The Top 5 Questions Substack Users Ask & Want To Know!
These are the Top 5 Questions Substack Users ask the most about, and want to know!
Most assume Substack is just a place to host a newsletter, but if you look at the search data… well, the intent behind it… you realize it’s actually a mirror for what creators are terrified of and what they’re chasing.
I’ve been digging into the patterns of what Substack creators are typing into search bars, and it’s rarely about writing better. It’s about the grind of being a solopreneur. If you’re building on Substack, these are the five things you’re likely obsessed with right now.
1. “How to get my first 100 subscribers without spamming”
This is the #1 pain point. The first 100 feels like a mountain. Most creators search for this because they’re terrified of the cold reach-out. They want to know the secret to growth that doesn’t involve sliding into DMs or begging friends on Facebook. They’re looking for organic traction, even though deep down they know at the start, there is no such thing.
2. “Substack vs. Beehiiv (or Ghost)”
The migration anxiety is real. I see this search constantly. People are always wondering if they’re on the wrong platform. They aren’t searching for features - they’re searching for validation that they haven’t wasted their time. They want to know if the grass is greener on another platform, usually because they’ve hit a plateau and are looking for a technical fix for a content problem.
3. “Paid newsletter conversion rates”
This is the money check. Creators want to know what’s normal. They search for benchmarks because they feel like they’re failing if their conversion rate is 2% instead of 10%. They aren’t looking for a number; they’re looking for permission to stop stressing about their paywall. They want to know if their small group of paying subscribers is actually a victory.
4. “How to write a viral Substack post”
This is the lottery ticket search. Creators are often burnt out and looking for a shortcut. They search for this because they want to know how to break out of the slump and get discovered by the algorithm. It’s the search for that one “hit” that will suddenly validate six months of quiet, consistent work.
5. “Substack Notes strategy”
Notes is the new frontier, and everyone is trying to game it. Creators aren’t just searching for what is it - they’re searching for “how do I use this to actually grow?” It’s a search driven by FOMO. Everyone is convinced there’s a specific way to post on Notes that turns a thread into a surge of new sign-ups, and they’re hunting for that hidden manual.
The Reality Check
The irony? You could spend all day searching for these answers, but you’ll never find an easy way of success.
The people who stop searching for these five things are usually the ones who start winning. They quit looking for the perfect platform, the perfect conversion rate, or the viral thread. They just write the thing they would want to read, and eventually, the search history becomes irrelevant because the audience shows up on its own.
But… the Substack struggle is universal, and honestly, the secrets aren’t as mysterious as the forums make them out to be.
Here are some no-nonsense answers to the five questions that keep every Substack creator up at night.
Q/A 1. The “First 100” Problem: Stop Asking, Start Serving
You don’t get your first 100 subscribers by growing a list - you get them by solving a specific problem for a specific group of people.
The Strategy: Stop posting “Subscribe to my newsletter!” content. Instead, go to where your audience already hangs out - Reddit, niche forums, or specific Substack Notes threads - and answer their questions for free. When you provide a gold-plated answer, put a link in your profile only, or at the end of your post write this: “If you want more of this, I write about [Topic] every Tuesday.”
The Reality: The first 100 aren’t fans yet - they’re people who trusted your expertise. Build that trust publicly before you ask for their inbox.
Q/A 2. The Platform Tug-of-War: Substack vs. Beehiiv or Ghost
Stop looking for a better platform to fix low growth.
Substack is built for discovery. Its network effect (Notes, Recommendations, and the app) does some of the heavy lifting for you. It’s the all-in-one solution for writers who don’t want to be marketers.
Beehiiv is for the growth-obsessed. It’s an email-first tool with powerful referral and ad-network features. If you’re a marketer at heart and want total control over your design and tech stack, this is your home.
Ghost is for the independent publisher. It’s open-source and gives you full ownership of your site. It’s definitely not easier than the others, but it’s the most robust if you plan to build a massive media business.
The Verdict: If you’re just starting, stay where the friction is lowest. If you can’t grow on Substack, you won’t magically grow on Beehiiv.
Q/A 3. The “Money Check”: What’s a Good Conversion Rate?
It’s easy to feel like a failure when you see people posting 10% conversion rates.
The Reality: Most healthy newsletters see a 1% to 5% conversion rate from free to paid. If you’re hitting 10%, you’re doing something exceptional.
The Math: You need a high volume of free readers to make a living on subscriptions alone. If you have 500 subscribers, 5% is only 25 paying members. Don’t stress about the rate - focus on the value. If you aren’t hitting 2%, you aren’t giving people enough of a reason to pull out their credit cards, so give them an exclusive tangible benefit they can’t get for free.
Q/A 4. Viral Growth: The “Hook and Haul” Method
Viral isn’t a magical accident; it’s a structural choice.
The Hook: Spend 50% of your time on the headline and the first three sentences. If you don’t open a curiosity loop (a question the reader needs answered), they will scroll past.
The Haul: Don’t write an essay. Use lists, frameworks, or contrarian stories. People share content that makes them look smart when they forward it to someone else.
The Bridge: Every viral post should have a clear path to your newsletter. If you write a great post on social media, the end of that post should be the exact value proposition of your newsletter.
Q/A 5. Mastering Substack Notes
Notes isn’t for posting “I just published a new article!” - that’s a waste of screen space.
The 3-Step Rotation:
The Insight: Share a one-paragraph takeaway from your research or writing.
The Opinion: Quote another writer and respectfully (or sharply) disagree with them.
The Question: Ask your readers something that forces them to share their own experiences.
The Rule: Treat Notes like a conversation at a bar. If you just walk in and shout “Who want’s to buy my drink!” (Subscribe), everyone will ignore you. If you walk in and tell a great story or ask an interesting question, people will want to hear what you have to say next.
Here’s my final thoughts… Most creators spend more time researching “how to write” than actually writing. The most common thread between successful Substack writers isn’t a platform hack - it’s the fact that they show up for a year straight, even when it feels like nobody is listening.
The data is clear!
Consistency kills doubt!
Stop Googling the shortcuts - you’re just delaying the work that actually needs to get done.
Paul Arino
About Substack Growth Tips | How To Grow
I put this post together because I was tired of seeing the same five questions about Substack pop up in every single forum, so I figured I’d just tackle them all at once.
Honestly, navigating the platform can feel like a guessing game sometimes, especially when you’re trying to figure out how to actually grow an audience without feeling like you’re spinning your wheels.
This article is basically a brain dump of things I’ve learned, and the stuff I’m still figuring out - to help you stop wasting time on the same old things, and actually getting back to the writing that matters.
Thanks,
Paul Arino