How to calculate your true readership with AI
Subscribers, Open Rates interpreted with a simple prompt
Why we write online
The classic advice to “ignore the numbers” and “it is only sustainable, if you are first writing for yourself” is actually very good for a new writer.
But if you are like me, it is really hard to resist checking the stats.
We do want to know, if people like what we are writing. If anyone is even reading what we are writing.
I love it when people comment, but those are rare. So here is how to make use of the metrics we do have.
What is “True Readership”?
The main point of creating content = For others to read your content.
(You can also be doing this to document your journey, but you publish, so others can read)
True Readership = People who actually read your writings
You might have a really high subscriber count, but if you have a low open rate, that might be because these people who subscribe to your publication may not really be that interested in what you are writing. So it goes to their inbox and they don't open it. (This is usually a problem if you have a lot of subscribers from Notes)
Open Rate
Here is my open rates for June 2025:
Calculations: This gives me,
Average Views = 34.7 Views
Average Open Rate = 25.86%
You need to combine your open rate with the approximate number of subscribers that you actually have over this period.
Subscriber Count Over Time
From the 1st of June, I have 41 subscribers and now on the 19th of June, I have 58 subscribers.
Calculation:
Growth = +17 subscribers in 19 days (~41.5% increase) 🎉
Final 📊 Estimated True Readers Over Time
True readers (people who consistently open and likely read) are estimated based on the subscriber count at the time of each post.
Subscriber count: 41 to 58
Average open rate: ~26%
Estimated true readers = 11 to 15
Prompt
[Screenshot of your recent articles pasted into ChatGPT]
Get the statistics from here and help me analyze the number of true subscribers I have (average number of people who actually read my substack. I have 41 to 58 subscribers in this period.Conclusion
The most important metric here is actually the consistent open rate which stays around 26%. This tells me that there are subscribers who reliably open my email articles and newsletters.
So even as the total subscriber count rises, the actual true readership of this publication is also rising, which is great!
Now what I really need to do is to find out more about the people who are consistently reading my writing because it would allow me to target what I'm writing to my audience better.
Are they experts at Obsidian? Would more beginner level content be helpful, or should I focus on more advanced workflows?
Are they content creators interested in my creator journey or students who want note-taking system articles?
I have some data points:
My single most popular post is about the Zettelkasten, but it might also be more popular because I cross posted it on YouTube with an accompanying video.
I also got some messages from my audience on youtube and on substack (I cannot tell you, how happy I am about this) and they seem to want PKM content more.