Why I Deleted 361 Subscribers (And Why You Should Too!)
Today, I carried through on my promise and deleted 361 subscribers from my Substack list.
Why?
Because a clean list is a healthy list—and engagement matters more than vanity metrics like subscriber count.
Here’s how I decided who to remove:
✅ They were free subscribers
✅ They had been on my list since before Dec 1st, 2024
✅ They had opened less than 1 email/post
✅ They had clicked less than 1 link
✅ Their activity rating was below 1 star
Of my 2,024 subscribers, 361 fell into this category. Before deleting them, I double-checked their accounts to confirm they were as unengaged as Substack reported.
But Why Delete Subscribers?
📩 Email open rates matter. While they don’t perfectly track engagement, they do impact how Substack and email providers judge your content’s relevance.
🚀 Poor open rates hurt deliverability. If too many subscribers ignore your emails, your reach drops, and fewer people see your work.
📉 My open rate was dropping. On ConvertKit, I had a 40%+ open rate. On Substack, it started at 40% but dropped to below 35%. That was my signal to take action.
💡 A big list is pointless if nobody reads your emails. It’s better to have 500 engaged readers than 5,000 who don’t care.
How I Did It
Substack (like any good email platform) gives you tools to manage your list.
✅ I used Substack’s filters to find inactive subscribers
✅ I sent a re-engagement email (optional, but recommended)
✅ I removed those who didn’t respond or engage
Your Turn: Time for a List Clean-Up?
If your open rates are dropping, it’s time to clean house.
🔍 Check your list today—your open rates will improve, and you’ll be talking to people who actually want to listen.
💬 Have you ever done a list clean-up? Let me know in the comments!