This insights post is a summary of the blog post published by Airfoil Group. View the full insight at: What is Substack? And Why Does It Matter for Your Communications Plan?
In a time when challenging social media algorithms and shrinking attention spans impact your ability to connect with your audience, Substack has quietly emerged as a powerful platform for creators, thought leaders and brands to cut through the noise.
For marketers and business leaders, Substack provides a straightforward yet impactful way to publish content and cultivate a loyal following.
What is Substack?
Substack is a creator-centered online platform. It originally started as a website for email newsletters, but has evolved into a hub for independent journalism, niche reporting, long-form interviews, and more. The platform allows readers subscribe to publications and receive content straight to their inboxes. Much like original blog communities, creators can foster community with subscribers through comments, group chats and short-form blurbs on their content.
In addition, Substack can be extended to allow creators to monetize their work via subscription fees. That means that some Substacks have a paywall, while others offer a mix of free and subscriber-only content.
Why is Substack suddenly everywhere right now?
The platform did not appear over night. As you can see from the SEMrush Organic Traffic chart below, it has been slowly growing over the last few years. However, its rise to the mainstream began in early 2025. The growth was driven by shrinking newsrooms, unstable social media algorithms, and the potential ban of TikTok. All of these factors prompted creators and journalists to find a platform that would allow them to reach their audiences directly.
SEMrush Organic Traffic
Why Use Substack?
Before jumping into any new technology, it is always important to evaluate the capabilities and its role in any strategy. That means there are few questions you should ask to help evaluate it.
- What’s the value to your brand? Substacks are read by the exact people your brand wants to reach – customers, executives, decision-makers and industry insiders.
- How is Substack impacting the media landscape? The rise of Substack highlights how the lines between journalists and brands continue to blur. As newsrooms continue to shrink, journalists are looking for stability and ways to own their work.
- How can brands leverage Substack? For most companies, being quoted or interviewed by relevant Substacks is a wonderful entry point to brand recognition. But for brands ready to create their own editorial content, Substack should be in the running for tactical consideration, especially for founder insights, thought leadership and niche community-building.
To get more insights on using Substack and its advantages, you can read the full article at: What is Substack? And Why Does It Matter for Your Communications Plan?
