🎧 Substack by Design

Julie Ciardi

Be seen, heard and paid on Substack. Substack is the platform for thought leaders. For the long form creators. For the women near or over 50, now in midlife, ready to do their legacy work in the world. www.julieciardi.com

  1. 2D AGO

    Substack Is Not Social Media

    I just came up for air. 12 days delivering in a free masterclass. 7,200 registrants. Heart fully spent. And then I hibernated. I didn’t post, no notes, no Instagram, no Facebook. And even with a little break, my Substack kept growing. I am going to share why in this episode. Everyone is about to try and sell you a Substack playbook. Post three to five notes a day, the note-stacking formula, the same content hamster wheel that burned you out on Instagram dressed up in a new outfit. Don’t take the bait. Substack is not social media. It is a multimedia publishing platform. This distinction is everything and it is what I cover in this episode. In this episode: — Why your Substack strategy is actually your business strategy meeting your human design — Why “Substack gurus” don’t exist (and why they never really can) — Why notes is ONE feature on the platform, not the whole platform — What I’m doing differently now that the masterclass is closed — And the new way I’ve reorganized my paid tiers (including the brand new founding member room I just opened) A line from the episode I want you to sit with: “You are the guru. You’re the only one who can really understand how to best leverage Substack for yourself.” The platforms have always told us how to show up. Substack is finally a place where you get to decide. Lead with audio. Or video. Or writing. Be on for a week and rest the next. Whatever runs in alignment with YOUR design — not someone else’s three-notes-a-day template. That’s what we’re building here. xo, Julie P.S. The Red Rebelle Room on Substack is now open. Join us. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.julieciardi.com/subscribe

    21 min
  2. MAY 4

    Substack Isn’t What You Think It Is

    FYI - I’m teaching a free masterclass this week on exactly how I’m doing this — the simple business plan for the new era, a deep dive on Substack, and how I’m weaving in the IGNITE Her® Frequencies (my rewrite of human design for women, by a woman). 7,000 women have already registered. Doors close May 5th. The link is below. REGISTER HERE! I keep finding myself saying this out loud, over and over, to the women who ask me about Substack: I’m not a writer. I don’t have a newsletter. I speak. I record. I go on video. I do podcasts. I even voice recorded my books! I do exactly what I’m doing right now — I open a voice memo and I talk. And Substack is currently the most powerful platform in my business. Let me tell you why. The numbers that stopped me cold Substack just sent me my April month-in-review, and I had to sit down with it. * 697 new subscribers in 30 days * 6% conversion to paid — the industry average for an email list is 1%; a webinar is around 2.5% * 56% of those new subscribers came from Substack itself — not from ads, not from my email list, not from social. From the platform’s own discovery network. * 29 other publications on Substack recommended me to their readers * $47,000 in annualized revenue in 90 days, with 500 paid subscribers at $79/year And here is the part I want you to really sit with: No funnel. No webinar. No automated launch sequence. Well actually, Substack did the funnel for me. My ads are running, but the ads aren’t doing the work. The platform is doing the work — because I’m showing up in depth, with my actual voice, and Substack is putting me in front of more of the right people every single day. Why this matters for you For years, women in this industry have been handed one path: build the funnel. Run the ads. Do the launch. Post the reel. Repeat next month. Burn out. Start over. That path is breaking. And in its place, something quieter and far more powerful is emerging: a platform built for depth, voice, and tribe. Instagram is where people go to be entertained. Substack is where people go to be moved. You don’t go viral on Substack. You go deep. And depth is what converts. Depth is what builds trust. Depth is what turns a stranger into a subscriber, a subscriber into a paying member, and a paying member into someone who stays for years. This isn’t social media. It’s email + payments + discovery + tribe + multimedia publishing — all in one place. Video. Audio. Writing. All of it. You do not need to be a writer. You do not need a newsletter. You need a voice and a mission. The shift I want you to make If you’ve been frustrated with social media, drained by tech, exhausted by the launch model — I want you to consider that you are not failing. The model is failing. The women paying attention right now — the ones willing to build on a platform that rewards voice over volume, mission over metrics, and depth over dopamine — are the ones who will define the next era of this industry. I’m one of them. I want you to be one too. — Julie P.S. I’m teaching a free masterclass this week on exactly how I’m doing this — the simple business plan for the new era, a deep dive on Substack, and how I’m weaving in the IGNITE Her® Frequencies (my rewrite of human design for women, by a woman). 7,000 women have already registered. Doors close tomorrow. The link is below. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.julieciardi.com/subscribe

    13 min
  3. 11 - Back to Business Basics is the Key to Growth

    MAR 16

    11 - Back to Business Basics is the Key to Growth

    Join IGNITE Her® LAB: The Miracle Hour Exclusive Training with Kelly Roach on March 23rdLearn the system that Kelly used to build a 7 figure business while working full time as an executiveOne hour a day could be the quantum leap you desire in your business & lifeHuman Design Eras & the New Era Series starting March 18thStudy Human Design by looking at the themes of the past 5 eras & the New Era of 2027Learn your specific role in the new era & how it could shape your marketing, offers and thought leadershipAuthority of One™ Live Intensive April 9th 11-3pm easternGet the new 150+ page Human Design reportLearn Julie’s new method for personal branding & messaging using your reportCreate your Designed to Tribe™ Brand Brief - your movement maker manifestoCreate your Soapbox GPT for ongoing copywriting12 months access to Human Design Marketing SchoolWeekly live Human Design training & coworkingAccess to the Human Design training vaultJulie’s simple marketing plan - no social media requiredGlobal community of women in a private mobile app & desktopThe Daily Frequency with Julie - daily private podcast with Julie (M-F) to start your day - background frequency in Human Design + business strategies & inspiration/motivation WELCOME to Substack by Design! Be sure to grab your free resources here! Substack 101 Workshop, Workbook and more! Join the Substack Soapbox Membership - Just $79 for the year!!! Subscribe to Julie on Substack Get your free 50 Not Finished Human Design Report Join us in IGNITE Her® LAB! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.julieciardi.com/subscribe

    25 min

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About

Be seen, heard and paid on Substack. Substack is the platform for thought leaders. For the long form creators. For the women near or over 50, now in midlife, ready to do their legacy work in the world. www.julieciardi.com

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