Why brands are looking to Substack to create value and build community

“Traditional social platforms are becoming increasingly saturated and algorithm-driven, making organic reach increasingly difficult and unpredictable,” says Becky Owen, CMO at influencer marketing agency Billion Dollar Boy. At the same time, “Audiences today expect relevance, nuance, and value – whether that’s in the form of entertainment, education, or inspiration.” 

The solution that some brands are finding to this conundrum is Substack, an email newsletter platform that is increasingly popular with commentators, writers, and creators of all stripes. 

While many brands already have email marketing lists, Substack newsletters are emerging as a new means of engaging audiences via differentiated content, and deepening community and loyalty. So, why is Substack catching the attention of businesses, and what should brands consider in order to get the most from it?

What is the appeal of Substack?

Substack emerged onto the scene in 2017, launched by two pivotal former members of Kik Messenger and a former tech reporter at PandoDaily. It has steadily risen in prominence, particularly in the last few years, thanks to network effects and a growing number of creators looking to the platform as a means of monetising their work. 

Similar to platforms like Medium or WordPress for blogging, Substack makes the act of starting up an email newsletter and connecting with potential readers simple and accessible. 

Built-in features such as likes and commenting attract readers from their email inboxes back to Substack (since this can only be done on the site or within the app), making a Substack newsletter in many ways more akin to a blog than an email product. Substack has continued to add to these engagement features by introducing Substack Chat, a private social space for a newsletter author to interact with their subscribers, in late 2022, demonstrating the platform’s intent to lean further into the community angle.

“Unlike traditional email platforms, Substack encourages a two-way conversation and fosters a sense of community,” Owen says of Substack’s increasing prominence and appeal. 

“It’s not a replacement for social or paid media but a powerful complement, especially for brands aiming to build owned media ecosystems and drive long-term engagement.” 

Unlike traditional email platforms, Substack encourages a two-way conversation and fosters a sense of community.

Substack does seem to have been taking some cues from social media with recent feature releases, such as Notes – a short-form writing feature with more than a passing similarity to Twitter, especially given the ability to ‘restack’ Notes or quotations from other creators onto your own feed – and the introduction of vertical, swipeable short videos. 

Some creators have expressed discontent with Substack’s focus on these features over long-demanded improvements like increased customisation and personal branding (Vogue Business reported on some of these criticisms from within the fashion community). However, others have leaned into Substack’s new capabilities with enthusiasm. 

It’s clear that Substack wants to show that it can offer creators and influencers a home for their content, no matter what kind, along with strong options for community engagement (and monetisation – Substack enables creators to paywall some or all of their content for access by paying subscribers only).  

This has also led brands to sit up and take notice of Substack’s potential as a venue for engaging with their customer base. 

How have brands been experimenting with Substack, and are they succeeding?

So far, only a select few brands have formally ventured onto Substack, the majority of whom are small or creator-led businesses that can be more nimble and experimental with their marketing strategy. 

Brands who want to engage on Substack should also bear in mind that the platform’s content guidelines forbid publications that are there solely to advertise external products or services, drive traffic to third-party sites, distribute offers or enhance SEO.  

This doesn’t preclude organisations from being on Substack – instead, it challenges them to think outside the box in terms of how they use the platform and what value they are offering to newsletter subscribers.  

As Owen notes, “The era of blunt, one-size-fits-all brand messaging is behind us. … Brands that understand this are already shifting toward more democratised, creator-led content ecosystems, and that same philosophy should guide their approach on Substack.” 

SmartFlyer: Delivering exclusive travel expertise into subscribers’ inboxes

Some brands have recognised the potential for Substack to offer an added dimension to the content they already publish. Luxury travel agency SmartFlyer, which launched its newsletter ‘Stay Awhile with SmartFlyer’ earlier in April, is taking advantage of the platform to deepen its reputation for exclusive travel expertise while differentiating the newsletter from its existing email and content marketing. 

Kayla Douglas, content director at SmartFlyer and a long-time Substack user herself, said that ‘Stay Awhile’ can platform “stories [that] feel relevant this week, and much more in-the-moment, but maybe they won’t be relevant in six months … They are based on current feedback from our agents on the ground.” These include insights from executives such as SmartFlyer’s CEO and co-founder and its director of product and partnerships. 

