We're moving!

And so it begins again, indeed! I am - and so we are - moving. The beauty of today’s technology is that you won’t have to lift a finger to go through that move. Actually, you’ve already moved, isn’t it beautiful? You don’t have anything to do right now, as I’ve set up everything, and you’ll receive today’s edition soon. This newsletter is getting a new home at Substack after nearly a year at Beehiiv. And so I’m here to tell you why and what will change and what won’t.

First of all, thank you all for joining the adventure and helping the Tennis Sweet Spot grow. And it’s because I want to keep going that I’m moving. It’s important to state something I feel: I don’t have a Substack, I didn’t have a Beehiiv: I have a newsletter. I’m always cringing at hearing people say they have a Substack because it’s basically offering your brand and your content identity to a platform. In today’s climate, we know how bad of an idea it is. I own my newsletter and its content, I just decide where I’m hosting it. TSS isn’t becoming a Substack, it’s remaining TSS.

So, why move? I’ve been thinking about it for a while, actually, before deciding to pull the trigger. It’s tough to leave because I really think Beehiiv is an amazing solution for newsletters. The team is great, we have a dedicated Slack with them that makes it feel like you’re part of the team, there are dozens of upgrades coming up regularly, and I can already tell you that I’m missing the quality of the editor. They have THE BEST editor, really. No competition. I know what I’m losing lol.

BUT it’s not the best choice for me as a writer. Why? Because it lacks the communities you can find at Substack where I already follow many writers and can see how they’re growing and creating a real link and a tailored offer with their subscribers. I miss the interactions, the opportunities to be discovered by more readers, and the growth tools like the recommendations and the notes. I and the newsletter miss the engagement that goes with it. Substack is already established enough to be a place where people come to shop for newsletters to read and follow. (I hesitated with Ghost by the way but they seem to share some things with Beehiiv: they’re expensive when you start, they’re tech heavy and the tools for discovery and growth are limited.) 

There are no internal discovery tools with Beehiiv: every growth is external. To grow and scale on Beehiiv, you need to have a significant ad budget or an already huge following because the platform isn’t a growth engine in itself. I’ll remind you that I’ve basically deserted X and so deserted the number of followers I had gathered through the years (no regret, I love bluesky). And the way the sponsors are landing in your newsletter (again, an amazing setup!) doesn’t move the needle unless you’re already a huge newsletter. And so it adds up quickly as you also need a monthly plan solid enough to have access to the tools you need. In the end, I felt Beehiiv wasn’t the right fit for me, and I think it’ll be the case for many writers (I mean people wanting to write and not write-to-sell-products) for now. If you’re into AI, finance, real estate, crypto, courses, coaching, business, social media business, or whatnot, then you’ll be way more at home at Beehiiv than I was. I’m sure the team will improve that side in the future, as they’re starting to lean more into creating dedicated spaces for media and journalists, so it could be just a goodbye for now. (The website for TSS will remain as I own the domain and am now on a free plan, but it won’t be updated there anymore at all. Could it be turned into something else at some point? Who knows…).

Beehiiv feels like a start-up that you’re seeing being built live, but I don’t need that, and it’s not a comfort zone or a growth zone for writers. I don’t need all the tech, I don’t need the automation options, and all the super-advanced options that I am surely not even fully aware of. I also work alone, and clearly, Beehiiv is much better if you have a team able to find the time to explore and keep up with all their options and another to spend time on the marketing side of things. I need simple, flexible, and easy. I don’t have the time for a new editor, website, tracking system, or whatever every few weeks. I have zero intention to spend hours finding how to deal with the Meta ads or whatever. If I can avoid dealing with Meta, like I’m avoiding dealing with X,… I want to spend way more time writing and reporting and way less on tech or marketing.

So yes, we’re starting a new adventure on Substack where I feel you will get way more from me and TSS. You can interact directly with me via the notes, the comments, or the chat, where we can follow up on things already written and brainstorm what you’d like to read next. You can get to know other writers via my recommendations and theirs. We can expand the discussions in such a broader way. Something that will feel more like a proper tennis chat. Tennis and writing need a community to thrive, so I’m trying to get that.

You’ll see that there’s a paid offer (made way easier here than with Beehiiv), and I will develop it way more in the coming weeks and months as I try to turn TSS into something inspiring for me, entertaining and useful for you, and sustainable. But no worries here: I will keep a free option with at least one post a week in the same format you got used to. Nothing is changing for you all, it’s just getting better. I hope you’ll bear with me when I get settled in the new house! Substack isn’t perfect, I’m well aware of it, but for now, it seems it makes the most sense for TSS. Again, they don’t own it, I just use their tools.

You don’t have anything to do, and you will receive today’s edition in a few hours, as usual! I’m excited for that next chapter! Let me know what you think of it all when the next post land!

Cheers,
Carole

Where can you find me?
Bluesky: @carolebouchard.bsky.social
Substack: @tennissweetspot