A better future for news lies in recognizing the intrinsic value of journalistic content and the need to protect it. This belief has led to the advent of a new golden age for publishing, where niche content thrives and readers are willing to pay for it. Platforms like Patreon have shown that people are willing to support content they care about, no matter how niche it may be. This is where Substack comes in, aiming to democratize the tools necessary for writers to create independent businesses and succeed in a rapidly growing news market.

A better future for news lies in recognizing the intrinsic value of journalistic content and the need to protect it. This belief has led to the advent of a new golden age for publishing, where niche content thrives and readers are willing to pay for it. Platforms like Patreon have shown that people are willing to support content they care about, no matter how niche it may be. This is where Substack comes in, aiming to democratize the tools necessary for writers to create independent businesses and succeed in a rapidly growing news market.

While the focus of Substack is on empowering writers, there are valuable lessons that growth hackers can learn from this approach. In the world of growth hacking, it's easy to get caught up in vanity metrics like total users, daily active users (DAU), and monthly active users (MAU). While these numbers may be good for PR, they don't provide real insight into the growth rate or the quality of users being brought in.

Instead, growth hackers should be paying attention to metrics that truly matter. One such metric is the daily net change, which tells you on a daily basis how much your user base has grown or shrunk. This metric allows you to assess new user acquisition, re-engagement, and retention, giving you a clear picture of the impact of each component on your current growth rate.

Another important metric is core daily actives. This metric filters out the noise by only counting users who have been using your service on a regular basis. By calculating the number of users who used your service today and also used it five or more times in the past four weeks, you can get a more accurate measure of user engagement.

Perhaps the most insightful metric on this list is the cohort activity heatmap. This metric shows how your user retention curve has changed over time. By tracking the conversion funnel for important flows on a daily basis, you can catch adverse changes early on. Even a difference of a few percentage points can compound over time, so it's crucial to stay vigilant and make necessary adjustments.

With these metrics in mind, growth hackers can focus on actionable strategies to drive meaningful growth. Here are three key pieces of advice:

1. Prioritize engagement over total users: While it's tempting to chase after high user numbers, it's more important to focus on engaging and retaining your existing users. This will lead to a more sustainable and loyal user base.

2. Experiment with different acquisition channels: Don't rely solely on one acquisition channel. Test out different channels to see which ones yield the highest quality users. This will help you optimize your acquisition efforts and attract users who are more likely to stick around.

3. Continuously analyze and optimize your conversion funnel: By closely monitoring your conversion funnel, you can identify areas of improvement and make necessary adjustments to optimize user acquisition and retention.

In conclusion, a better future for news lies in recognizing the value of journalistic content and finding ways to monetize it. Substack's approach to empowering writers can teach growth hackers valuable lessons about focusing on meaningful metrics and driving sustainable growth. By prioritizing engagement, experimenting with acquisition channels, and optimizing the conversion funnel, growth hackers can contribute to the growth and success of the news industry in this new golden age of publishing.