Notes, the alternative to Twitter developed by Substack, is now available to everyone. The new function makes its debut after the recent controversy with Elon Musk and his social network, which was accused of blocking the links that led to the newsletter platform.
Living up to its name, the new space it was thought so that users post short notes, similar to tweets. In this way, they can share ideas that are not necessarily tied to the publication of a new edition of their bulletin or newsletter; as well as recommend the work of other writers or content creators.
“Notes helps the work of writers and creators travel through the Substack network for new readers to discover. You can share links, images, quick thoughts, and snippets from Substack posts. In addition to being light and fun, we hope that Notes help writers increase their audience and income,” they said from the platform.
From Substack they have commented that their intention is to make Notes a long term bet. In addition, they remarked that the version of this feature that has been made public is still very early, so they hope that there are bugs or that it does not always work as expected.
It is worth mentioning that Notes is available both in the web version and in the Substack apps for iOS and Android. From the browser, it is possible to access this new tool in substack.com/notes; while in the applications it is shown in its own tab, separate from the threads and the newsletters.
Notes, Substack’s alternative to Twitter
Although Notes is intended for sharing short-form content, Substack doesn’t mention enforcing a character limit. The rest of the operation of this feature is closely linked to the already known experience of social networks such as Twitter or Mastodon: you can like, comment or “restack” the publications. The latter, as you can imagine, is the equivalent of retweeting.
It is important to note that, unlike newsletters, posts in Notes will not be sent to subscribers via email.
Regarding navigation, the Notes section is divided into two sections: subscribed and home. In the first one, the publications of all the authors to whom the users are directly subscribed will appear. While in the second you will find both the writers to whom you have subscribed, as well as those that the latter recommend. From the platform they mention that it is a kind of extended network.
Substack claims that Notes has the potential to be a very important generator of new subscribers. However, it is logical to think that at launch it will be especially useful to those users who already have a newsletter of significant reach on this platformand who are looking for a way to broaden the interaction with their subscribers.
Will Notes be strong enough to become an alternative to Twitter with massive reach? For now, it appears at least as an interesting option. In addition, with the growing discontent on Twitter with the management of Elon Musk, especially among authors who already distributed their newsletter on Substack, the tool may have a special thrust.
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