I've been using Airmail for about 2 years now and I like the markdown mode.
But right now, I'm testing both Polymail and Nylas because they both have these specific features that Airmail lacks (and that are deal-breakers for me):
>Some newsletters are pretty great. I would reconsider them given much improved curation. Not sure where others are at, but for me at least, it's an opportunity for somebody.
I'm actually trying to solve the problem of curation and discovery at Letterlist.com. It's amazing that there isn't really a great way to find the best newsletters yet.
I'm curious - what is the biggest barrier stopping you from subscribing to newsletters? Is it solely the curation issue?
And as for podcasts, it's a great question - I started a new thread (Ask HN: What must-listen podcasts do you subscribe to?)
My guess is that a lot of us here on HN probably use a feed reader (I use Feedly). But that's because we're outliers with a technical persuassion. Most people don't have the first idea about rss, but _everyone_ uses email.
I'd suggest there are 2 advantages to starting a newsletter:
1. You can plug your rss feed into the newsletter and broadcast your new articles via email for those who don't use rss.
2. You can email other updates, news, surveys etc that you don't publish on-site.
Email also opens up the discussion because your subscribers can respond any time. It's like the original social network.
> those are just as valuable as thought-out opinions
Totally agree. And early data says you might be right.
I set up a split test on Optimizely with 2 more variations and both beat the control:
Control
SEX UP MY INBOX
35% CTR
Variation 1
DISCOVER NEWSLETTERS
61% CTR
Variation 2
GET STARTED
58% CTR
Variation 1 is winning so far (74% lift, 79% significance). I'll keep it running because right now it's skewed toward HN traffic, and we're a weird bunch here - we seem to behave differently to everybody else
Anyway, thanks again for the feedback. Looks like you're onto something.
Great perspective and a fair point. Thanks for the feedback.
I recall that just before I published the site, I decided to change the CTA from the boring placeholder I had to something more playful and human. It was the first thing that came to mind It just seemed like a fun idea. It worked so I kept it.
Reading your comment, I'm tempted to try something more conventional but it's too easy to be skewed by responding to a single data point. It's edgy so it's bound to be polarising (I've also received positive feedback on the very same text).