My regular readers probably know that I'm keenly interested in certain "metrics" and am constantly looking for key Substack metrics and data (because I think it's so important that Substack serve as a counter-force to the captured MSM).
I recently identified my key metric, expressed in the simplest formula: I just need to average two paid subscriptions for every story I post.
But one or two Founders Level subscribers would of course alleviate any monthly fund-raising chores or concerns.
My greatest asset is the fact I actually have almost 5,500 unpaid subscribers. That's the pond I'm fishing in!
I got a feeling you gonna catch some fish willing to contribute, but I also think seriously there might be some "Angels" watching........and then it depends I reckon on whether SubStack is beholden - if it is, then I'm sure there are other forums, but I hope it ain't.
Either way - I pledge support to your efforts cause these days a good journalist is a rare commodity and hard to find - not as hard as it is to find a good lawyer - are there any of them I wonder sometimes..... - but you get my point - the Angels are out there and some of them reveal themselves when you walk in the forest and it has nothing to do with mammon is what I honestly think Bill - I think you are a fine outstanding and upstanding man with merit - and I suspect your Alabama family is a big part of that.
Seriously - I applaud it - so hopefully you ain't living month-to-month and eventually I suspect good journalism will pay for itself.
Maybe you can't "bank that" but I think you can bank on it in principle.
So hang tight - together we are better is what I think.
that is way beyond my reach LOL. That is about my monthly income! From that I have to pay everything, food for myself and the animals, house maintenance, insurance, phone and internet connection, which goes up every 2 or 3 months....
Dang. I thought for sure you were a multi-millionaire with a lake home, beach home and four or five philanthropies you supported .... Just kidding.
This pitch is not for .... everyone. But the monthly subs, $50 subs and Ko-fi gratuities all add up. I also love the new free subscribers because, over time, 4.5 percent of those upgrade to paid. Plus, you just like your articles to actually be read by real, live human beings.
My Richard Hirschman story was read by 8,500 people (and it wasn't picked up by Citizen Free Press. That was all Substack - with a nice boost from The Daily Sceptic).
%80n complied because unless you are homeschooled or a special kind of private school (i.e. parochial school) you were conditioned for 12 years to not question authority. The whole western education system is built around producing productive workers for the upper class. You'd have to be strong willed/minded to go to public school and escape the indoctrination.
$1,500 monthly is no small shortfall. I know that if I ever won the lottery I'd sure as hell spread it around some to a number of pro US Constitutional entities. I believe a key reason our side appears to have less financial backing is because there's not really anything in place to put donor and do'er together as their is for all teh elites pet projects like Climate Change. We need a parallel system so we can opt out of theirs but it's going to take state level governance to bring it about b/c no one else stands a chance against the feds.
I've been sitting on a Big Idea for a while, which I'm going to share with my readers pretty soon. I'm going to throw it out there to the (Substack) world.
Basically, I can make all my payments if we have about $6,200 coming in every month. I'm about $1,500/short. My wife's teacher salary is actually supporting my Substack work, but teachers in Alabama don't make a lot of money.
It's not the end of the world. Surely, I can come up with a plan/program to boost my revenue by $1,500/month. For the last two months, this plan has been - "do another subscription drive."
But if I could just average two new paid subs with every article I post, I wouldn't need to do this.
I'm probably sharing too much personal info ... but I use myself as an example for a typical, full-time Substack author. The bigger issue is Substack, as important a writer platform as it is, is really not the answer for the vast majority of freelance journalists.
With a few exceptions, Substack is for people who like to write that don't necessarily need to make any income from their writing.
Is it not Journalist friendly b/c of how much money it and Stripe takes between them (%13 I believe) or is it something else? I ask b/c I thought many independent journos had been existing to substack with teh likes of Seymour Hersh and Matt Talibi.
Yes, Substack and Stripe take 13 percent of your paid subscription (which is fine with me. I get 87 percent).
Hersch and Matt are the exceptions that almost-instantly brought huge numbers of followers with them. They are the examples Substack can roll out, saying you can "get rich on Substack." It's probably 1 in 1000 Substack authors who can make more than $50,000/year.
99.5 percent of Substack authors make less than $20,000/year would be my bet.
