The broken windows analogy is spot on. I see so many businesses invest heavly in ads and content but ignore basic website hygene. That 3 second load time stat really drives it home. We're all trained to bounce instantly if something feels off. The AI Overviews point is intresting too, I hadnt thought about how clean structure affects visibility in that context. Fixing the basics first makes everything else actually work.
Yes, the AI piece has been hovering in the back of my mind for a few months. Not sure what, if anything, can be done on substack and how different that would be from a singular website to up chances of being in the AI overview.
Thanks, Mack. And that's exactly how I use mine, which colors how I see and use this place -- not interested in paid subs (though its there if someone wants to). Honestly not sure if this is the right spot for me.
But the Notes aspect is built in reach so that's nice. And I'd have to create another WordPress site and hosting and pay for it so why not here.
Most of my traffic is from my email list, though as Im more active on Notes and sharing on LinkedIn that's beginning to shift slightly.
As I start to push more, curious to see how numbers shake out (fingers crossed growth kicks in soon to find out!).
First, I agree with all of this. Especially your point that if you don't have a website, your Substack is your defacto website.
Having said that...how many views does the average Substack drive? I haven't seen anything definitive (maybe you have), but I am under the impression that most people will view my content via Notes rather than go to my Substack.
I know some people do, I just don't think it's a significant percentage. Still a good idea to have good UX and structure on your Substack, but...
The broken windows analogy is spot on. I see so many businesses invest heavly in ads and content but ignore basic website hygene. That 3 second load time stat really drives it home. We're all trained to bounce instantly if something feels off. The AI Overviews point is intresting too, I hadnt thought about how clean structure affects visibility in that context. Fixing the basics first makes everything else actually work.
Yes, the AI piece has been hovering in the back of my mind for a few months. Not sure what, if anything, can be done on substack and how different that would be from a singular website to up chances of being in the AI overview.
Thanks, Mack. And that's exactly how I use mine, which colors how I see and use this place -- not interested in paid subs (though its there if someone wants to). Honestly not sure if this is the right spot for me.
But the Notes aspect is built in reach so that's nice. And I'd have to create another WordPress site and hosting and pay for it so why not here.
Most of my traffic is from my email list, though as Im more active on Notes and sharing on LinkedIn that's beginning to shift slightly.
As I start to push more, curious to see how numbers shake out (fingers crossed growth kicks in soon to find out!).
First, I agree with all of this. Especially your point that if you don't have a website, your Substack is your defacto website.
Having said that...how many views does the average Substack drive? I haven't seen anything definitive (maybe you have), but I am under the impression that most people will view my content via Notes rather than go to my Substack.
I know some people do, I just don't think it's a significant percentage. Still a good idea to have good UX and structure on your Substack, but...