Ooh, this list is fascinating. Love seeing what people bought the most. I bought so many of those Target square neck sports bras. I also bought the US Etta jeans. Thanks for breaking down affiliate links. Grateful to you, Corinne, Dacy and anyone else being transparent about how you do this.
So many!! And while wearing them, at least three people demanded the link from me. The butterfly effect, and in six months we will all be in The Target Sports Bra Tank Thing?
I love how intentional you're being about affiliate links Virginia--and happily use them for all of the reasons you specify.
Something else caught my eye in your post: "As the newsletter business continues to evolve, our conversion rate (meaning how many of you decide to pay for the newsletter every month) has dropped.". I've heard about lots of anecdotal evidence around this in 2024 (as well as the conversion rates on my own newsletter), but hadn't linked it yet to the growth of the newsletter business. Do you think that because there are more (Substack) newsletters, the conversion rates of individual publications has dropped? Might be too geeky--this is the kind of stuff I find fascinating 😅
I don’t have industry data on this, but anecdotally, I know a lot of newsletter writers who used to maintain a 10 percent or higher conversion rate (which Substack long claimed was average), and have seen that drop. I think increased competition has to be part of that.
For Burnt Toast, I think the overall list size is also a factor - we had a conversion rate of 10% or higher (13 for a long time!) until the total list went over about 40K. Now at 63,000, it’s around 8 percent. Not terrible and overall this means revenue has increased, clearly, because the community has grown! But it’s something I keep an eye on, since it’s a big shift from a few years ago.
Oh and the reason I think list size is a factor is because a lot of the free list growth comes from the Substack app/Notes — which is great in lots of ways! But people subscribe there after seeing one Note or headline, or because I pop up as a recommendation when they subscribe to something else, so it’s a less engaged reader than when the list was smaller and mostly made up of people who were reading because a friend forwarded them something or put it in the group chat.
Thank you for these reflections Virginia! And I can imagine that for Burnt Toast, the Notes feature makes a difference too in how engaged people might be.
I noticed a (relative to the numbers) big drop over the last month too. Virginia, I was going by that 10% number from Substack and also your experience (and feeling kindof bad about it!) but my feeling just from what I see from others is that most people aren't near 10%. I'm at 5% and haven't really gone above that.
Last spring there was mention of slipping on Oofos to go out and garden. In the market for summer footwear, I quickly checked out this brand, which I had never heard of. I'm now the very happy owner of two pairs of these cushy Ooffos, one for summer and another for all the year, so I'm here for the affiliate links!
If only I could take a picture of my feet, currently in their mismatched grocery store squishy socks and the navy blue oofos I live in… they’re life-changing fugly delights.
I completely trust you and click the affiliate links all the time. Make that money! I have a harder time with influencers who partner with companies and then tell me how great every piece of merchandise is. I don’t believe you, ma’am.
Yes there are lots of influencers who do this very carefully and ethically but... definitely many who are quick to promote just about anything. It's messy! (I should have noted that another of my rules here is that I only link something after I've had it for awhile and am sure I really like it. I don't have a specific timeframe because it sort of varies by item, but with jeans, for example, I try to make sure I've been wearing them for at least a full season or longer...)
I love that you’re doing affiliate links- it’s a lot of work to find links to what you’re wearing, and you should get paid for that effort (I know I only budget for 5-6 paid subscriptions a month at most even though I read way more newsletters, so I am sure there’s not as many people upgrading to paid subscriptions as you’d like to see).
I’m a devoted reader of the newsletters I do pay for or have comped but despite loving much of what I’m reading in other newsletters, I have kept basically all my same paid subscriptions for months- Evil Witches is comped for 6 months since I am a teacher; my sister writes for free at Rambling Reflections but I love her work so I include her in the list because I would pay to read it if she wanted me to; obviously I love Burnt Toast; In Pursuit of Clean Countertops and Is My Kid the Asshole are always delightful; love Seester, Seester because I love Ashley and Alexa Spivey.
My sister bought us matching It’s Been a Long Time Coming cropped sweatshirts (mine is my Christmas present), so I am looking forward to having my first cropped look since that started being a trend- I have loved so many of the cropped tops other people have worn, but hadn’t taken the plunge on having my own.
It totally makes sense that folks budget for only a few newsletters or rotate them — there is so much to read!! But yes, having affiliates in the mix makes sense given how saturated the market is now. (I love your list!)
I also am a paid subscriber for Gilmore Women and Life Almost but Jennie Agg is taking a break from posting, and Gilmore Women posts more sporadically so they’re not as on the radar as the ones I see weekly. Gilmore Women made me laugh and laugh about how terrible Christopher was in the episode where Lorelai’s dad was in the hospital in the 7th season (this was their post right after the election), so that was a much needed boost.