... Which is a tease that leads me to my "Big Idea" - Plan B in case Substack can't support enough independent, freelance journalists.
Well lets keep in mind that people who make good $$ via something online usually didn't start out that way. A number of YT's biggest were nothing at the start. They stuck it thru and who knows what the near future may hold for Substack and independent journalism. I'm still pushing for TX to secede and take a few other states with it and bug out before the corrupt political establishment crashes it all or starts WW3.
The Neocons are salivating to get WW3 going so like in WW2 they can use it as an excuse to dismiss debts, debts they know can't really be repaid at least not if the elites are going to keep getting their cut of the $$ stolen from the public coffers. If they can't get WW3 going they'll face a crash with no way out. They'll be fine b/c they'll leave us hanging but at least in that scenario there's no Nuclear fallout to deal with on top of it all. Personally I think the push back against wart w/Russia is proving much more than they planned for. Ideally I'd love for them to just do as past generations did and step back and pause for a decade or 2. At least that will give me a couple of decades to move on or get better prepared.
Yes. I'm glad he's raising money and fighting this because I'm sure it will adversely effect my Substack business, if it hasn't already.
I always try to put myself in the shoes of my adversary. I think they've decided they can't let Substack's "resistance" continue to grow and score significant hits against all the faux narratives. I've learned from how they laid the groundwork for the pandemic, how they slowly change rules and laws and capture certain key industries to get the result they want.
I don't know what Substack's position is. I'm sure they are being presented many carrots to "play ball." How did they take-over or change the Drudge Report so significantly?
Its seems it would be in the interest of "Angel Investors" in Substack of which I am one - $2000 mind ya (ha, ha......"chump change" but nonetheless)......that Substack would be advised to have more than one provider of financial services - that is assuming "Stripe" don't own Substack - what is it fellas? Are you beholden - did you sign an exclusive contract for fiscal matters with "Stripe" - if so, I reckon I pissed away two thousand dollars.....oh well, but any good business entity knows - best not to get in bed with a single banker - make them compete against each other - better prices that way - but I'm think that maybe Stripe does own Substack.
Who owns Stripe I ponder?
Is it "WeFunder" or an associated entity?
Seriously - if the name of the game is sharing of ideas, then tis best not to get in bed with any banker whatsoever....
I ain't gonna pay $1500 to maintain my "founders" subscription and I think if somebody pays that amount it ought be "lifetime".....but if it is lifetime, perhaps you can raise the price to $5000 - that will cover more than 3 months.....and there might be some angels out there willing to contribute as such.
In general I think it is a "sharp idea", but I ain't got the funds for that - still.....it makes sense to appeal to big pockets I reckon as long as you don't let them get in the way of good journalism.
This is one of my current Founding Level Subscribers. I have three. I also have another angel supporter who prefers to remain anonymous.
BK, As far as I'm concerned, you've got a life-time subscription. You don't need to upgrade or spend any more $ than you already have ... Then again, if you hit the lottery and are in a generous mood ....
And if you did win the lottery, the state and local government would take 50-percent off the top of "your" winnings. And they don't pay the advertised jackpot either. That's only if you accept equal payments over 20 years - in which case inflation would steal at least 60 percent of your winnings.
I wrote about this in my piece, "The government has taken over all the Mob's best rackets." That's one of my favorite articles.
I used to like to bet on an occassional college football game (never too much) ... but I've cut that out. Fortunately, I don't play poker. I learned basic flush and stud poker in third grade, but these games all my buddies play are completely Greek to me.
My wife and I play Gin Rummy for a penny a point. I taught her to play and used to beat her every time. Now she beats me half the time!
Thanks, Joseph. It's kind of embarrassing to ask for subscriptions (really donations) every month. Then again, it's not too embarrassing. I'm a big fan of Del Bigtree's "The Highwire" podcast show. In every weekly show, Del spends at least five minutes asking for donations from supporters. He asks for $27/month recurring gifts, which is an annual commitment of about $320/year. I noticed he also asked for major gifts from those who are in a position to do that. That appeal never offends me and I understand why he's doing it and think his donors are helping him make a difference. I finally decided I could do the same thing every 15 or 16 articles I write.
