Yup I've seen the change as well. I was a viral queen for a good while, long enough to build a great base of subscribers. But things have slowed down now and I'm actually grateful. It's nice to see it balance out.
Hey good read Tom. I’ve had a Substack account for a year or so but only recently started to figure out how to use it. This was good. Still learning here.
Thanks Craig! More of these coming in the future. Wanted to test how readers liked an in-depth breakdown of Notes and it seems like it's something interesting for you all. Cheers! Thanks for reading.
I have to wonder (and believe) that Tom Kuegler & Michael Simmons Substack Campfire core value of teaching STORYTELLING had a major impact on the deciders of Substack algorithms. Tom specifically has been teaching the value of storytelling in notes, and even said he wanted to revolutionize notes to be a storytelling social media. I think it has worked.
If that's the case, I'd be honored. I just want people to be able to find the Notes they want to read most. If that's writing advice, or stories, or posts about the election, so be it. And they've done a great job at that so far!!
Good read Tom, thank you. I find the bandwagon notes very annoying. I don’t read any of them. It’s a bit [frustrating] how original content is less likely to gain traction considering there’s a certain algorithm. And then, like you said, once people catch on, they follow suit. Until the platform notices discourse, it’ll then alter the algorithm again.
Yes, I think trends are useful but I see a lot of the same content on Notes (and Threads). It just feels like copy + paste.
<<< How is anyone able to grow if they need to focus more on what’s going viral vs doing something that’s organic and authentic? >>>
It makes me question is it really about consistency or is it more about figuring out the algorithm? Or a mixture of both?
This is a great question. I think it's a mix of both and one other thing as well, which is to just follow your intuition. Write a post that you would want to read. Don't worry about the best practices or viral trends. Just write something that feels right to you. That's how a big breakthrough is made that everybody else will inevitably copy in the future.
Great post. Over the past few weeks I noticed my feed no longer shows the same half a dozen people and now I get a lot of new stuff which is fantastic.
What’s popped up today is recommended chats which I am not a fan of. I hope that goes away soon.
Trying to guess what the Almighty Algo will favour on any given day is a losing game.
Amy I noticed that as well. Crazy how fast things are changing. If I had to guess, I'd say it's probably Substack's attempt to convert more followers to subscribers. I think for some of these chats you have to either be a paid subscriber or free subscriber to join.
This is so interesting, thanks for unpacking it. I do get a few dozen likes here and there, though I didn’t have a viral post until this week, it’s now had 600 likes which blows my mind. It’s a personal note. It seems a bit pot luck, I think they must rotate algorithms frequently. I guess it’s best to show up and post what we like!✨
Thanks for documenting all this! I find it really interesting since I joined Substack in Oct, which seems to be the end of what you consider to be the golden era, so the Sustack you know and the one I do seem to be quite different. Even in my short time here, I've seen it change quite a bit!
Alicia it’s crazy because Substack keeps on changing every few weeks it seems. It changes so fast it’s almost meaningless to write something about where the algorithm is currently because in a few days it just changes again.
Thanks for this! I feel like I missed the gold rush. Have been able to build some very sizable and very high engagement followings on other platforms with 10-20K plus followers at places like Threads and BlueSky, before that over 35K on Twitter. Here it feels like a struggle for any notes to get any traction whatsoever. May start treating it as a catch all glimpse into my life in addition to just being a promotional tool for my newsletter, as I have been using it?
Matt maybe you can copy/paste some of the stuff you’ve already written on X and Threads if you haven’t already. I think Notes will continue to mature and grow into a platform for everybody. At first all you saw was writing advice but now that is starting to change.
Great insights on Notes and going viral. Though it sometimes difficult for me to ignore the numbers, I find that chasing them brings me so much anxiety. So I write what I feel and if it resonates with others, great! If not, I said what I needed to say and then move on.
I like that Mica. Doesn’t matter if you get 1,000+ likes on your Notes if you aren’t having a good time. Just ruins it all. I wish more people knew this.
Amazing deep dive here. I think you were on the cutting edge of Notes my friend. I have seen a similar trend in reach decreasing and it's great to see your recommendations of what you're seeing working.
Landon as I write this comment, a personal story I wrote on my other profile is going viral. I think the game has changed. I'm happy to see that the opportunity is still there at least.
Yup I've seen the change as well. I was a viral queen for a good while, long enough to build a great base of subscribers. But things have slowed down now and I'm actually grateful. It's nice to see it balance out.
Evolution is necessary.
Here's to more evolution on Notes in the future Kristi. Should be fun to watch :)
Hey good read Tom. I’ve had a Substack account for a year or so but only recently started to figure out how to use it. This was good. Still learning here.
Thanks Craig! More of these coming in the future. Wanted to test how readers liked an in-depth breakdown of Notes and it seems like it's something interesting for you all. Cheers! Thanks for reading.
Yeah, that was a good analysis. It seems a key is to be consistent (my nemesis haha) and write what built your subscriber numbers.