I bought the Gap Jeans- I already owned the Lands End snow pants! I know I have bought those brownies too. I love affiliate links! I try to post them on socials any time I use them too, though my story views were halved during the lead up to the election.
I have a fairly high number of paid subscriptions- I have 5 that are annual and about 10 that are monthly- both Burnt Toast and Mad Woman I pay the extra tier- I’m in the Writing Group tier for Amanda Montei. I also try to buy from different indie booksellers throughout the year. One month I was buying from Volumes which was my college friend’s local Chicago store. Split Rock Books has been another one where I often buy the books linked from the podcast.
I love seeing what 'everyone' is wearing, so whatever system writers put in place to support that, I get.
One thing I'm curious about though- I know people say that affiliate links don't cost anything, but I wonder if they act like tariffs? In the sense that producers just bake the cost of links into their overall marketing spend, and then price. I'm guessing that they do because capitalism. So in that sense, we are paying for all the influencer payments a brand supports, whether directly when we purchase from that brand or indirectly because it raises prices across the board. For me, it's helpful to keep this in mind, so that I can support writers/ influencers who better align with my values (e.g. being intentional about which links I use for purchasing).
Oh yes, I'm sure that is true -- retailers that are very affiliate-savvy are certainly planning for that commission in their pricing. So yes, we're all paying accordingly.
I made that smitten kitchen strata for christmas breakfast a couple years ago! I made it in a large dutch oven and it took much longer (like 1/2 hour or so) than she said to bake all the way through (maybe I didn't leave it out of the fridge long enough?). It was delicious but just wanted to mention that in case timing is an issue. Hope I'm not strata-splaining, maybe you've made it many times before. :)
Oh man, the Gap jeans only go up to 30 in petite. I guess you’re not allowed to be short and even a LITTLE fat in their view. The opposite of Universal Standard, where you’re allowed to be absolutely any size except short.
Gap TRULY could not be more annoying about this. They also only go up to 33 in tall... because everyone knows that fat people are all exactly average height???
That’s fair. I went to one of their local “pop ups” and had a really bad experience, which I was chalking up to being short, but I can see it being just as hard on the other end as well. I really wish they would adjust their marketing. I wouldn’t resent them as much if all of their marketing wasn’t centered around being the Most Inclusive brand ever, which I deeply question.
No absolutely - tall and short folks need to have tall-short solidarity!! Clothing brands absolutely won’t let folks be both fat and short/tall sigh.
And yeah, that irritates me about US as well. Pretty much all retailers are catering to straight sizes, so I wish they would just do plus sizes and open all of their stuff to all bodies!
I made a strata for Christmas breakfast last year and it was a big hit! Especially with my neice! I did the NYT one but SK usually hits. Make the night before, put in oven as soon as you wake up.
Do your kids wear the Charlotte Stones also? They are very cute but wondering about durability at that price.
This is your company and you keep your own lights on so how you need to do that is your business. Like RZA says- CREAM.
I personally don't like all the Target links. Their clothes are mostly sweat shop garbage and they are not known for treating their workers well- union busting, wage theft, etc.
Oh man, the Charlotte Stone kid shoes are SO CUTE but $100 for shoes they'll outgrow in six months is more than I want to spend so have not tried. Would MAYBE do for my older kiddo in the hopes we can pass down to the younger one and get double the wear out of them, but that frequently doesn't work as well with shoes as with say, clothes and outerwear.
And I hear you on Target! I use them when I'm trying not to use Amazon but still want to make sure we're including more affordable items (along with, say, $200 sneakers). But I certainly support you not shopping there.
Unrelated to this post, but just wanted to share that I just had a really productive conversation with my 6th grader's health teacher, motivated by my asking for an alternative to a calorie tracking assignment, and I benefited SO MUCH from having read Fat Talk, and so many comments here, so a huge thanks to Virginia and the community! Not only was I successful in getting an alternative assignment, but he was also really responsive to thinking about how food tracking in general can be part of what triggers disordered eating, and I feel like it was a huge win for helping someone else do some of the same learning I have done! I will definitely be ordering a copy of Fat Talk for him as well :)
Speaking of moral quandaries... (a little off topic but I don't know where else to put this) Would you please move your newsletter off this platform? I want to subscribe to you but without contributing to a nazi-supporting platform that promotes bari weisse as "high-integrity journalism". I have a hunch that your values are similar. There are loads of conversations today on bluesky where writers are talking about their (good) experiences switching to other platforms, even those who depend on their subs to pay their mortgages. I know the sunk costs feel high, but you will end up in a better place on a different platform.