SmartFlyer’s team plan to track metrics such as open rates, views, and the number of new subscribers who discovered them organically through Substack. The inaugural newsletter edition also drew comments from community members who weren’t present on Instagram, a benefit that Douglas described as “one of the most exciting things about the launch”. 

M.M.LaFleur: Building an engaged community of workwear lovers

Women’s workwear brand M.M.LaFleur made the decision to migrate their existing editorial platform, a blog known as The M Dash, to Substack in order to take advantage of Substack’s community features and build greater reach. The M Dash is already “a key retention tool” for M.M.LaFleur, as reported by Modern Retail, but Substack’s interest-based recommendation and discovery features can open it up to a new audience. 

Indeed, The M Dash gained around 200 new subscribers on Substack in its first month without any additional promotion from the brand. M.M.LaFleur is also tracking conversion metrics from Substack visitors and has seen dollar-per-session and conversion rates climb since the launch. 

Maddie Kim, head of editorial at M.M.LaFleur, has said that The M Dash on Substack is intended as “a safe, high-quality space, not just another sales pitch”, with the brand having no plans to implement a paywall. 

Director of brand and integrated marketing Maria Costa added that, “We’ve always seen The M Dash as more of a top-of-funnel awareness tool than a hard sales driver. But if we can build that relationship through content, eventually, we hope, [readers will] become customers.” 

How should brands approach Substack as a marketing channel?

Jumping blindly onto a bandwagon just because Substack is generating buzz is unlikely to work. So, what do brands need to bear in mind if they are considering Substack, and how can they maximise their chances of success? 

“Substack isn’t a sales channel – it’s a relationship channel,” emphasises Becky Owen. “…It serves as a direct-to-audience platform, allowing brands to build relationships through thoughtful … content delivered straight to subscribers’ inboxes. 

“[It] occupies a unique position at the intersection of content marketing, email marketing, and community-building.”

For brands who want to make the most of Substack, “that means creating an audience-first content strategy, prioritising storytelling over selling, and committing to consistent, high-quality output. The voice should feel personal and real – not overly polished or brand-heavy.” 

The examples of M.M.LaFleur and SmartFlyer, along with other brands like Loftie, TheRealReal, and Rare Beauty that are experimenting in this space, provide some inspiration for how to smartly incorporate Substack into a marketing strategy: 

Create unique, tailored content 

Substack provides brands with a chance to branch out into longer-form content that’s distinct from their existing marketing – such as in the case of SmartFlyer’s ‘Stay Awhile’, which the brand uses to platform up-to-the-minute insights from its own experts in an ephemeral format. 

Another approach has been pioneered by luxury reseller TheRealReal, whose newsletter ‘The RealGirl’, inspired by teen TV show Gossip Girl, leans into user-generated content. Its author, the eponymous ‘RealGirl’, is not a TheRealReal employee, but rather a fellow fan, leaving her free to commentate positively or critically on the brand’s actions. While this may seem like a risk for brands to take, it offers something genuinely different and valuable that fans will no doubt respond well to. 

As Substack’s head of lifestyle partnerships, Christina Loff, told Inc., “Whenever I talk to brands about launching on Substack, I always emphasize that success comes from bringing an original idea and a unique point of view—not just using the platform as another promotional tool.” 

Build connection

Wes Pearce, who is behind the Substack newsletter and community ‘Escape the Cubicle’, has reflected on what makes good newsletters valuable to their subscribers. “We have more information than ever at our fingertips. Google can tell you how to write better. ChatGPT can give you templates. YouTube has endless tutorials about building online… 

“The most successful newsletters aren’t built on content – they’re built on connection.” 

With comments and chat functionality, Substack newsletters can function as mini-communities that give brands the chance to have real conversations with their fans and customers, as well as offering space for them to advise and support each other. 

Leave the sales pitch at the door

This may well go without saying after everything we’ve covered above, but it would be a mistake to think of Substack as a channel for sales. Instead, brands should set a non-commercial primary goal such as reinforcing their values, foregrounding internal expertise, building a community space, offering exclusive insights, or similar.  

With a wide range of other quality Substack newsletters out there, subscribers aren’t short of good options for advice, insight, or even community – so why should they engage with one from a brand? 

While it’s up to brands to decide how to stand out from the crowd, the fastest way to turn subscribers off is to be overtly commercial. It’s okay to want to grow the business and move sales in the long term; but it shouldn’t be the only thing under consideration.