I hope these asks don't turn off too many readers.
Right, Dennis. For you, it would be upgrading to the new Founders Level. You wouldn't need to "renew" for another $250 in October.
I actually view this as a one-time "gift" - a major gift at that. It's definitely not monthly. As you know, you or anyone in the world can get all my stories for free as long as readers want.
The Founders are basically subsidizing - making possible - the writing of the authors they think are important and worth supporting.
Thanks for your past support and consistent encouragement, Dennis.
>>>>>SHARE<<<<<< THIS WITH AS MANY SUBSTACKERS AS YOU CAN!
We need to COLLECTIVELY PUSH BACK on this and tell SUBSTACK that this kind of ABUSE is unacceptable!
BTW, I will be on a panel this Thursday (Jason Lavigne Show) alongside Dr. Malone to talk about censorship & e5th generation warfare. Will try to bring up this specific topic if I can.
I'm glad you are helping fight for our side, Dan. Keep us posted. My vibe is s/t major is changing - that our adversaries are working a multi-pronged plan to neuter Substack and the authors it perceives as threats to their agendas.
I read Dr. Malone's piece with great interest as it jibes with my essay of two months ago "Something has changed at Substack."
That "something" seems to be changes at Stripe, which is Substack's big payment processor.
I pray that Substack doesn't go wobbly on its commitment to free speech. If it does, our side is in trouble.
... But, no I haven't heard from Dr. Malone. I definitely support his legal efforts to stop any possible funny business that may be going on. My Spider Sense tells me "they" are targetting writers like Malone ... and maybe me. There's few Substackers who have challenged the conventional wisdodm as much as I have ... Or published stories the Establishment doesn't want the public to see - Like my last two stories.
I don't know for sure if I have been targetted. I do know my "Open Rate" has plummeted and my growth of total subscribers has fallen off a cliff. Many paid subscriptions don't go through. It's hard to prove or know for sure. I am convinced that the people I am fighting - or trying to expose - would use any means to harpoon people like me. They already have. They have infiltrated all the key organizations.
Malone's tidbit about Substack's new "poltical" consultant - with the WP and CNN background - is not hope-inspiring.
The bottom-line for me is that it would not fit the m.o. of these people to just "leave Substack alone." Especially since Substack authors are fouling up or fighting so many of their plans.
"275 paid subscribers out of 5,746"? That's about 5%.
Subscribers come and go: the average counts.
The average paid subscription rate on Substack is about 1-3%, so the 5% is pretty good. Also, as the article suggests, there is a difference between founding members, annual prepaid, and monthlies. I have 25 paid subscriptions for about 2,400 subscriptions (plus over a hundred followers, but I still haven't figured out what the heck that means), but I am charging more, although everything on my site is free. If I calculate it at $6/mo, I have about 68 "virtual" subscriptions, which is pretty good for something that is free. :)
I think My "paid" ratio is much better than most Substack authors. That's good. The alarming trend is that my number of total new monthly subscribers has dramatically decreased in the last four or five months.
And I only get a big boost in paid subscribers ... when I do a direct appeal .... Thus, this story today.
I'm a contrarian. Substack trends are worth following. If they get Substack - or neutralize it - that's Bad News for the Good Guys imo.
I've got some encouraging readership numbers I can share.
My last story - on the cath-lab whistleblower - has already been read by more than 7,000 people.
My previous story on embalmer Richard Hirschman has been read by more than 8,700 people.
Neither story was picked up by Citizen Free Press so these are almost all "Substack readers."
Those numbers will continue to grow too. Thanks for everyone who shared or cross-posted those stories. Part 2 of my Richard feature should be up tomorrow or the day after tomorrow.
I just got another "news tip" from a knowledgeable source that's going to give me another interesting exclusive.
Make too much and Trudeau et al will want their cut too...which means you'll be directly sponsoring the World Economic 'Forum'...not by choice, of course
I might've left a comment on a post here a while back mentioning the people who offer tiered subscriptions, with their involvement with the subscriber going up at the subscription level goes up.
You could offer a "lunch at Sister’s or The Half Shell" as a bonus for a higher-level subscription.