Hi Pam. I appreciate your concern about this, and I'm sorry for missing your first comment. Yes, of course, I'm closely following and voicing my criticism of Substack's relentless determination to platform alt right politics. (I regularly post about this on Notes and also email Substack leaders directly with my concerns.) I also spend a significant amount of time researching and tracking other platforms. I'm not wedded to staying, but I'm also keenly aware (after 20+ years in media) that there is no perfect platform. Every mainstream media outlet platforms alt right content, so unless we are also divesting from Instagram, TikTok, the New York Times, CNN, etc, etc...
And frankly, I resent the notion that the only solution to Substack's bad behavior is to ask progressive writers to pass a moral purity test by uprooting our businesses. I'm a single mom and Burnt Toast is my full-time income. Corinne and Tommy also rely on this business for a majority portion of their incomes. Every time I do the math, I see that moving platforms will cost us thousands of dollars in lost subscribers and revenue. I can't do that to my people on a whim in response to the Bari Weiss news, or because a handful of BlueSky users are having a good experience -- it's something we'd have to plan for very carefully.
This is not to say I'll stay on Substack forever, or that I'm not furious with them for continuing to pull this shit. It's just to say: This is a far more complicated question, and a bigger ask, than you may have realized. But I will continue to do my part to advocate for improvements at Substack while I'm here. And I'll also do my job as a small business owner to continue to research other platforms and models.
Because of you I bought the Beyond Yoga joggers and they are my favorite pants! I was able to get a black pair over Black Friday so now I have three pairs 😆.
I like the way you use affiliate links. I like to hear about things that other people genuinely love or find useful. And if a brand can compensate you a little for that advertising, all the better.
I am 600% in favor of using affiliate links, and as others have said, appreciate your transparency.
Thanks so much!
Ooh, this list is fascinating. Love seeing what people bought the most. I bought so many of those Target square neck sports bras. I also bought the US Etta jeans. Thanks for breaking down affiliate links. Grateful to you, Corinne, Dacy and anyone else being transparent about how you do this.
I cannot comment on how many of the Target bras I ultimately purchased...
Oh, so you’re the reason they couldn’t keep my size in stock!!
😂
😘
So many!! And while wearing them, at least three people demanded the link from me. The butterfly effect, and in six months we will all be in The Target Sports Bra Tank Thing?
I love how intentional you're being about affiliate links Virginia--and happily use them for all of the reasons you specify.
Something else caught my eye in your post: "As the newsletter business continues to evolve, our conversion rate (meaning how many of you decide to pay for the newsletter every month) has dropped.". I've heard about lots of anecdotal evidence around this in 2024 (as well as the conversion rates on my own newsletter), but hadn't linked it yet to the growth of the newsletter business. Do you think that because there are more (Substack) newsletters, the conversion rates of individual publications has dropped? Might be too geeky--this is the kind of stuff I find fascinating 😅
I don’t have industry data on this, but anecdotally, I know a lot of newsletter writers who used to maintain a 10 percent or higher conversion rate (which Substack long claimed was average), and have seen that drop. I think increased competition has to be part of that.
For Burnt Toast, I think the overall list size is also a factor - we had a conversion rate of 10% or higher (13 for a long time!) until the total list went over about 40K. Now at 63,000, it’s around 8 percent. Not terrible and overall this means revenue has increased, clearly, because the community has grown! But it’s something I keep an eye on, since it’s a big shift from a few years ago.
Oh and the reason I think list size is a factor is because a lot of the free list growth comes from the Substack app/Notes — which is great in lots of ways! But people subscribe there after seeing one Note or headline, or because I pop up as a recommendation when they subscribe to something else, so it’s a less engaged reader than when the list was smaller and mostly made up of people who were reading because a friend forwarded them something or put it in the group chat.
Thank you for these reflections Virginia! And I can imagine that for Burnt Toast, the Notes feature makes a difference too in how engaged people might be.
I noticed a (relative to the numbers) big drop over the last month too. Virginia, I was going by that 10% number from Substack and also your experience (and feeling kindof bad about it!) but my feeling just from what I see from others is that most people aren't near 10%. I'm at 5% and haven't really gone above that.
Yeah I think 10% was more possible a few years ago? The market has changed so much. I am sorry I was part of the unrealistic expectations game!!
Not your fault!! 🤣😘
Last spring there was mention of slipping on Oofos to go out and garden. In the market for summer footwear, I quickly checked out this brand, which I had never heard of. I'm now the very happy owner of two pairs of these cushy Ooffos, one for summer and another for all the year, so I'm here for the affiliate links!
