How I Successfully Cross-Promote Between My Blog and Substack
Maximize Your Reach: Effective Strategies for Seamless Blog and Substack Integration
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After much thought, I decided to start a new online business from scratch, focusing on a topic I love—teaching and sharing my experiences with women like me who want to build an income online. Starting from scratch didn’t intimidate me, as my husband and I have launched several businesses this way before.
Given how opportunities in the online business world have evolved over the past six years, I wanted to take a different approach this time. I considered going all-in on Substack instead of launching a traditional blog again.
However, I ultimately decided to do both—a blog and a Substack publication—because I enjoy the unique advantages of each platform.
Each has its own strengths and challenges, so why not connect them and make the most of both?
You can absolutely build a successful online business by leveraging different platforms, and this combination can be a game-changer.
After sharing my approach with the Substack community, I received questions about how I manage not only the content across both platforms but also my email lists.
The great thing is that you don’t need to create completely different or new content for each platform. Instead, you can effectively cross-promote your content between them while still maintaining a unique touch.
Master the Art of Cross-Promoting Content Between Your Blog and Substack
Cross-promoting content between your blog and Substack using two email lists is an effective way to grow both platforms, engage your audience, and drive traffic. Here’s my strategy for doing it.
→ Quick Side Note: I use ConvertKit to collect leads through my blog. I keep both email lists separate and don’t import subscribers from ConvertKit to Substack or vice versa.
1. Segment Your Audience
Identify Overlap: Determine which of your subscribers are on both your blog email list (e.g., ConvertKit) and your Substack list. ConvertKit makes it easy to segment and tag your subscribers, whether by doing a survey or letting them click a certain link. Tailor your messaging to avoid overwhelming this segment with duplicate content.
Audience Goals: Consider the unique goals of each list. For example, your blog subscribers may be focused on personal finance tips, while your Substack audience is interested in deeper insights or community discussions.
2. Craft Complementary Content
Create Companion Pieces: When you write a blog post, create a related but unique piece of content for Substack, or vice versa. For example, a blog post could cover budgeting basics, while your Substack dives into advanced strategies. Promote each piece on the other platform. In every post I publish—whether on Substack or my blog—I always include links to the other platform.
Exclusive Content: Offer exclusive insights on one platform that complements the content from the other. Mention this exclusivity in your emails to encourage cross-subscription. I do this by promoting exclusive series or lead magnets that are only available on one platform.
3. Use Strategic Cross-Promotions
Email Previews: Send email previews of your blog content to your Substack audience, highlighting why they should read the full post on your blog. Do the same for your Substack content on your blog email list. I do this by sending a newsletter to both lists, where I mention my latest posts from each platform.
Calls to Action: Include clear CTAs in each email, inviting readers to explore content on the other platform. For example, at the end of a blog email, you could say: "Want more insights? My latest Substack article goes deeper into this topic." ThereforeI use my Welcome-Emails. On my blog’s list, I encourage subscribers to join me on Substack, while on Substack, I recommend they explore more articles on my blog and subscribe to one of my free resources. It’s that simple.
4. Highlight Subscriber Benefits
Special Offers: Offer discounts, free resources, or early access to content for subscribers who join both your blog list and Substack. This encourages engagement across both platforms.
5. Sync Content Publishing
Coordinated Launches: When launching a new blog post, create a Substack issue on the same topic, offering a different angle or deeper dive. Synchronize your email send times to create a cohesive message across platforms. I use pillar posts and create shorter social media posts or longer, special posts from them.
Content Themes: Align themes between your blog and Substack for consistent messaging. For example, if your blog focuses on “Building Financial Habits” for one month, your Substack can explore personal stories or case studies on that topic.
6. Analyze and Adjust
Track Engagement: Monitor which platform drives the most engagement for cross-promoted content. Use this data to refine your strategy, focusing on what resonates most with each audience.
Feedback Loops: Ask your audience for feedback on how they’re enjoying the content on each platform. Use this feedback to improve your cross-promotion efforts.
Bonus Tip:
Substack and ConvertKit, or other ESPs, make it easy to monitor stats for each email and review engagement. This helps determine which content performs best and how content interacts between both platforms.
Leverage both platforms’ analytics tools to test different messaging styles, preview snippets, and cross-promotion strategies until you find what works best for your audience.
By strategically cross-promoting content between your blog and Substack, you can maximize engagement, build authority, and keep your audience actively involved across both channels.
Top 3 FAQs on Cross-Promoting Content Between Your Blog and Substack
How do I avoid overwhelming my subscribers with duplicate content when cross-promoting?
To prevent overwhelming your subscribers, segment your email lists and tailor your messaging. Offer unique content or perspectives on each platform and use a content calendar to coordinate and avoid duplication.
What are the best practices for linking content between my blog and Substack?
Include clear and compelling links in your posts, newsletters, and emails that guide subscribers to the related content on the other platform. Highlight the value they will gain by visiting the other platform, such as exclusive insights or additional resources.
How can I track the effectiveness of my cross-promotion strategy?
Use analytics tools provided by Substack and ConvertKit to monitor email engagement, click-through rates, and subscriber behavior. Review these metrics to understand which content resonates most with your audience and how well your cross-promotional efforts are performing.
Unlock Your Content Strategy: Get My Exclusive Checklist and Templates!
Cross-promoting content between your blog and Substack is an essential topic these days. It’s a powerful strategy to expand your reach, keep your audience engaged, and drive traffic to both platforms.
By segmenting your audience, crafting complementary content, and strategically linking your posts, you can create a cohesive experience that leverages the unique strengths of each platform.
Utilizing a content calendar and tracking your engagement will help you fine-tune your approach and maximize your results.
I’m glad to be on both platforms. Substack is great for community building, while my blog ensures I have my own space on the World Wide Web.
Ready to put this strategy into action? Receive exclusive access to my Content Cross-Promotion Checklist designed to streamline your efforts and boost your engagement across platforms. Don’t miss out on this valuable resource—join today and take your content strategy to the next level!
P.S. Don´t forget to join my free 5-day course to learn everything you need to start your blog besides your Substack and turn your passion into profit! Sign up now and get started!
Clear, concise, Katja. You are my preferred role model!
My desire is blogging on my name site (temporarily in maintenance) and building community here on Substack.
I built my business blogging and speaking to poker players in 2009. Now I decided to retain poker-related lessons while expanding my reach.
I kept wondering how to do more with less time, and you clearly showed me how.
I am profoundly grateful 🎯. Thank you.
IS the same content in substack than convertkit?