This calls to mind Medium's folly: a hard-line anti-ad stance. I wrote about this very thing for Adweek. Ev Williams spoke idealistically about how the ad-supported model drove clickbait and bad content, hinting at some new, yet-to-be discovered model. Instead, they went the subscription route, which is fine; they just didn't unearth something no one hadn't thought of. To your point, ads depend a lot on the broader mix and the execution. Media like newsletter and podcasts work well because their audiences are engaged. Some Substackers do a pretty good job at incorporating sponsors.
Right. It seems that the people who condemn ads really mean they hate programmatic advertising, which really does create bad incentives for publishers. But advertising sold by a publication, which fits naturally into their editorial product (like a host-read podcast ad) is a much better solution.
A writer or Creator needs full control over their publication. If you want Ads, power to you! Substack needs to be an agnostic tool-box, nothing more. If I want Ad sponsors to diversify my revenue, Substack should literally match me up with the best companies and aligned corporate entities for the micro niche I am in.
Great post. Honestly, anything is better than to model we have now for media. The attention game is awful for journalism, and ads contribute to it. We need a better model that reduces the amount of clickbaiting and polarization that comes from the current news model.
I think a business model that embraces both subscriptions and advertising is ideal. It forces you to create high quality content (otherwise readers won't subscribe), but you're also able to more fully monetize that content.
This calls to mind Medium's folly: a hard-line anti-ad stance. I wrote about this very thing for Adweek. Ev Williams spoke idealistically about how the ad-supported model drove clickbait and bad content, hinting at some new, yet-to-be discovered model. Instead, they went the subscription route, which is fine; they just didn't unearth something no one hadn't thought of. To your point, ads depend a lot on the broader mix and the execution. Media like newsletter and podcasts work well because their audiences are engaged. Some Substackers do a pretty good job at incorporating sponsors.
I agree. I made a similar point on my piece about Medium
https://simonowens.substack.com/p/why-medium-failed
Right. It seems that the people who condemn ads really mean they hate programmatic advertising, which really does create bad incentives for publishers. But advertising sold by a publication, which fits naturally into their editorial product (like a host-read podcast ad) is a much better solution.
Exactly. Programmatic did a number on online advertising's reputation.
A writer or Creator needs full control over their publication. If you want Ads, power to you! Substack needs to be an agnostic tool-box, nothing more. If I want Ad sponsors to diversify my revenue, Substack should literally match me up with the best companies and aligned corporate entities for the micro niche I am in.
Great post. Honestly, anything is better than to model we have now for media. The attention game is awful for journalism, and ads contribute to it. We need a better model that reduces the amount of clickbaiting and polarization that comes from the current news model.
I think a business model that embraces both subscriptions and advertising is ideal. It forces you to create high quality content (otherwise readers won't subscribe), but you're also able to more fully monetize that content.