50 Not Finished: Substack by Design

Substack Isn’t What You Think It Is

Julie Ciardi-50 Not Finished📕 — Mon, 04 May 2026 10:58:45 GMT

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.

Join us by May 5th!

Substack Podcast Playbook Training! 🎧

Julie Ciardi-50 Not Finished📕 — Fri, 10 Apr 2026 18:52:55 GMT

Pivoted narrative perspective from third person to first person

In this training, I walk you through everything you need to know to get your podcast up and running on Substack — whether you’re starting fresh or moving an existing show over.

I cover why Substack is so much more than a newsletter platform and how its built-in podcast features eliminate the …

The Power of Podcasting Now

Julie Ciardi-50 Not Finished📕 — Tue, 07 Apr 2026 11:19:39 GMT

Episode Summary: With 584 million listeners worldwide and women as the fastest-growing audience, podcasting has never been more powerful — or more accessible. In this episode, Julie breaks down the top 5 reasons every female entrepreneur should have a podcast in her business toolkit, the 3 trends reshaping the industry in 2026, and the next big idea she’s watching closely.

In This Episode:

Why podcasting is the ultimate trust-based, off-social-media marketing channel
The stat that proves your dream client is already bingeing podcasts (and what to do about it)
How one episode can become 5–6 pieces of content without creating from scratch
Why video podcasting just became non-negotiable
The next big idea: Substack for podcasting

Key Stats Mentioned:

584M global podcast listeners (projected 619M by end of 2026)
55% of Americans now listen to podcasts monthly
Podcast hosts rank just below friends & family in trust
45% of U.S. women listen monthly — up 15% year over year
Women average 9.5 episodes per week vs. 7.2 for men

Ready to Learn Why Substack is the place for podcasting? Join Julie this Friday for The Podcast Playbook — a live training on how to launch, structure, and grow a podcast that builds your business.

Join us Friday!

Substack Podcast Strategies

Julie Ciardi-50 Not Finished📕 — Thu, 26 Mar 2026 13:26:29 GMT

I have been a podcaster for 8 years. I am BLOWN AWAY at the capabilities and strategic innovation of having your podcast be on Substack.

In this episode I share some of those ideas and strategies and invite you to join my paid subscribers on April 10th at 10:00 am eastern where I will be teaching and providing the Substack Podcast Playbook!

You will hear how I even saw another possibility of how to use the Substack podcast feature while I was talking to you LOL. This is about to change the podcasting game.

xo, Julie

Join us here

13 Substack Won't Grow Your Business Without This

Julie Ciardi-50 Not Finished📕 — Mon, 23 Mar 2026 13:13:25 GMT

Join us in IGNITE Her® LAB! Kelly's session is today at 1:00 (replay will be available after!)

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!

12 - Monetizing Substack & Upselling Your Higher Ticket Offers

Julie Ciardi-50 Not Finished📕 — Thu, 19 Mar 2026 10:08:38 GMT

LIVE training tomorrow at 11 am eastern to learn more about the monetization process.

Join the Substack Soapbox Membership - Just $79 for the year!!!

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!

11 - Back to Business Basics is the Key to Growth

Julie Ciardi-50 Not Finished📕 — Mon, 16 Mar 2026 13:50:20 GMT

Join IGNITE Her® LAB:

The Miracle Hour Exclusive Training with Kelly Roach on March 23rd
Learn the system that Kelly used to build a 7 figure business while working full time as an executive
One hour a day could be the quantum leap you desire in your business & life
Human Design Eras & the New Era Series starting March 18th
Study Human Design by looking at the themes of the past 5 eras & the New Era of 2027
Learn your specific role in the new era & how it could shape your marketing, offers and thought leadership
Authority of One™ Live Intensive April 9th 11-3pm eastern
Get the new 150+ page Human Design report
Learn Julie’s new method for personal branding & messaging using your report
Create your Designed to Tribe™ Brand Brief - your movement maker manifesto
Create your Soapbox GPT for ongoing copywriting
12 months access to Human Design Marketing School
Weekly live Human Design training & coworking
Access to the Human Design training vault
Julie’s simple marketing plan - no social media required
Global community of women in a private mobile app & desktop
The Daily Frequency with Julie - daily private podcast with Julie (M-F) to start your day - background frequency in Human Design + business strategies & inspiration/motivation