For what it's worth I have a 'Pine Gap Special.' group discount - 20% off if you sign up with your friends. No one has taken me up on it but I did it in honour of all the jerks in ASIO who monitor me. I should print out cards for my next in-person visit :/
My regular readers probably know that I'm keenly interested in certain "metrics" and am constantly looking for key Substack metrics and data (because I think it's so important that Substack serve as a counter-force to the captured MSM).
I recently identified my key metric, expressed in the simplest formula: I just need to average two paid subscriptions for every story I post.
But one or two Founders Level subscribers would of course alleviate any monthly fund-raising chores or concerns.
My greatest asset is the fact I actually have almost 5,500 unpaid subscribers. That's the pond I'm fishing in!
I got a feeling you gonna catch some fish willing to contribute, but I also think seriously there might be some "Angels" watching........and then it depends I reckon on whether SubStack is beholden - if it is, then I'm sure there are other forums, but I hope it ain't.
Either way - I pledge support to your efforts cause these days a good journalist is a rare commodity and hard to find - not as hard as it is to find a good lawyer - are there any of them I wonder sometimes..... - but you get my point - the Angels are out there and some of them reveal themselves when you walk in the forest and it has nothing to do with mammon is what I honestly think Bill - I think you are a fine outstanding and upstanding man with merit - and I suspect your Alabama family is a big part of that.
Seriously - I applaud it - so hopefully you ain't living month-to-month and eventually I suspect good journalism will pay for itself.
Maybe you can't "bank that" but I think you can bank on it in principle.
So hang tight - together we are better is what I think.
Ken
If you get your $1,500 subscriber, it will be the CIA, and they'll own you at that point!
It's like Butch said in "Buch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid"
"If they would just pay me the amount they are spending to keep me from robbing their trains ... I'd stop robbing their trains."
that is way beyond my reach LOL. That is about my monthly income! From that I have to pay everything, food for myself and the animals, house maintenance, insurance, phone and internet connection, which goes up every 2 or 3 months....
Dang. I thought for sure you were a multi-millionaire with a lake home, beach home and four or five philanthropies you supported .... Just kidding.
This pitch is not for .... everyone. But the monthly subs, $50 subs and Ko-fi gratuities all add up. I also love the new free subscribers because, over time, 4.5 percent of those upgrade to paid. Plus, you just like your articles to actually be read by real, live human beings.
My Richard Hirschman story was read by 8,500 people (and it wasn't picked up by Citizen Free Press. That was all Substack - with a nice boost from The Daily Sceptic).
%80n complied because unless you are homeschooled or a special kind of private school (i.e. parochial school) you were conditioned for 12 years to not question authority. The whole western education system is built around producing productive workers for the upper class. You'd have to be strong willed/minded to go to public school and escape the indoctrination.
$1,500 monthly is no small shortfall. I know that if I ever won the lottery I'd sure as hell spread it around some to a number of pro US Constitutional entities. I believe a key reason our side appears to have less financial backing is because there's not really anything in place to put donor and do'er together as their is for all teh elites pet projects like Climate Change. We need a parallel system so we can opt out of theirs but it's going to take state level governance to bring it about b/c no one else stands a chance against the feds.
I've been sitting on a Big Idea for a while, which I'm going to share with my readers pretty soon. I'm going to throw it out there to the (Substack) world.
Founder's subscriptions are yearly. I don't know any who would pay $1500 monthly...lol.
I wasn't going to assume and since the post read as
"I didn’t pick the figure $1,500 out of the air. I selected it because that seems to be my monthly living-expense shortfall these days"
I interpreted that as a monthly figure not annual or even 1 time
Basically, I can make all my payments if we have about $6,200 coming in every month. I'm about $1,500/short. My wife's teacher salary is actually supporting my Substack work, but teachers in Alabama don't make a lot of money.
It's not the end of the world. Surely, I can come up with a plan/program to boost my revenue by $1,500/month. For the last two months, this plan has been - "do another subscription drive."
But if I could just average two new paid subs with every article I post, I wouldn't need to do this.
I'm probably sharing too much personal info ... but I use myself as an example for a typical, full-time Substack author. The bigger issue is Substack, as important a writer platform as it is, is really not the answer for the vast majority of freelance journalists.
