Substack PR: How to Make the Most of Substack

As a PR professional, I’m always looking for ways to expand my audience and network, and market my business.  Of course, I already use social media channels like LinkedIn and Meta (Facebook). But I’ve recently been looking at Substack, and discovering its marketing and PR capabilities.

What is Substack?

Founded in the US in 2017, Substack is a free to use, online publishing platform, where big brands or independent publishers, including journalists, writers, doctors, experts, authors and PR pros can use the platform to publish their own content. Readers can then access the content in three ways: by having it emailed to them as a subscriber, in the form of a newsletter; or they can read it on Substack’s app; or they can read it on Substack’s website. There are no ads, so Substack earns its revenue through over 3 million paid subscriptions.

So Substack PR is really about using Substack for networking, promotion, and pitching, with PR professionals like me using the platform to connect with journalists, editors and freelance writers.

Why Substack is so successful

According to recent data, Substack gained an additional 5 million monthly users, in 2024, so it’s safe to say it’s doingsomething right. So here are just a few reasons why I recommend Substack as a great platform to be on.

1. People opt-in with Substack

Have you heard of the 1000 True Fans Theory? It claims you don’t need millions of fans to make a living. Instead, it’s important to build a small, loyal following, and Substack’s success supports this theory. The top newsletter content earns almost £4 million a year through paid subscriptions.

Paid subscriptions are great, but wouldn’t ads generate the same profit? Maybe in the past. But times have changed and adblockers are on the rise thanks to intrusive ads. A Wunderkind poll showed startling statistics: 91% of shoppers won’t buy from brands who use ‘intrusive ads’, 99% of Gen Z frequently skip ads, and 63% of online shoppers use ad blockers. And in the UK, around 18% of users have installed ad blockers. Fortunately, Substack’s newsletters aren’t blocked, skipped or seen as ‘intrusive’. As the former Pinterest executive Meredith Klein said about Substack, “The engagement is higher because people have opted in, they’re welcoming it in their inbox and they’re getting it pushed to them.”

2. Substack saves time and money

A big reason why professionals use Substack is because you can publish newsletters and blogs for free. Yes, there are free newsletter websites like Mailerlite and EmailOctopus, but their free accounts have limits. Substack offers both newsletter and blog publishing for free under one account and includes paid subscription management for a small fee. You could spend hours managing three different websites to run your newsletter, blog and paid subscriptions, or you can save money and time by doing it all on Substack.

How to get the most from Substack

So Substack is a way to save money and time while generating thousands of pounds of exposure and engagement from a loyal following. But to reach that point, it’s important to learn some essential Substack tips.

Substack PR Tip No.1 – Find Your Tribe

When you setup a profile on Substack, it shows different categories. By clicking on those categories you’ll see varioussubcategories. For example, when you click the Technology category, it shows the Emerging Tech and Digital Media subcategories.

Feel free to choose categories relevant to your marketing and PR goals, but also choose topics you’re personally interested in.

Substack PR Tip No.2 – Set Expectations

It’s important to sign up under your real name to show subscribers you’re a real person. And it will also reassure anti-AI readers in a world where AI influencers are gaining ground.

Substack also lets you choose a publication name for your newsletter and asks for a brief description. It’s worth choosing a publication name that tells your readers what to expect. Here are some of my favourite name and description examples.

• Jess White Reads Books: “What I’ve been reading and what I think about it” – Readers instantly see who the writer is and understands she writes about books.
• Gut Feelings with Professor Tim Spector: “My own views on improving health” – The word ‘gut’ shows the newsletter is about health and having professor in the title suggests he’s an expert.
• Democracy for Sale: “Democracy for Sale is all about the threats to democracy from dark money and hidden influence, why it matters…. and what we can do about it.” – The author’s name isn’t mentioned, but the thought-provoking title is certainly attention-grabbing.

Substack PR Tip No.3 – Always Keep in Touch

Substack is a great way to expand your network and engage your audience. Include as many links as possible in your Substack profile such as for Instagram, Meta (Facebook), X (Twitter) and Tiktok. Connect with readers on multiple websites, so they always have a way to find you.

Substack PR Tip No.4 – Make your branding consistent

As a PR pro I understand the importance of consistent branding. That’s why I use the same photos and colour schemes across all my social media. Check out the pictures on my website home page. They’re the same ones I use on my LinkedIn profile, which is handy when people have the same name as you. Consistent branding shows people they’ve found the right person, and also helps The Rule of Seven. It’s the marketing theory that people must see your brand seven times before they buy something. Consider this rule when planning your Substack profile and publication page. Choose the same name, pictures and colours you use on your other websites.

