What have I learned from 1 year of writing newsletters?

A year ago, I jumped into the world of content writing and newsletters. This week, I will be sharing everything I've learned as well as some data on growth, outcomes and whether or not I recommend it. It will be a longer read, but stick with me; it will be worth it.?

As a conference/content producer and events professional, I had spent nearly a decade writing agendas and marketing and sales copies, so writing on a topic of my choosing once a week should be a breeze, right??

Well, honestly, it was, and it wasn’t.?

But before we get into that, let me explain why I started.

If you’ve been reading any of my newsletters in the past few months, you’ll know I'm a big advocate of having a social media personal brand and utilising leverage in the form of the internet. It truly is the greatest equaliser of our time, and this trend is not set to change.?

I wanted to get in on that trend and have a platform to share ideas and build a personal brand.

The newsletter aimed to share freelancing, business, wealth-building, and personal development knowledge, see other potential business opportunities, and learn more about writing content and building a community.?

Has it been a success??

It depends on how you measure success and what your goals are for doing it.?

Have I increased my following and engagement online? Yes.?

Are people more aware of me and tuning in weekly to read what I'm sharing? Also, Yes, ?my direct email open rate has barely dropped below 60%. which (if you know anything about email marketing) is very high.??

Have I learnt about writing content and building a community and discovered other opportunities as intended? Very much, Yes.?

Am I a millionaire, and is my course and everything I write gold dust? Not yet. But there haven't been enough iterations to get there yet.

In the realms of online content and building an audience, whether it be through podcasts, newsletters or social media engagement, 1 year is not a lot of time.?

Whenever you see anyone successful in the online content game, trust me when I tell you they have been at it for years.?

But here are some stats from my LinkedIn and substack analytics so you can see the level of engagement at the moment. I'm sharing this with you so you can be aware of what's possible in 1 year and to document it when I look back again in another year's time and compare.?

LinkedIn

(877 subscribers)

Substack

(53 subscribers)

TOTAL STATS across both platforms (just substack email and LinkedIn)

Views = 17,993

Subscribers = 930

NB: There is much more to these analytics and many variables, such as how the articles were accessed via different social media routes and where they were posted, but I'm giving you an overview.?

I also had a lot of growth in followers on Instagram and LinkedIn, but since that would also have been from other content activity I do, I haven't included it, as we are looking purely at the newsletter.?

Was it hard??

In terms of actually writing the posts every week, no.?

As quite a disciplined person, committing to one post a week is nothing too taxing. At the start, it was all done ad hoc, and sometimes I would forget and post it at the last minute on a Friday morning, but I still managed it without too much worry.?

The speed with which I write and produce the content is substantially quicker. Having AI to help you start existing ideas and correct spelling, etc., is helpful, although I still need to put my own flavour and tone in each thing that goes out. This has made me much more efficient in idea generation, and now I have everything scheduled one month ahead. At the start, it took me a couple of hours just to write one post; now, I write four posts in the same amount of time, and I automate the schedule with which they go out.?

I went back and edited the first few posts I ever wrote because I was so embarrassed by the quality of the copy. In short, I really, really sucked at the start; now I suck somewhat less. I am not going to create an award-winning newsletter in just 1 year of posting every week. Big things take time. I learnt that much from 6 years of retail trading before earning significant money from it. Trust the process.?

Would I recommend it?

If you want to improve your content writing skills and build an audience with your ideas online, then yes. It’s not a big commitment, and you can do it just to enjoy writing.? Equally, if you have a larger goal to build a community and spread helpful knowledge to improve other peoples’ lives, then it's an excellent place to start and test the waters. I fall into both categories, having launched my online freelance business course at the end of last year, and I'm now exploring other types of content to go alongside it.?

What have I learnt from 1 year of writing newsletters?

At the start, you’re going to suck > this applies to every new activity and task in life. I don't believe in people being ‘natural’ at anything. Were you a natural at walking as a toddler? No? I didn't think so. You fell over a bunch of times and looked drunk more times than not until you built the motor skills through repetition. But you can't get past the stages of sucking at walking until you start, and writing content online is no different.?

Repetition is vital to improvement.

Doing something week in and week out over a long time is where magic is made. See an old post I did on the compound effect here for more details on this concept: https://dommarcuscoyne.substack.com/p/the-compound-effect-the-8th-wonder?

In short, having discipline in one area of life also spreads to other areas. If you are a person who can commit to a simple goal every week of writing content, you can also commit to working out a few times a week and other such good habits. One area of success and consistency leads to another. I will write about this more in the future.?

If you want more success, you need a higher level of iterations

Like with my surfing, I haven't written enough articles or ridden enough waves to show any degree of mastery yet. Ever heard of the 100-hour rule? Or even the 10,000-hour rule? So if you want more success at something, you need to get to the 100s of iterations before you have a great degree of skill.?

Keep upskilling yourself?

In this short journey, I've learnt and explored other content skill sets. I read other creators' copies regularly; I watch many videos on everything from how to write a good headline to exploring the tone of the copy you write. All of it is expanding my capabilities. You have to be more to have more.?

Be authentic; AI only gets you so far.

You may have noticed that some copies differ slightly in tone. I have experimented with AI for writing posts, but no matter how I describe what I want to the AI, whether Chagpt or Google Bard, it can't replace the ideas I have and the tone I want for each article that is authentically me. It has sped up the process and is great for getting started, but it only does so much.?

I do love writing and consolidating ideas my ideas weekly

You know what they say: do something you enjoy, and you’ll never work a day. Truthfully, 90% of the time, I enjoy writing newsletters; they help confirm ideas I have about the path I'm taking and solidify a good mindset to keep building. It keeps me committed to my much larger goals.?

So what now?

As I say, it's still early days. There is much more I want to explore concerning content. In the future, I will explore other content channels, from video to social media posts, and look at various marketing for promotion, which I haven't done yet. I want to explore affiliate deals with other creators and get onto some podcasts, and I want to grow a community of freelancers through my course.?

Freelancing is the quickest way to get control of your time and start building the lifestyle you want, and this process has only strengthened my conviction on that.?

So, if you know anyone interested in starting a newsletter, creating their own freelancing business, building wealth or developing themselves in general, share this post with them and let them know what's up.?

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