With a few exceptions, Substack is for people who like to write that don't necessarily need to make any income from their writing.
Is it not Journalist friendly b/c of how much money it and Stripe takes between them (%13 I believe) or is it something else? I ask b/c I thought many independent journos had been existing to substack with teh likes of Seymour Hersh and Matt Talibi.
Yes, Substack and Stripe take 13 percent of your paid subscription (which is fine with me. I get 87 percent).
Hersch and Matt are the exceptions that almost-instantly brought huge numbers of followers with them. They are the examples Substack can roll out, saying you can "get rich on Substack." It's probably 1 in 1000 Substack authors who can make more than $50,000/year.
99.5 percent of Substack authors make less than $20,000/year would be my bet.
... Which is a tease that leads me to my "Big Idea" - Plan B in case Substack can't support enough independent, freelance journalists.
Well lets keep in mind that people who make good $$ via something online usually didn't start out that way. A number of YT's biggest were nothing at the start. They stuck it thru and who knows what the near future may hold for Substack and independent journalism. I'm still pushing for TX to secede and take a few other states with it and bug out before the corrupt political establishment crashes it all or starts WW3.
The Neocons are salivating to get WW3 going so like in WW2 they can use it as an excuse to dismiss debts, debts they know can't really be repaid at least not if the elites are going to keep getting their cut of the $$ stolen from the public coffers. If they can't get WW3 going they'll face a crash with no way out. They'll be fine b/c they'll leave us hanging but at least in that scenario there's no Nuclear fallout to deal with on top of it all. Personally I think the push back against wart w/Russia is proving much more than they planned for. Ideally I'd love for them to just do as past generations did and step back and pause for a decade or 2. At least that will give me a couple of decades to move on or get better prepared.
Did you catch this in Malones stack?
https://rwmalonemd.substack.com/p/stripe-substack-demand-financial?r=z3pgv&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post&triedRedirect=true
Yes. I'm glad he's raising money and fighting this because I'm sure it will adversely effect my Substack business, if it hasn't already.
I always try to put myself in the shoes of my adversary. I think they've decided they can't let Substack's "resistance" continue to grow and score significant hits against all the faux narratives. I've learned from how they laid the groundwork for the pandemic, how they slowly change rules and laws and capture certain key industries to get the result they want.
I don't know what Substack's position is. I'm sure they are being presented many carrots to "play ball." How did they take-over or change the Drudge Report so significantly?
Its seems it would be in the interest of "Angel Investors" in Substack of which I am one - $2000 mind ya (ha, ha......"chump change" but nonetheless)......that Substack would be advised to have more than one provider of financial services - that is assuming "Stripe" don't own Substack - what is it fellas? Are you beholden - did you sign an exclusive contract for fiscal matters with "Stripe" - if so, I reckon I pissed away two thousand dollars.....oh well, but any good business entity knows - best not to get in bed with a single banker - make them compete against each other - better prices that way - but I'm think that maybe Stripe does own Substack.
Who owns Stripe I ponder?
Is it "WeFunder" or an associated entity?
Seriously - if the name of the game is sharing of ideas, then tis best not to get in bed with any banker whatsoever....
~
d
u
h
I ain't gonna pay $1500 to maintain my "founders" subscription and I think if somebody pays that amount it ought be "lifetime".....but if it is lifetime, perhaps you can raise the price to $5000 - that will cover more than 3 months.....and there might be some angels out there willing to contribute as such.
In general I think it is a "sharp idea", but I ain't got the funds for that - still.....it makes sense to appeal to big pockets I reckon as long as you don't let them get in the way of good journalism.
Best to you Bill.
Ken
This is one of my current Founding Level Subscribers. I have three. I also have another angel supporter who prefers to remain anonymous.
BK, As far as I'm concerned, you've got a life-time subscription. You don't need to upgrade or spend any more $ than you already have ... Then again, if you hit the lottery and are in a generous mood ....
I am always in a "generous mood" I'd like to think, but Bill - you and I know - for us "regular" folk - money don't grow on trees!
(ha, ha)
thanks,
Ken
And if you did win the lottery, the state and local government would take 50-percent off the top of "your" winnings. And they don't pay the advertised jackpot either. That's only if you accept equal payments over 20 years - in which case inflation would steal at least 60 percent of your winnings.