Chasing the algorithms may be hard on your head
I have to wonder (and believe) that Tom Kuegler & Michael Simmons Substack Campfire core value of teaching STORYTELLING had a major impact on the deciders of Substack algorithms. Tom specifically has been teaching the value of storytelling in notes, and even said he wanted to revolutionize notes to be a storytelling social media. I think it has worked.
If that's the case, I'd be honored. I just want people to be able to find the Notes they want to read most. If that's writing advice, or stories, or posts about the election, so be it. And they've done a great job at that so far!!
Good read Tom, thank you. I find the bandwagon notes very annoying. I don’t read any of them. It’s a bit [frustrating] how original content is less likely to gain traction considering there’s a certain algorithm. And then, like you said, once people catch on, they follow suit. Until the platform notices discourse, it’ll then alter the algorithm again.
Yes, I think trends are useful but I see a lot of the same content on Notes (and Threads). It just feels like copy + paste.
<<< How is anyone able to grow if they need to focus more on what’s going viral vs doing something that’s organic and authentic? >>>
It makes me question is it really about consistency or is it more about figuring out the algorithm? Or a mixture of both?
This is a great question. I think it's a mix of both and one other thing as well, which is to just follow your intuition. Write a post that you would want to read. Don't worry about the best practices or viral trends. Just write something that feels right to you. That's how a big breakthrough is made that everybody else will inevitably copy in the future.
That's what I've been doing: posting about what I'm thinking about, but aiming to make it helpful for the readers.
For now, it hasn't been enough. Guest posts worked better for me.
I appreciate the optimistic response! Thank you! <3 :)
Great post. Over the past few weeks I noticed my feed no longer shows the same half a dozen people and now I get a lot of new stuff which is fantastic.
What’s popped up today is recommended chats which I am not a fan of. I hope that goes away soon.
Trying to guess what the Almighty Algo will favour on any given day is a losing game.
Every day is a new day on Notes!
Amy I noticed that as well. Crazy how fast things are changing. If I had to guess, I'd say it's probably Substack's attempt to convert more followers to subscribers. I think for some of these chats you have to either be a paid subscriber or free subscriber to join.
I keep forgetting to flip between those I follow and the explore section in Notes, then I wonder why I see all the same people 🤣
Thanks for tracking all of this so that we don't have to 😁
Haha no problems Dr. Vicki!
This is so interesting, thanks for unpacking it. I do get a few dozen likes here and there, though I didn’t have a viral post until this week, it’s now had 600 likes which blows my mind. It’s a personal note. It seems a bit pot luck, I think they must rotate algorithms frequently. I guess it’s best to show up and post what we like!✨
Congratulations Kate!! Love to hear that. I agree. Best to just continually show up and write stuff we love. :)
This was a fun and interesting read. Thank you!
Really fascinating!
Thanks for documenting all this! I find it really interesting since I joined Substack in Oct, which seems to be the end of what you consider to be the golden era, so the Sustack you know and the one I do seem to be quite different. Even in my short time here, I've seen it change quite a bit!
Alicia it’s crazy because Substack keeps on changing every few weeks it seems. It changes so fast it’s almost meaningless to write something about where the algorithm is currently because in a few days it just changes again.
That’s true! In a way, there’s freedom in that as a writer, since it’s so difficult to chase the algorithm.
Thanks for this history, Tom. I found it intriguing and useful -- much appreciated.
Super interesting. Thanks for sharing
Thanks for this! I feel like I missed the gold rush. Have been able to build some very sizable and very high engagement followings on other platforms with 10-20K plus followers at places like Threads and BlueSky, before that over 35K on Twitter. Here it feels like a struggle for any notes to get any traction whatsoever. May start treating it as a catch all glimpse into my life in addition to just being a promotional tool for my newsletter, as I have been using it?
Matt maybe you can copy/paste some of the stuff you’ve already written on X and Threads if you haven’t already. I think Notes will continue to mature and grow into a platform for everybody. At first all you saw was writing advice but now that is starting to change.
That’s. Great idea, Tom! It certainly seems feasible and maybe even easy to just cross post what I’m already posting there, right?
Great insights on Notes and going viral. Though it sometimes difficult for me to ignore the numbers, I find that chasing them brings me so much anxiety. So I write what I feel and if it resonates with others, great! If not, I said what I needed to say and then move on.
I like that Mica. Doesn’t matter if you get 1,000+ likes on your Notes if you aren’t having a good time. Just ruins it all. I wish more people knew this.
Amazing deep dive here. I think you were on the cutting edge of Notes my friend. I have seen a similar trend in reach decreasing and it's great to see your recommendations of what you're seeing working.
Landon as I write this comment, a personal story I wrote on my other profile is going viral. I think the game has changed. I'm happy to see that the opportunity is still there at least.
The REAL question is how do I get closer to learning more from you ;-)
This is brilliant Tom, thank you
Thank you Louise!!! :)