For years, brands have focused on optimizing their websites and other owned content for search engines. But a different shift is underway, one that has less to do with algorithms and more to do with where attention, influence and expertise are actually concentrated online.
As media consumption fragments and traditional journalism models evolve, companies are beginning to ask a new question: Where do the people who shape conversations actually publish? One answer, perhaps unexpectedly, is Substack.
The San Francisco-based newsletter platform is becoming harder for brands to ignore, not simply because of its growth, but because of its emerging role as a hybrid of media outlet, distribution engine and thought leadership platform. Substack sits squarely in that emerging category. More than 50,000 entrepreneurially minded journalists, authors, academics and political commentators now publish newsletters on the platform for more than five million paying subscribers. Including readers of free and shared content, the broader Substack audience is estimated to reach as many as 50 million readers.
The platform’s growth has been striking. According to the UK-based Press Gazette, Substack recorded the highest year-on-year growth for six consecutive months ending in December 2025 among the world’s 50 largest English-language news websites. Visits surged nearly 48% to 140.6 million, based on Similarweb data, outpacing several established news outlets.
It is therefore no surprise that some traditional media organizations have begun distributing newsletters on the platform. Most Substack writers earn modest revenue, but a handful have built substantial businesses. One prominent example is The Free Press, launched by journalist Bari Weiss after leaving the opinion page of The New York Times. Earlier this year Weiss sold the publication to Paramount Skydance for $150 million and was named editor-in-chief of its CBS News division.
Substack’s reputation was initially built on political and cultural commentary, but brand managers have begun paying attention to its expanding ecosystem of lifestyle, fashion, food and beauty writers. Popular examples include Big Salad by Joanna Goddard (“great finds, life advice”), Blackbird Spyplane (“style, travel & culture”), 5 Things You Should Buy by Becky Malinsky (“what to wear”), The Cereal Aisle by Leandra Medine Cohen and The Wardrobe Edit by Anna Newton.
Many brands have approached Substack through influencer and affiliate marketing partnerships with these creators. But a growing number are taking a different step: launching their own newsletters on the platform. Companies including Madewell, American Eagle, Billboard, Rare Beauty, The RealReal, Bandcamp and Tory Burch now operate newsletters on Substack, treating the platform less as an advertising venue and more as an editorial channel.
For some organizations, Substack offers a platform for executive thought leadership traditionally associated with LinkedIn. For B2B brands, it may also provide a way to build credibility within specialized communities. Engaging effectively with Substack, however, requires adapting to its distinctive creator culture. Overt marketing copy or product promotion tends to feel out of place. The platform is built around personal voice, storytelling and strong points of view.
As Christina Loff, Substack’s head of creator marketing, has noted: “The best way for a brand to show up is if there’s a founder or if there’s that person behind it, because that’s what Substack is about.” Voices with clear perspectives and frequent publishing rhythms tend to stand out.
Interestingly, while Substack hosts numerous investing and personal finance commentators, large financial services firms in banking, asset management and insurance have yet to fully embrace the platform either by launching their own publications or affiliating closely with existing creators. That may change. As the platform’s readership expands, 2026 could be the year financial services firms begin experimenting more actively with Substack as a thought leadership channel. Part of Substack’s appeal lies in its ability to act as a distribution catalyst.
Unlike traditional blogging platforms, Substack combines publishing with built-in audience delivery through email, internal recommendations and social sharing. This allows content to reach an engaged readership quickly, often generating significant early traction.
For brands, this creates a useful workflow. Publishing on Substack can help drive initial visibility and engagement, particularly at the top of the funnel. That content can then be republished or adapted for owned channels, where it contributes to longer term brand equity and search performance. In this sense, Substack is less a replacement for existing channels than a complementary layer that accelerates reach while reinforcing thought leadership.
There is also a broader media implication. Substack is not just a platform for content distribution; it is increasingly a place where journalists, analysts and independent writers build their primary audiences. For communications professionals, this suggests that monitoring Substack may become as important as tracking traditional media outlets. The next influential reporter or commentator may not be filing regularly for a newspaper but rather publishing directly to a subscriber base.
Substack is unlikely to replace traditional media, corporate websites, media relations or LinkedIn. But as the boundaries between journalism, independent publishing and brand communication continue to blur, platforms like Substack are becoming more central to how ideas circulate and how influence is built.
For brands, the implication is straightforward: reaching audiences is no longer just about securing coverage or optimizing owned content. It is also about understanding and participating in the ecosystems where attention is already concentrated. Substack is increasingly one of those places.
