If your Substack isn't growing or making money, one of these 3 things is missing

For the longest time, I thought growing a Substack came down to writing better posts …and writing them more often.

That helped, obviously. But good writing didn’t automatically bring new readers, and new subscribers didn’t automatically create income.

Earlier this week, I shared that it has been two years since I started this newsletter. I began with a few dozen subscribers, and today we’re closing in on 20,000.

That didn’t happen because I kept writing more.

It happened because I eventually built three separate things: a Substack people wanted to join, a reliable way for new readers to discover it, and something useful those readers could buy.

If your Substack isn’t growing or making money, there’s a good chance one of those pieces is missing.

A new reader shouldn’t have to search through your entire archive to understand what your Substack is about.

They should be able to visit your profile, read your description, scan a few recent posts, and recognize who your publication is for and why they should join.

A lot of writers struggle here.

Then they assume maybe they just need more traffic.

But sending more people to a confusing homepage won’t necessarily create more subscribers. Sometimes it just means more people show up and then leave…confused.

You don’t have to force yourself into an impossibly narrow niche.

But, you do need a clear thread connecting your ideas so the right reader can recognize that your newsletter is for them.

It walks you through the strategy I used to position this publication, create content people want to subscribe for, use Substack’s built-in growth tools, and turn more visitors into readers.

It’s for the writer who’s publishing consistently but still feels like growth is slow, random, or much harder than it should be.

Join the Substack Growth Masterclass

A clear and valuable Substack can stay small if nobody new is finding it.

This is where writers often start doubting their own writing. They assume the writing isn’t good enough, so they publish more often or spend longer perfecting every post.

But they probably don’t have a writing problem.

They have a discovery problem.

Most Substack posts are delivered to people who already subscribe. You still need a way to introduce your writing to readers who don’t know you exist.

For me, Notes became one of the best ways to do that.

I think of Notes as my Substack’s front door.

My longer posts are where readers get to know me and explore my ideas in more depth. Notes give new readers a reason to walk through the door.

At one point, Notes brought me 225 new subscribers in one week and 916 over 30 days.

That didn’t happen because I posted random thoughts all day or tried to make everything go viral. It happened after I understood which Notes attracted relevant readers and built a routine I could repeat.

Inside, I’ll show you how to choose stronger topics, turn your newsletter content into multiple Notes, write Notes that make readers curious, and improve your profile so more visitors become subscribers.

You’ll also receive my Notes Writing Playbook, with more than 30 prompts and templates you can adapt to your topic, experiences, and voice.

The goal isn’t to make you spend all day posting. It’s to give you a practical Notes system you can use in approximately 20 minutes a day.

Join the Notes Growth Workshop

Growth creates new opportunities, but it doesn’t automatically create income.

You can spend years building an audience and still feel as though you’re starting from zero every month because there’s nothing for an interested reader to buy.

Many writers assume they only have two options: turn on paid subscriptions or wait until their audience is much larger.

Paid subscriptions can work well, but they aren’t the only option. You also don’t need thousands of subscribers before creating something useful.

I made my first $1,000 through Substack with fewer than 500 subscribers.

I didn’t create an enormous course or try to package everything I knew. I created something focused that solved a specific problem for the audience I already had.

Your first product could be a guide, set of templates, practical workshop, workbook, or small course. It doesn’t need to be revolutionary.

It needs to be useful.

I’ll help you identify an idea that fits your audience, turn it into a clear offer, create it without making the process unnecessarily complicated, and sell it through the content and emails you’re already writing.

It’s for the writer who knows they have something valuable to teach but isn’t sure what to create, how to package it, or how to ask people to buy.

Join the Digital Product Masterclass

You probably already have a sense of which piece is missing.

Maybe you’re posting, but your newsletter doesn’t have a clear growth foundation.

Maybe the publication is strong, but new readers aren’t finding it.

Or maybe you’ve built an audience without creating anything useful for them to buy.

Don’t respond by blindly posting more.

Fix the part that’s actually causing the problem:

• If you need a clearer foundation and growth strategy: Start with the Substack Growth Masterclass.

• If you need more people to discover your work: Choose the Notes Growth Workshop.

• If you need something relevant to sell your audience: Start with the Digital Product Masterclass.

📌 REMINDER: Today’s the last day of my 2-year anniversary sale on ALL offers. After tonight, everything will be going back up the increased priced 2-3X.

This is genuinely the best time to jump in and get my help.

I can’t wait to see how some of you finish this summer strong.

Keep writing, Wes