Set up your Substack

- [Instructor] Let's get you set up on Substack. Now I'm going to go through some steps on how you can make Substack yours, from the look and feel to the title and the description. Don't worry, you don't have to publish a newsletter yet. Get a feel for the platform and see what others are doing to get inspired. I recommend heading over to substack.com/discover and it's here you can see what other writers are writing about. You can choose different genres or niches to get familiar with some of the most popular Substack publications. So let's dive into some of the most important pieces for your Substack publication. By going over them, we can really start brainstorming and you'll be ready to go after you sign up. The first step is to pick a title and a unique URL. Your title is the name of your newsletter. You'll want to find that sweet spot of it being specific so that people know what to expect but broad enough that you don't force yourself into talking about just one subject. You have to know and realize that growth is going to be inevitable. If you are an individual creator, this can mean that you use your own name in some variation. For example, Nicole Knows, Lenny's Newsletter a really popular Substack newsletter, as well as Kevan Lee by Kevan Lee. Don't be afraid to use your own name if you are an individual creator. You could also use an existing podcast name. Perhaps you have a popular blog or even a company that has its own brand identity. Or, this is the fun part, you could come up with something brand new. Some examples are Flow State, so every weekday they send out a recommendation of music that's perfect for working. Or Not Boring. That's a number one business newsletter on Substack. These are just some examples to get you thinking. I also love DrawTogether with WendyMac. Very obvious what you are going to receive in this publication. Next is creating a logo. So this is your newsletter avatar. Your logo should be square and at least 256 by 256 pixels. It is a smaller image on Substack, so you're going to want to be sure that it looks good shrunk down. That means you don't want anything with too much detail. Of course, headshots work great for personal or individual newsletters and branded logos work really well for branded publications. Your next step when setting up your Substack is writing a short description. This one-line, so it's really small, one-line description appears on your welcome page and this is where new visitors can view it. Your description should clearly describe the value your newsletter provides and what people are going to get out of reading it. So seek to answer the question, who reads your newsletter and why? This might take some time to write. I always suggest doing a stream of consciousness, even if it is too long, right? Even if it is a couple paragraphs. And then you can pull out the really important key themes and then shorten, shorten, shorten. Next is your About page. So this is a longer version of your bio and this is where people learn more about you, what your publication is about so what your content is going to be what you're writing about, your background. And you can also add things like your publishing frequency, testimonials as well as paid newsletter perks. This About page is going to be one of the most important pages in your Substack. It basically helps readers be convinced on why they should subscribe or even become paid subscribers. And if you are starting a paid newsletter, this is where you'll tell your readers what they'll be getting for subscribing. The more clear it is, the better. People want to know what they're going to get out of this relationship. Now, you are going to also want to edit your thank you for subscribing email. This email goes out to anybody who is signed up to receive your newsletter, whether it's free or paid. This is your opportunity to not only thank them for signing up, but to encourage them to take further action. If they're a free subscriber perhaps you encourage them to move into the paid category. Perhaps you highlight some of your most popular posts so they know where to get started in reading your content. You could also include the paid subscriber benefits so they know what they're missing, as well as ask for feedback or input or get them to respond back to say, you know, to ask you questions that you will answer in future newsletters. Now, all of these steps will help you get started. This is where you are going to build a really solid platform for your subscribers and your publication. So definitely work through these steps and then your next step is to head to Substack and sign up. Fill in your name and your bio. You can always change and edit this later, so don't let that hold you back. Set up your newsletter by selecting start writing, create your publication account, and get excited. This is a really exciting adventure for writers and creators.