speak to their company and at their community meetup they host. A former colleague has asked me to do a workshop for their leadership team. I've even had some "kudos" thrown my way at work for the content I'm generating!
I'm sharing this with y'all for one reason: I've been wanting to do this type of thing for years but could never convince myself that anything I had to say was meaningful. In only 5 weeks, I've significantly expanded my reach and really built up my confidence.
If you're interested in trying it yourself, I can definitely recommend Substack. It just makes it easy. You can see what I'm writing at https://teamsignal.substack.com. I don't have a ton of subscribers, but the majority of subs I do have are people I don't personally know. I haven't broadly shared with my network or anything yet, so I'm highly encouraged by the results thus far!
Just signed up!
That's awesome! It's amazing how generating your own content can help others to perceive you as a knowledgeable person.
I'm actually in the early stages of starting my own newsletter at https://makerlist.substack.com. Would you have any tips on how you got your initial audience? :)
I wrote a post then contacted ten people I know and asked them to check out my first post. Of those ten, seven subscribed and shared the link on social media.
That's so cool to hear. I think it's easy to underestimate how powerful these things can be and how they can also compound over time.
Thanks for sharing your story! I have a newsletter idea I’ve been kicking around for a long time. You’ve definitely motivated me to get it started!
The link above isn’t working for me, FYI.
I’m glad it’s encouraging! When you get the first comment or share from a subscriber, it feels sooooo good!
Thanks for catching the bad link, I put an io where a com should’ve gone. Fixed!