Yay Oofos!! I’m wearing my squishy slides with socks now, making them even more glamorous. 🤣 But the comfort!
I wear my crocs with socks and in sports mode. There’s no end to the sexiness.
If only I could take a picture of my feet, currently in their mismatched grocery store squishy socks and the navy blue oofos I live in… they’re life-changing fugly delights.
I completely trust you and click the affiliate links all the time. Make that money! I have a harder time with influencers who partner with companies and then tell me how great every piece of merchandise is. I don’t believe you, ma’am.
Yes there are lots of influencers who do this very carefully and ethically but... definitely many who are quick to promote just about anything. It's messy! (I should have noted that another of my rules here is that I only link something after I've had it for awhile and am sure I really like it. I don't have a specific timeframe because it sort of varies by item, but with jeans, for example, I try to make sure I've been wearing them for at least a full season or longer...)
I love that you’re doing affiliate links- it’s a lot of work to find links to what you’re wearing, and you should get paid for that effort (I know I only budget for 5-6 paid subscriptions a month at most even though I read way more newsletters, so I am sure there’s not as many people upgrading to paid subscriptions as you’d like to see).
I’m a devoted reader of the newsletters I do pay for or have comped but despite loving much of what I’m reading in other newsletters, I have kept basically all my same paid subscriptions for months- Evil Witches is comped for 6 months since I am a teacher; my sister writes for free at Rambling Reflections but I love her work so I include her in the list because I would pay to read it if she wanted me to; obviously I love Burnt Toast; In Pursuit of Clean Countertops and Is My Kid the Asshole are always delightful; love Seester, Seester because I love Ashley and Alexa Spivey.
My sister bought us matching It’s Been a Long Time Coming cropped sweatshirts (mine is my Christmas present), so I am looking forward to having my first cropped look since that started being a trend- I have loved so many of the cropped tops other people have worn, but hadn’t taken the plunge on having my own.
It totally makes sense that folks budget for only a few newsletters or rotate them — there is so much to read!! But yes, having affiliates in the mix makes sense given how saturated the market is now. (I love your list!)
I also am a paid subscriber for Gilmore Women and Life Almost but Jennie Agg is taking a break from posting, and Gilmore Women posts more sporadically so they’re not as on the radar as the ones I see weekly. Gilmore Women made me laugh and laugh about how terrible Christopher was in the episode where Lorelai’s dad was in the hospital in the 7th season (this was their post right after the election), so that was a much needed boost.
Thanks as always for your business transparency, Virginia!
Thanks Katherine!
This is helpful and interesting, to see how the links work for you and BT. Thanks for the look behind the scenes.
I bought the Gap Jeans- I already owned the Lands End snow pants! I know I have bought those brownies too. I love affiliate links! I try to post them on socials any time I use them too, though my story views were halved during the lead up to the election.
I have a fairly high number of paid subscriptions- I have 5 that are annual and about 10 that are monthly- both Burnt Toast and Mad Woman I pay the extra tier- I’m in the Writing Group tier for Amanda Montei. I also try to buy from different indie booksellers throughout the year. One month I was buying from Volumes which was my college friend’s local Chicago store. Split Rock Books has been another one where I often buy the books linked from the podcast.
I fully support you using affiliate links!
Thanks Elizabeth! Love that you make a point to support indie bookstores even not near you!
I love seeing what 'everyone' is wearing, so whatever system writers put in place to support that, I get.
One thing I'm curious about though- I know people say that affiliate links don't cost anything, but I wonder if they act like tariffs? In the sense that producers just bake the cost of links into their overall marketing spend, and then price. I'm guessing that they do because capitalism. So in that sense, we are paying for all the influencer payments a brand supports, whether directly when we purchase from that brand or indirectly because it raises prices across the board. For me, it's helpful to keep this in mind, so that I can support writers/ influencers who better align with my values (e.g. being intentional about which links I use for purchasing).
Oh yes, I'm sure that is true -- retailers that are very affiliate-savvy are certainly planning for that commission in their pricing. So yes, we're all paying accordingly.
I made that smitten kitchen strata for christmas breakfast a couple years ago! I made it in a large dutch oven and it took much longer (like 1/2 hour or so) than she said to bake all the way through (maybe I didn't leave it out of the fridge long enough?). It was delicious but just wanted to mention that in case timing is an issue. Hope I'm not strata-splaining, maybe you've made it many times before. :)
Oh man, the Gap jeans only go up to 30 in petite. I guess you’re not allowed to be short and even a LITTLE fat in their view. The opposite of Universal Standard, where you’re allowed to be absolutely any size except short.
