Hey, Subscribers, both free and paid - this week’s Monday story I’m making open to all readers because I’m trying something new: videos right inside your weekly newsletter!
Substack is soon launching a new video feature for all its content creators, and I was selected to help beta test it. I'm rather excited because I want to keep creating maker videos, but YouTube is, well, so frustrating.
All the commercials and the tracking - and that darn algorithm - YouTube is invasive and, frankly, a privacy concern. But Substack is different. Their model rewards creators for doing the work we believe in. "You don't need to play by the rules of social media to succeed," so claims Substack.
Is their new video feature the opportunity I've been looking for?
I learned Friday that I could begin testing video here and wanted to jump right in. But without anything new to share, I decided to go with one of my existing videos. It's about a simple measuring conversion chart with decimal and metric equivalents for fractional inches. In the video, I share a link to my website where anyone can download a free PDF of the chart I created (link to my website).
For almost any social media platform, including YouTube, content like this with links to other websites is not promoted like material that makes viewers stay put. Basically, the YouTube algorithm rejects videos with links because these take viewers away from YouTube's never-ending commercial bombardment.
I'm in the business of making and writing about making - for you, not YouTube and their sponsors. I want to present maker content that's educational, fun, and engaging - not commercial and exploitative.
So maybe, just maybe, this is better.
Clicking on the video above takes you to my Substack newsletter to easily watch the episode. It's 100% commercial-free - all you see is my content, which you've signed up for already. And Substack's business model does not include selling user info (unlike YouTube), so you're safe to engage with me here; it won’t result in pop-up ads hawking you maker stuff (or any stuff) elsewhere on the web.
Please watch the video and let me know what you think about the experience.
Are you interested in seeing my maker video content again, now on Substack? Is this format better than YouTube? If I start up videos again, is there something you really want to see?
As always, any and all feedback is welcome - and appreciated. Share in the comments, or feel free to write me directly. And as always, thank you for being a part of J ROBERT CLARK - Makes.
Until next time.
JRC
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