Substack is introducing direct messaging, allowing users to have private one-on-one conversations, the company announced today. DMs include the Substack app and website.[チャット]It can be accessed from the tab. By default, users only receive DMs from people they're connected to. Other messages are moved to your requests folder, where you can choose to accept or decline them.
After releasing an X (formerly Twitter) clone called Notes last year, Substack is now copying yet another feature from the social network. A few months after launching Notes, the company started allowing users to follow each other. Substack is best known as a newsletter platform, but the company has been slowly transforming its platform over the past year toward more of a social network, and the new DM feature takes this shift one step further.
According to Substack, DM was a highly requested feature among users, with many users sharing their excitement in posts announcing the announcement. However, not everyone may be interested in this addition, as users asked if they could turn off DMs and commented that they didn't want people to contact them directly. In response, Substack said users can disable DMs by going to Settings and selecting “Allow Message Requests” and then “Don't allow anyone.”
The company tested DM with a small group of writers and found it could be used to build subscriber loyalty, connect with other writers, and foster a community of readers. Substack says it expects DMs to strengthen their connections with writers on the platform.
Image credits: substack
If you're a writer and want your readers to message you directly, you can add a “send message” button to your new post. Substack says it helps writers ask for news tips and gather questions.
The launch of DMs comes just days after Substack updated its peer-to-peer recommendation system, allowing writers to share a curated list of publications for readers to subscribe to. The idea behind this change is to allow writers to help other writers expand their reach and gain more subscribers and followers.
Substack gets off to a controversial start to 2024 by saying it won't ban Nazi newsletters. Substack CEO Hamish McKenzie said that while Substack prohibits posts containing “incitement of violence,” the company remains committed to a “decentralized approach to content moderation.” In response, prominent authors such as Casey Newton and Ryan Broderick decided to leave Substack.