Discover the captivating story behind Substack’s rise, from its innovative beginnings to its effective customer acquisition strategies during the pandemic. The founders focused on building trust and fostering strong relationships with writers, prioritizing quality content over social media metrics. Learn about their go-to-market strategy and the unique features that set Substack apart while paving the way for its growth and future opportunities.
20:56
forum Ask episode
web_stories AI Snips
view_agenda Chapters
menu_book Books
auto_awesome Transcript
info_circle Episode notes
question_answer ANECDOTE
Founders' Backgrounds
Substack's founders, Chris Best, Hamish McKenzie, and Jirai Sethi, had diverse backgrounds before starting the company in 2017.
Best co-founded Kik, McKenzie wrote for Pando Daily and Tesla, and Sethi worked at Kik.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Substack's Origin
Chris Best's post-Kik desire to write an essay about media led to discussions with Hamish McKenzie.
These discussions sparked the idea for Substack, a platform focused on a subscription model.
insights INSIGHT
Social Media's Impact on Content
Social media's shift towards optimizing for time spent has negatively impacted content quality.
This shift created a demand for high-quality content and a willingness to pay for it.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
How Elon Musk's Tesla Sparked an Electric Revolution to End the Age of Oil
Hamish McKenzie
This book provides a comprehensive look at Elon Musk's strategy and the impact of Tesla on the automotive and energy industries. It details how Tesla has triggered a global electric car revolution, including competition from both traditional automakers and new entrants, particularly from China. The book highlights Musk's innovative approach, the development of Tesla's infrastructure, and the broader implications for a sustainable future. It also includes insights into the challenges faced by Musk and the company, as well as the potential for autonomous vehicles and their societal impact[1][2][3].
E572: This is how the popular newsletter platform, Substack, started, got its first customers and its first investor, and grew.
We cover its go-to-market, marketing strategy, intense attention to customer relationships and trust, product strengths, and product weaknesses.
We look at what made it successful, both in terms of how it acquired users and customers, and also in terms of what the product actually does.
The Edward Show 