Substack PR Tip No.5 – Focus on your subscribers

Did you know that 71% of marketers have digital newsletters? That’s a lot of competition. You need to keep your readers informed and entertained, otherwise they’ll unsubscribe and go elsewhere. Here are my tips for keeping your current subscribers and growing your mailing list:

1. Be Unique, Be You

Don’t copy others, their content or their personality. Subscribers want you, not someone else. If they can get your content elsewhere, they’ll go elsewhere.

2. Don’t Sell Too Much

Remember that readers subscribe for valuable information, not another ad. If you sell something in every newsletter, you’ll overwhelm and frustrate readers. Too much advertising also breaks a Substack Content Guidelines rule. It says: “We don’t permit publications whose primary purpose is to advertise external products or services, drive traffic to third party sites, distribute offers and promotions, enhance search engine optimization, or similar activities.”

You can market via Substack in a rule-friendly way by adding a small image at the end of your content. That’s a subtle way to promote yourself without the risk of being banned.

3. Publish a Variety of Content

You can take full advantage of all of Substack’s different types of content by publishing text-based posts, discussion threads, pictures, videos, and podcasts. And audio is great for visually impaired subscribers, as well as users who may struggle with reading e.g. dyslexics. Posting a variety of content means all readers can enjoy your publication and output, no matter whattheir circumstances.

4. Prove You Can Be Trusted

Building trust is crucial in a world where people fear false information and 36% don’t trust the media. It’s important to prove your trustworthiness by linking to trustworthy sources, so your subscribers can verify what’s been said.

There’s another reason to include links. When you link to other sites, you send website traffic their way. Their website’s analytics dashboard will show they gained readers from you and hopefully they’ll return the favour by linking to your Substack.

5. Listen to Your Subscribers

Subscribers spend time reading, liking and commenting on your content, so remember to respond. There may be days you get so many comments you won’t have time to reply to everyone. But respond to a few to show you’re reading the comments.

Being bombarded with comments is a great ‘problem’ to have, but what if the opposite happens? If there are no comments, encourage engagement by adding polls and surveys related to your publication. Use the results to make sure future content matches your audience’s demographics and preferences.

Substack PR Tip No.6 Track Your Success

Some writers publish over and over again, wondering why they aren’t meeting their PR and marketing goals. Substack’s metrics page makes campaign assessment easier. So track key statistics including email open rates, the number of subscribers, and how new readers found you. Substack pros use statistics to determine what readers want, so don’t waste time on unpopular content.

Substack PR Tip No.7 Set a Consistent Publishing Schedule

Building a loyal audience requires regular publishing. If you wait too long between posts, readers will forget who you are. Andthey might even unsubscribe because they forgot they signed up.

So how often should you publish new content? Some people post any time. But more useful is to conduct research and consider feedback. Start by finding successful publishers in the same category and seeing how often they post then follow their example for a month or two. Remember to check out Substack’s metrics to see how successful the post frequency was. Did you gain or lose subscribers? Did email newsletters maintain high open rates? How many comments did you get? There’s always room for improvement, so try different post frequencies to see which one is most successful.

It’s also worth carrying out post frequency research for different types of posts. I wouldn’t publish long posts more than once a week because it might overwhelm readers. But Substack notes are acceptable every other day because they’re short and super quick to read.

Substack PR Tip No.8 Include Free Content

Substack allows free content with the option to monetise. It’s tempting to place your best content behind a paywall, but it’s worth keeping it free. It may seem counterintuitive, but making your some of your best and most useful content free is a way to get your content shared and widely read. Once readers have built up a positive relationship with you, they’re more likely to subscribe to your paid newsletters.

The power of Substack Public Relations

Now you see why and how professionals can and should use Substack. The platform boosts your online public relations and lets you build a loyal, lucrative following.

If you’re a PR pro, like me, you should also consider the power of Substack PR for pitching purposes, by following and connecting with journalists, editors and freelance writers who regularly invite pitches on certain subjects. By staying professional, positive, relatable and approachable, you can build and expand a media list with immense marketing power.

Like other platforms, Substack should be considered as part of a powerful and effective marketing campaign.