How to Build a Vibrant Comments Section on Substack
How do you turn passive readers into active commenters?
Hello, Substack writers and creators!
A story: A client came to me with an email list of 100,000, but he had no engagement. His comments section was a dead zone. So he really had about 500 subscribers or so. That’s not my judgment; it’s how he felt.
This is true of some of the “biggest” Substacks. Before you envy a Substack with a ton of subscribers, check how much engagement they get. What’s their comments section like?
Engagement—not just growth—is probably the most important thing Substack writers and creators need to focus on.
It’s also one of the last things too many people spend time cultivating. “Getting” subscribers feels good; it’s a sugar rush. Having engagement takes work; it’s a delicious bowl of perfectly cooked steamed broccoli.
We want a viable, engaged email list; otherwise, we only have numbers on a screen.
Our main avenue of engagement on Substack? The comments.
Read on…
Where comments happen
Posts
Notes
Chat
If you’re puzzled any of these Substack features, you’re not alone. Watch two of our tech-in-under-10-minutes video overviews in the Substack Tech Library, Comments, Chat, Discussion Posts, and DMs Unpacked (in 4 minutes) and 7-Minute, Notes in a Nutshell.
The best advice I can give you about your comments thread
I did an excellent live with
and yesterday. Both David and Gregory have active comments sections.You can watch our live here and below!
Below is some of the amazing advice they had and what I’ve seen work for hundreds of my private clients.
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