How Substack's follow feature betrays its original mission

Substack was built on the foundation that people don’t subscribe to content, they subscribe to voices they trust. In contrast, at Medium, it almost doesn’t matter who the writer is as long as the post is good.

This is a pretty big deal! You can’t export your Facebook Page subscribers or your Instagram followers. Nor can you easily transfer your subscribers on TikTok or YouTube. If Facebook leans into the notion that creators ought to own the relationship with their creators, it could represent the start of a healthy shift in mindset among platforms.

In contrast to the podcast example above, where any platform that adopted RSS could instantly have the supply side of the chicken and egg problem solved, Substack did the opposite: it solved the demand side by ensuring all of its consumers already had a way to read newsletter content. This is a really smart strategy, and so as a platform, it has ta... See more

Patreon’s strongest pitch is that it’s independent from the major tech platforms. By now, every creator has been burned by the algorithmic feed or knows someone who has.

-Build, in partnership with writers, a discovery network that helps them cross-promote, collaborate, and connect with audiences independent of attention economy networks.