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Peter's avatar

You hit on exactly it - this is a “practitioner collaboration culture”. In knowledge management terms, Substack, whether intentional or not, has created a platform for “communities of practice” to convene organically. It’s quite special.

I feel there’s something about the mix of short form thoughts combined with the long form and ability to monetize your expertise that supported it. And it exploded right at a time where other platforms were becoming either ego driven self-aggrandizement or toxicity.

It’s a haven for thoughtful people at the moment. And as you point to, that makes it incredibly valuable to companies trying to get insight into what could be next.

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Karo (Product with Attitude)'s avatar

Yes! It's quite special indeed 🤗 It'd be actually interesting to know if that was intentional on Substack's side, or not. Thank you for reading Peter.

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Peter's avatar

Very curious about that too! Thanks for your post :)

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Jenny Ouyang's avatar

Karo, you’re brilliant at spotting the unique value of Substack. Building a community here and connecting with people is such a smart move. I’m already picturing my future self thanking me for being part of this. 🤩

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Mark Willis's avatar

I could not agree more. I think brands have yet to realize the worth of substack subscribers. Having 1 million followers that might give you 8-10 seconds isnt nowhere the value of a subscriber that gives you several minutes each read, thats marketing gold. Thank yo for your insights and i tagged my deep dive on AI psychosis because i thought it might be something that interests you. thank ou again- Mark

https://therewrittenpath.substack.com/p/the-room-that-talks-back?r=61kohn

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Karo (Product with Attitude)'s avatar

You nailed it, Mark! There’s a world of difference between a quick scroll and real time spent in someone’s writing🤗

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Mike Watson's avatar

Great post Karo! I'm here to reinforce the blast!

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Luis Llorens's avatar

Love it!

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Yaron Cohen's avatar

Good observation, Karo! As someone who writes about future trends on Substack, it's indeed true that Substack itself is a good place to spot them :)

I think Substack is still very strong in North America, but maybe not so much beyond that. It'll be interesting to see what kind of use cases we will see for it in the past. I feel like it's almost the new Medium in a way.

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Karo (Product with Attitude)'s avatar

Really appreciate your take, especially from someone who’s in the trenches with future trends. Substack is just now becoming popular in Europe. Exciting to see what'll happen next 🤗

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Sharyph's avatar

This analysis of Substack as a user intelligence source is a huge insight.

It's a powerful shift from shallow listening to deep, verifiable product experience. a significant development for market research.

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Farida Khalaf's avatar

Spot on - substack can be a true lever to anyone personally and professionally

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Karo (Product with Attitude)'s avatar

100% agree Farida.

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Juan Salas-Romer's avatar

Great content Karo. Always very insightful and practical.

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Karo (Product with Attitude)'s avatar

Thank you @Juan Salas-Romer 🤗

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Daria Cupareanu's avatar

Substack really is turning into a live lab for product insights, so rich :)

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Karo (Product with Attitude)'s avatar

So true! And you're a mastermind behind loads of them Daria! 🤗

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Daria Cupareanu's avatar

aww thanks so much, Karo! right back at ya 🤗

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Katie Barnes's avatar

Love this description. Substack is really where it’s at these days. My favorite platform to learn and connect for sure. Thanks for sharing!

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Karo (Product with Attitude)'s avatar

Mine too :) Thank you for reading Katie 🤗

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Katie Barnes's avatar

Of course, love your work!

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Karen Spinner's avatar

I never really thought about Substack as a source of intelligence for brands until I heard from a couple of folks that they were using my newsletter digest app to keep track of industry peers and potential customers. But what you outline in this article makes complete sense, especially as Substack continues to grow!

Thank you for the excellent insights! And very much appreciate the kind mentions!

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Karo (Product with Attitude)'s avatar

Yes, Stackdigest is a great tool for this! Thank you for reading Karen :)

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Rob Litterst's avatar

Thanks for the tag! 🙏🏻

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Karo (Product with Attitude)'s avatar

My pleasure!🤗

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Anila KV's avatar

You put in words what I have felt about Substack... wonderful insights!

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Karo (Product with Attitude)'s avatar

Thank you Anila🤗

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Claryssa Aroen's avatar

Brilliant piece Karo.

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Karo (Product with Attitude)'s avatar

Thanks Clari 🤗

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Code Like A Girl's avatar

Great read Karo. Thanks for highlighting Code Like A Girl!

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