Gap TRULY could not be more annoying about this. They also only go up to 33 in tall... because everyone knows that fat people are all exactly average height???
Universal standard def doesn’t include everything in tall!
That’s fair. I went to one of their local “pop ups” and had a really bad experience, which I was chalking up to being short, but I can see it being just as hard on the other end as well. I really wish they would adjust their marketing. I wouldn’t resent them as much if all of their marketing wasn’t centered around being the Most Inclusive brand ever, which I deeply question.
No absolutely - tall and short folks need to have tall-short solidarity!! Clothing brands absolutely won’t let folks be both fat and short/tall sigh.
And yeah, that irritates me about US as well. Pretty much all retailers are catering to straight sizes, so I wish they would just do plus sizes and open all of their stuff to all bodies!
I made a strata for Christmas breakfast last year and it was a big hit! Especially with my neice! I did the NYT one but SK usually hits. Make the night before, put in oven as soon as you wake up.
Do your kids wear the Charlotte Stones also? They are very cute but wondering about durability at that price.
This is your company and you keep your own lights on so how you need to do that is your business. Like RZA says- CREAM.
I personally don't like all the Target links. Their clothes are mostly sweat shop garbage and they are not known for treating their workers well- union busting, wage theft, etc.
Oh man, the Charlotte Stone kid shoes are SO CUTE but $100 for shoes they'll outgrow in six months is more than I want to spend so have not tried. Would MAYBE do for my older kiddo in the hopes we can pass down to the younger one and get double the wear out of them, but that frequently doesn't work as well with shoes as with say, clothes and outerwear.
And I hear you on Target! I use them when I'm trying not to use Amazon but still want to make sure we're including more affordable items (along with, say, $200 sneakers). But I certainly support you not shopping there.
Unrelated to this post, but just wanted to share that I just had a really productive conversation with my 6th grader's health teacher, motivated by my asking for an alternative to a calorie tracking assignment, and I benefited SO MUCH from having read Fat Talk, and so many comments here, so a huge thanks to Virginia and the community! Not only was I successful in getting an alternative assignment, but he was also really responsive to thinking about how food tracking in general can be part of what triggers disordered eating, and I feel like it was a huge win for helping someone else do some of the same learning I have done! I will definitely be ordering a copy of Fat Talk for him as well :)
Speaking of moral quandaries... (a little off topic but I don't know where else to put this) Would you please move your newsletter off this platform? I want to subscribe to you but without contributing to a nazi-supporting platform that promotes bari weisse as "high-integrity journalism". I have a hunch that your values are similar. There are loads of conversations today on bluesky where writers are talking about their (good) experiences switching to other platforms, even those who depend on their subs to pay their mortgages. I know the sunk costs feel high, but you will end up in a better place on a different platform.
This has great information, please read: https://www.anildash.com/2024/11/19/dont-call-it-a-substack/
Hi Pam. I appreciate your concern about this, and I'm sorry for missing your first comment. Yes, of course, I'm closely following and voicing my criticism of Substack's relentless determination to platform alt right politics. (I regularly post about this on Notes and also email Substack leaders directly with my concerns.) I also spend a significant amount of time researching and tracking other platforms. I'm not wedded to staying, but I'm also keenly aware (after 20+ years in media) that there is no perfect platform. Every mainstream media outlet platforms alt right content, so unless we are also divesting from Instagram, TikTok, the New York Times, CNN, etc, etc...
And frankly, I resent the notion that the only solution to Substack's bad behavior is to ask progressive writers to pass a moral purity test by uprooting our businesses. I'm a single mom and Burnt Toast is my full-time income. Corinne and Tommy also rely on this business for a majority portion of their incomes. Every time I do the math, I see that moving platforms will cost us thousands of dollars in lost subscribers and revenue. I can't do that to my people on a whim in response to the Bari Weiss news, or because a handful of BlueSky users are having a good experience -- it's something we'd have to plan for very carefully.
This is not to say I'll stay on Substack forever, or that I'm not furious with them for continuing to pull this shit. It's just to say: This is a far more complicated question, and a bigger ask, than you may have realized. But I will continue to do my part to advocate for improvements at Substack while I'm here. And I'll also do my job as a small business owner to continue to research other platforms and models.
Because of you I bought the Beyond Yoga joggers and they are my favorite pants! I was able to get a black pair over Black Friday so now I have three pairs 😆.
I like the way you use affiliate links. I like to hear about things that other people genuinely love or find useful. And if a brand can compensate you a little for that advertising, all the better.