Thursday 10th March: Substack launches iOS app for reading Substacks

March 10, 2022

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So if Substack wasn't already a platform (it was) it absolutely is now. The newsletter solutions provider just launched an app on iOS that pulls all of a user’s Substack subscriptions into one inbox and also lets users turn off their emails.

Substack co-founder Hamish Mackenzie likens the app to Google reader with the usual slams on ads and dopamine-soaked algorithms, harking back to the time before "every pixel was an attempt to hook you, when great minds wrote for people instead of algorithms." Good work Hamish, thanks for bringing back the freedom of choice.

Except, as Adam Tinworth points out over on One Man and His Blog, there’s one massive difference: instead of being for any blog or site with an RSS feed, this app is just for Substacks. The inbox has given way to their app and it's freedom of choice so long as you stay in the Substack Garden. Got it!

Puzzles as a habit-building tool have been thrust back into the spotlight following the New York Times’ acquisition of viral game Wordle. Imagine if you paired puzzle power with newsletter engagement. It's OK, you don't have to... in this piece for WNIP Esther explains how the Atlantic has already done just that.

I'm not completely sure if this is a totally serious take or the NYT trolling its rival Axios, but I love how this columnist is playing the smart brevity card to explain the Axios strategy. Either way this is a great explainer for anyone who wants Go Deeper on Axios and its plans for content and technology.

The winner of the Publisher Podcast Hero of the Year award in 2021’s Publisher Podcast Awards was Theodora Louloudis, Head of Audio at The Telegraph. I caught up with her to explore how Covid changed The Telegraph’s audio strategy, what it’s like working with columnists and journalists, and how they decide which podcasts to make.

This week's podcast:

This week we hear from Stephanie Mehta, CEO & Chief Content Officer of Manseuto Ventures, parent of Inc. and Fast Company. She talked about going from an editorial career to the CEO role, the changes in leadership attitudes to publishing over the last decade, and what the revenue models for Inc. and Fast Company look like post-pandemic.

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