I wrote about this in my piece, "The government has taken over all the Mob's best rackets." That's one of my favorite articles.
I enjoy gambling - but with friends only - small stake poker games and such!
I enjoy your SubStack and I'm willing to pay!
Ken
ps - I'm listening to this just now - oh boy - Johnny Carson episodes are now apparently "allowed" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3e5SNae-xWc
pss - this one really is funny: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJKHb8DNmKA
I used to like to bet on an occassional college football game (never too much) ... but I've cut that out. Fortunately, I don't play poker. I learned basic flush and stud poker in third grade, but these games all my buddies play are completely Greek to me.
My wife and I play Gin Rummy for a penny a point. I taught her to play and used to beat her every time. Now she beats me half the time!
That's definitely bold, and I wish you luck on that.
Thanks, Joseph. It's kind of embarrassing to ask for subscriptions (really donations) every month. Then again, it's not too embarrassing. I'm a big fan of Del Bigtree's "The Highwire" podcast show. In every weekly show, Del spends at least five minutes asking for donations from supporters. He asks for $27/month recurring gifts, which is an annual commitment of about $320/year. I noticed he also asked for major gifts from those who are in a position to do that. That appeal never offends me and I understand why he's doing it and think his donors are helping him make a difference. I finally decided I could do the same thing every 15 or 16 articles I write.
I hope these asks don't turn off too many readers.
Doesn't turn me off. It's a hard topic to broach and I genuinely feel like you have done it well.
It feels great when you are blessed with some fortune and can afford to invest in others too, so no shame.
I won't lie I felt a religious joy when I read it. "Ask and you shall recieve". I'll put a prayer God's word is fulfilled with you for your courage.
Thanks, Joseph. I do have this strange peace that God's going to look after me ... or helps those who try to help themselves.
I just hope "writing on Substack" is what I'm supposed to be doing. I think it is.
I also think that if you are doing a good job, you should get paid. I haven't looked into founder's set up. Is that a one time fee, or a yearly?
Yearly ... although anybody that does this gets a life-time "subscripiton" as far as I'm concerned.
I have noticed other Substackers who have bumped their Founders Level figures to similar donor levels.
Bill,
I believe it takes courage in today's world to make a difference. I hope you are successful.
How does it work for me as a founder until October? The new rate at renewal?
The $1,500 is the new annual (replacing $250) right? Not MONTHLY.....
Right, Dennis. For you, it would be upgrading to the new Founders Level. You wouldn't need to "renew" for another $250 in October.
I actually view this as a one-time "gift" - a major gift at that. It's definitely not monthly. As you know, you or anyone in the world can get all my stories for free as long as readers want.
The Founders are basically subsidizing - making possible - the writing of the authors they think are important and worth supporting.
Thanks for your past support and consistent encouragement, Dennis.
Bill, off-topic but >>>>>>>>>>>VERY IMPORTANT<<<<<<<<<<<:
Read this post from Dr. Malone posted today:
- Stripe, Substack Demand Financial Details from Authors
https://rwmalonemd.substack.com/p/stripe-substack-demand-financial
As Substack authors we could be targeted next!
I tweeted about this just moments ago: https://twitter.com/DanFour09653856/status/1769848195134460356
>>>>>SHARE<<<<<< THIS WITH AS MANY SUBSTACKERS AS YOU CAN!
We need to COLLECTIVELY PUSH BACK on this and tell SUBSTACK that this kind of ABUSE is unacceptable!
BTW, I will be on a panel this Thursday (Jason Lavigne Show) alongside Dr. Malone to talk about censorship & e5th generation warfare. Will try to bring up this specific topic if I can.
Hope all is well south of the border my friend.
I'm glad you are helping fight for our side, Dan. Keep us posted. My vibe is s/t major is changing - that our adversaries are working a multi-pronged plan to neuter Substack and the authors it perceives as threats to their agendas.
Indeed. They are going full-throttle.
