Zero Retries Is Moving to Ghost, Random Wire Isn’t

Read Time: 4 minute(s)

Zero Retries is moving from Substack to the Ghost platform. I am very pleased for them, and because of my relationship with the Zero Retries team, I’ve been privy to some of the challenges they have faced. This was not a simple choice or an easy move for them. I applaud their care and diligence in making this change.

Look for Zero Retries at https://www.zeroretries.radio/

I understand the many reasons Zero Retries is switching to the Ghost platform. I happen to agree with those reasons. This begs the question: why is the Random Wire still on Substack, especially if my feelings align with those of the Zero Retries team?

I am doing something similar, but very slowly. Moving the Random Wire away from Substack is really a long, slow separation. It is a lot of preparation so that I will be ready when that day comes.

While I’ve grown comfortable with most of Substack’s features, I don’t have the level of control I want over some aspects of the platform. There are some restrictions that don’t fit my business model well. And at a fundamental level, I’m not happy sharing a platform with some of Substack’s creatives.

Since I am deeply familiar with WordPress, I’ve already moved article publishing over to my WordPress-driven site at EtherHam.com. The newsletter piece? It still lives on Substack. For now.

The unbeatable part of the Substack equation is the zero out-of-pocket cost for the newsletter to be managed on their platform. For the services Substack provides, it’s hard to justify moving away from Substack. I have not monetized the Random Wire. I don’t plan to use subscriptions as a way to fund costs, like those I would incur if I used a different service. I continue to explore options, but frankly, moving some content over to EtherHam.com does open alternatives if something goes awry at Substack. It gives me more flexibility, something I think benefits all subscribers.

My basic funding mechanism for the Random Wire has been affiliate links, primarily on Amazon, but most of those links have now moved to EtherHam.com. When you purchase something through an affiliate link, it costs you nothing extra but I get a (very) small commission on those purchases. One of the strikes against Substack is this method runs counter to their model. Substack is funded by taking a cut of subscription revenue. I’m not offering subscriptions. Instead, I’m publishing affiliate links.

I’ve looked at Ghost, Medium, Beehiiv, MailChimp, and ConvertKit (now Kit). Beehiiv and ConvertKit feel like front runners because of low cost. But I’ve made no choices yet.

I want to reassure you that I have no concrete plans to move the Random Wire newsletter off of the Substack platform at this time. However, I continue to explore alternatives so that I’ll be prepared. Above all, I want to keep costs low because that helps me provide the greatest amount of free content to you.

The Zero Retries team has a different business model. Ghost is going to be a great fit for them, once they get past the first handful of days as they learn a new publishing system. I’m a little selfish, really, because I look forward to reading the cutting edge content in the Zero Retries newsletter every week. The quality is astoundingly high. I recommend Zero Retries highly.

Thank you for going on this journey with me. Your interest and support help me keep digging for more information and more learning.