Newsletters aren’t a new concept, and remain essential to many publishers for connecting with readers. However, the emergence of sites like Substack has enabled many journalists to set up their own newsletters, building up their own following, and subscriber list, in the process.

Two journalists that have done this to great success are Peter Geoghegan, co-founder of The Ferret and former editor-in-chief of openDemocracy, and Henry Winter, former chief football writer at The Times and football correspondent at The Telegraph. In a webinar from the Civic Journalism Lab at Newcastle University, both shared tips and advice on how to make the most of this current boom in newsletters.

The power of recommendation and collaboration

The old adage with journalism is that it’s not about what you know, but who you know. When it comes to Substack, that’s still the case, according to both Peter and Henry:

‘Recommendations from other substackers is key’, Henry said, adding; ‘It’s a good community like that, and within a week of being on there, I had messages from other substackers wanting to recommend me’. Peter also had a similar experience:

‘People recommending my Substack, and me recommending other people’s Substack in turn, is a very big way of driving sign ups. 50% of those who subscribe are from the platform, and that’s because it’s recommending them newsletters to subscribe to in weekly round-up emails.’

They both agreed that this was a better way of driving traffic to their newsletters than traditional social media such as X (formerly Twitter). Peter has also had success through collaborating as well: 

‘We work with people in third sector organisations and we work with other journalism outlets. And because we aren’t seen as a threat, then we can work easily with other outlets. This way, the stories can have more impact’.

Paywall vs no paywall

More readers are paying for journalism, but should all of your articles be behind a paywall? For Peter, and his Democracy for Sale newsletter, he has chosen not to have a paywall: 

‘We don’t have a paywall. I’m very keen that our stories go as far as they can. I think during this growth phase, it’s important that as many people read your stories as possible. When we ask people to subscribe, we’re asking them to help us keep this work free if they can afford to do so’.

Henry’s newsletter, Henry Winter’s Goal Posts, is run slightly differently: 

‘From the start of this year, I’ve been doing three a week: one free on a Monday, which is a wrap of the weekend’s stories, and then two (one on a Wednesday and one on a Friday) which are paid’. 

However, Henry does still post stories for free if he feels they are big enough, for example an interview with Marcus Rashford about wanting to leave Manchester United.

In both Peter and Henry’s case though, they have gained an impressive amount of subscribers (20,000 and 11,000 respectively) due to already having a large following in their respective journalistic fields. Peter said:

‘I don’t know how I would go about doing this if I didn’t have a pre-existing audience or people who know me for a certain type of work.’

Henry added that he believes ‘those with a large following, especially in UK politics, will migrate to Substack and leave newspapers to do so’.

Being in control and talking to readers

An advantage to having your own Substack or newsletter is that you’re in control of the content that goes out. Henry has found that he can have a greater variety in his football writing, saying ‘I can go and write about non-league, I can write about all elements of the pyramid or I can go and write about unknown players’. He gave the example of writing about his visit to Buchenwald during the Euros, and how he didn’t believe that a newspaper would publish that from a football writer.

He also mentioned the advantage of being able to speak to subscribers directly, and how speaking to fans of different football clubs helps generate new ideas and stories. This direct interaction with readers is an area that Peter has enjoyed, too:

‘We have done two surveys which I think have been very effective. They give an opportunity for readers to have their say but also give a bit more depth. They also allow us to turn those responses into stories and use them as analysis for what our readers think.’

He added that it also allows readers to give their feedback on the content and articles being produced, and it’s a way of bringing in new subscribers, too.

Keen to start up your own newsletter but in need of an expert or case study for the first piece? Send a request via the Journalist Enquiry Service to get the responses you need.