Dr. Robert Malone just posted a piece about Stripe/Substack wanting pretty much all history of Substack authors transactional history...and bank account info - https://rwmalonemd.substack.com/p/stripe-substack-demand-financial?publication_id=583200&post_id=142719366&isFreemail=true&r=l3nzx&triedRedirect=true
Just curious...were you contacted? How do you think this new and improved policy might impact your subscriber base?
Sorry, retired and on what's left of investments and SS these days. Will never be a founder.
I read Dr. Malone's piece with great interest as it jibes with my essay of two months ago "Something has changed at Substack."
That "something" seems to be changes at Stripe, which is Substack's big payment processor.
I pray that Substack doesn't go wobbly on its commitment to free speech. If it does, our side is in trouble.
... But, no I haven't heard from Dr. Malone. I definitely support his legal efforts to stop any possible funny business that may be going on. My Spider Sense tells me "they" are targetting writers like Malone ... and maybe me. There's few Substackers who have challenged the conventional wisdodm as much as I have ... Or published stories the Establishment doesn't want the public to see - Like my last two stories.
I was asking if you have been asked (targeted) by Stripe/Substack, as has Malone, to provide detailed account information? It seems not?
Substack needs to come out with a clear delineation of it's stance regarding free speech.
I don't know for sure if I have been targetted. I do know my "Open Rate" has plummeted and my growth of total subscribers has fallen off a cliff. Many paid subscriptions don't go through. It's hard to prove or know for sure. I am convinced that the people I am fighting - or trying to expose - would use any means to harpoon people like me. They already have. They have infiltrated all the key organizations.
Malone's tidbit about Substack's new "poltical" consultant - with the WP and CNN background - is not hope-inspiring.
The bottom-line for me is that it would not fit the m.o. of these people to just "leave Substack alone." Especially since Substack authors are fouling up or fighting so many of their plans.
"275 paid subscribers out of 5,746"? That's about 5%.
Subscribers come and go: the average counts.
The average paid subscription rate on Substack is about 1-3%, so the 5% is pretty good. Also, as the article suggests, there is a difference between founding members, annual prepaid, and monthlies. I have 25 paid subscriptions for about 2,400 subscriptions (plus over a hundred followers, but I still haven't figured out what the heck that means), but I am charging more, although everything on my site is free. If I calculate it at $6/mo, I have about 68 "virtual" subscriptions, which is pretty good for something that is free. :)
I think My "paid" ratio is much better than most Substack authors. That's good. The alarming trend is that my number of total new monthly subscribers has dramatically decreased in the last four or five months.
And I only get a big boost in paid subscribers ... when I do a direct appeal .... Thus, this story today.
I'm a contrarian. Substack trends are worth following. If they get Substack - or neutralize it - that's Bad News for the Good Guys imo.
I've got some encouraging readership numbers I can share.
My last story - on the cath-lab whistleblower - has already been read by more than 7,000 people.
My previous story on embalmer Richard Hirschman has been read by more than 8,700 people.
Neither story was picked up by Citizen Free Press so these are almost all "Substack readers."
Those numbers will continue to grow too. Thanks for everyone who shared or cross-posted those stories. Part 2 of my Richard feature should be up tomorrow or the day after tomorrow.
I just got another "news tip" from a knowledgeable source that's going to give me another interesting exclusive.
Make too much and Trudeau et al will want their cut too...which means you'll be directly sponsoring the World Economic 'Forum'...not by choice, of course
https://www.canada.ca/en/revenue-agency/programs/about-canada-revenue-agency-cra/compliance/platform-economy/social-media-influencers.html
Ha! Jokes on them. According to the Australian government I'm not an influencer I'm a terrorist.
I might've left a comment on a post here a while back mentioning the people who offer tiered subscriptions, with their involvement with the subscriber going up at the subscription level goes up.
You could offer a "lunch at Sister’s or The Half Shell" as a bonus for a higher-level subscription.
Bill I recommend reading this:
https://rwmalonemd.substack.com/p/stripe-substack-demand-financial
Bill, this is great!
For what it's worth I have a 'Pine Gap Special.' group discount - 20% off if you sign up with your friends. No one has taken me up on it but I did it in honour of all the jerks in ASIO who monitor me. I should print out cards for my next in-person visit :/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pine_Gap
You should have a NSA-CIA special.