Substack provides writers and creators an easy-to-use online publication platform for newsletters, blogs, podcasts, or personal websites. It solves the pain point of setting up a blog/ personal website/ newsletter by providing a ready-to-use platform to reach their desired audience.
Substack, founded in 2017 by Chris Best, Jairaj Sethi, and Hamish McKenzie, is an online platform designed to empower writers by allowing them to create and monetize subscription-based newsletters. The inspiration for Substack came from the success of Ben Thompson's subscription newsletter, Stratechery, which demonstrated the potential for writers to earn directly from their audience without relying on traditional media outlets.
Substack stands out as a platform for independent writers by providing tools that facilitate starting their own blogs or newsletters for direct monetization of their work. Its focus on simplicity, community engagement, and writer autonomy has attracted a diverse array of creators looking for new ways to connect with audiences and generate income.
The Substack homepage provides two onboarding experiences. One for readers and other for those want to write (or Create your Substack)
Onboarding process for a reader: User clicks on "Start reading"
These onboarding steps for readers take care of the initial personalisation to land the user on the correct set of articles.
Finally, a user is shown their home feed that becomes their reading list.
The onboarding process for a reader: The user clicks on "Create your substack"