What would make you subscribe to a newsletter or podcast today?
It seems that the market is super saturated. Most general topics already have well established content creators.
Do you still think there are worthy subjects and reasons to create new newsletters and podcasts?
If I were to create one what would be some must features? (short or long, interesting niche or broad? unique way to deliver information, etc...)
I'm just hesitant to create something now when it seems like these paths were only good 10 years ago, I'd love to hear your thoughts.
Trending on Indie Hackers
I can't speak for everyone but if I'm interested in a topic, and someone has something interesting to say on that topic, I'll check out their podcast/newsletter, even if there are tons of other podcasts/newsletters on the topic. Worst case scenario, I can always unsubscribe if I don't like it.
One thing I'd suggest is that if you're going to start a newsletter or podcast, choose a topic that you're legitimately interested enough in that you can see yourself writing/talking about it for years to come, even if you feel like you're speaking into the void early on.
While there are exceptions (people who were fast movers to new-ish, fast-growing spaces like crypto/deFi, people who had existing audiences, etc.), its seems like most popular podcasts/newsletters are the result of people publishing consistently over time, allowing their skill, content library, brand and audience to compound. They're overnight successes years in the making.
Thanks for the wise words!
Interesting questions, personally, I think it's impossible to ever fully saturate a market. 😁
There's also going to be some angle or niche or perspective or style that can be brought to the table. The question really is what you want from the newsletter, e.g., if you want a massive cash cow with thousands of readers or if you'd be happy with a few dozen.
For me, it's not really about features, it's more about the topic and the tone. For example, I would happily subscribe to a Science-y newsletter that was a little more chill and relaxed than some of the other higher-brow stuff that you get. 🧪
But it would have to be in a tone of voice that I found authentic. Do you know what I mean?
When I say saturated I mean that the returns diminish with more investment(number of reader/listeners) in this case. I suspect this happens because it is more saturated and harder to find your content.
I liked the science aspect!
Regarding the authenticity, I totally agree, most of the articles I've written were criticized by some friends because they weren't "formal enough" and too personal/(authentic in my way.)
Ah, I've got you now.
Thinking on this, I wonder if another strategy would be to find a topic and then see if there's a common style that people within that niche want.
The assumption being that there might be similar trends in 'must have features' wants/needs when looking at groups of people interested in similar topics. 🤷♀️
For example, spitballing here, if the readers are academic folks that want hardcore, no-shit Science from other areas, you might get people that want long-form content that's more formal.
Alternatively, if the readers are non-academic folks that want to just stay up to date with cool research, you might get people that want shorter less-formal content.
Keep us posted on what you do ! Looking forward to seeing if you go the newsletter route. 👍
Nice perspective, I didn't thought about it! I'll try to think about it.
I usually subscribe to newsletters that are published no more frequently than once per week, with short or medium issues of up to 1000-1500 words. I prefer a practical or informative angle and skip vague stuff such as motivational, inspirational, or marketing-heavy content.
Interesting! I personally prefer once every other week. Yep, practical insights is probably the way, it sometimes even feels like if it isn't practical then the person making the content doesn't respect your time (unless you look for motivation/inspiration).
Once per week is the maximum amount of such content I can handle. In general, I try to subscribe to more newsletters with frequent but short issues and fewer with infrequent but longer issues.