[ogarten]

I am kind of in the same boat as you. I just started a blog on my personal website jut I am looking to monetize at some point in time. I don‘t lile substack because it harasses the reader too much. Hackernoon has a really nerdy vibe to it.

I think managing the newsletter yourself is really the best way to go and then talk about it on social media. My main problem is that once you want to make money with it everything becomes less enjoyable. Gotta start thinking about your funnel, your landing page, etc.

[penaazv]

Have you heard of beehiiv? It's apparently quite creator focused.

About the money-making aspect, it seems like a later stage thing atm. But yes, I get where you're coming from.

[ogarten]

I haven't used beehiiv. Looks similar to what other offer, too.

For me it feels like either you want to make money or you don't and that is the major drive behind the choice. Most tools have some way to export/import subscribers.

I would probably try to have a newsletter and also publish on your website for example. This way, people will have a chance to checkout your content before subscribing.