When I started Most Ardently, I only expected a handful of subscribers that I knew by name scattered across the US. But as I sit here now preparing our August letters, I’m amazed that I’m writing to 52 of you across four countries and 15 different states. This growth would never have been possible without the incredible community of creatives, writers, and readers here on Substack — thank you from the bottom of my heart.
As we enter into our fifth month of business, I wanted to share a peek behind the curtain for anyone thinking about starting their own mail club. I’ve already messaged with so many young creatives looking for advice and inspiration, so I thought having a free resource live on my page could be helpful. As always - if there’s anything I forget to touch on, please leave a comment!
Essentially, don’t put all of your eggs into one basket. I’ve loved using Substack as the home for my mail club, however, since it is a digital newsletter hub, it doesn’t automatically collect mailing addresses at checkout.
So, that required me to set up an email auto-reply welcome email to chase new subscribers for their addresses. It’s not a huge hurdle, but when you’re a small business with one (1) employee, any slight bit of friction can hold up the whole workflow.
I’d recommend setting up a recurring subscription through another platform like Stripe or Shopify, and to use Substack as a channel for discovery. I'm rolling out a fix for this next week — I’ll share all the details soon!
Not to be Debbie Downer but realistically, there will be a printer error, you will run out of stamps on a Sunday, or simply life will just happen and things won’t go according to plan. That’s okay.
In July, I decided to add a white border to my postcards for the first time and switch from my local print shop, whose prices went up, to a more affordable online printer. In hindsight, I shouldn’t have tried to do both of these things at once. It resulted in three misprints, a two week delay, and ultimately I sent out the July postcards on the eighth day of August.
I’m still working out the kinks of my printing process — if you have a go-to local custom printer in NYC, let me know — I may wind up just investing in a printer and producing the cards myself. The key here is experimenting early, giving yourself ample time for trial and error, and of course giving yourself a little grace. People signed up because they believe in what you’re doing and want to support your creative process. They’d rather receive something late than something half-assed and rushed.
Follow your instincts and lean into what you’re passionate about. The Big Fear that will try to haunt you in the beginning: nobody wants this. Nobody cares, someone else is already doing it, I have nothing new to say. If you believed these lies about any other aspect of your life, you wouldn’t be able to get out of bed.
So I offer the other side of the coin — how dare you think you are so uniquely niche that no one would be interested in what you have to say? News flash, you’re not that special. (Complimentary)
My biggest and brightest friendships are the ones where we can talk for hours about some weird shared interest, favorite band, cult classic movie, or place that only we have in common. You will find your fellow weirdos. And hey, maybe you aren’t weird. Maybe you’re really cool, chic, and pretentious. You’ll find your people too, I promise.
One of the greatest joys of running a creative small business is the amount of unbelievably talented, kind, and thoughtful humans you meet along the way. It’s impossible to count the number of people I have met over the years, just by being a creative sharing my work online.
It’s easy to feel overwhelmed and even jealous of other mail clubs you see thriving online. I know as soon as I decided to start, my algorithm started overloading my feeds with others doing the same thing, in bigger, brighter, louder ways — but that should serve as inspiration and encouragement. You’re not trying to beat them, you want to join them.
Since starting my mail club, I’ve joined two others (Yellow Socks by Mackenna Overholt and The Print Post Club by Lizzy Robinson) and plan to join more soon. We may all be in a similar category, but our outputs vary greatly: Mackenna sends unique and vibrant art pieces each month and Lizzy sketches, paints, and designs prints that range from pastoral scenes and still lifes, to fun interactive pieces like a summer bingo card. Investing even a small portion of my proceeds each month into other small creatives is fun and fulfilling. I feel excited to be able to share the love and also receive a new goodie in the mail each month.
This goes beyond mail clubs, but whenever I get overwhelmed with the process, or comparison, or where this project is going, nothing helps more than leaving my phone at home and changing locations.
Put physical distance between you and the internet.
Go to a cafe, park, your best friend’s house, I don’t care. I promise you’ll feel better almost instantly. Sure, you may itch to reach in your pocket and pick up your little screen that isn’t there — that’s why it’s at home. If your thoughts are still racing, write them down. Speak them out loud even if you have to.
The key here is not letting yourself google every question and fear and get caught up in your own worries. Remind yourself you’re in the real world, and good things take time. Plus, you’re running a mail club — one of the most tactile, analog activities you can have. Yes, the internet can be a helpful resource, but you can likely find an answer to your problem in your own head, work it out with your hands, or find new inspiration outside your front door.
Thank you for reading! I hope you found this helpful. If you’re starting your own mail club or have a favorite that you’re subscribed to, drop it in the comments and I’ll check it out!
About the Author:
Hi! I’m Allie, the woman behind Most Ardently. I write about the creative process, film photography, and where in the world I’m traveling next. When I’m not writing, I’m a full-time social media strategist for hotel clients at J/PR, and a freelance photographer on the side. Originally from Memphis, Tennessee, but now living the dream on the Upper West Side of Manhattan with my dog, Ezra.
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.