How to Find Substack Influencers

Introduction

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The newsletter renaissance has made Substack a powerhouse platform for thought leaders, industry experts, and niche content creators. Unlike traditional social media influencers, Substack writers build deeply engaged communities around high-quality, long-form content. Finding the right Substack influencers for your brand, research, or networking goals requires a strategic approach.

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Understanding Substack's Unique Ecosystem

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Substack works pretty differently from other platforms out there. Instead of posting to a feed that gets lost in an algorithm, writers send newsletters straight to their subscribers' email inboxes. This creates a much more personal connection between creators and their readers.

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What's interesting is that Substack writers might not have the massive follower counts you see on Instagram or TikTok, but their audiences are way more engaged. People actually open those emails and read them, which makes these creators incredibly valuable for brands looking to reach specific audiences with authentic partnerships.

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The platform tends to attract a different crowd too, professionals, academics, journalists, and industry experts who dive deep into topics rather than just creating quick, entertaining content. This opens up some really interesting possibilities for meaningful collaborations and partnerships that actually position brands as thought leaders in their space.

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Top Substack Influencers Across Key Categories

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Ben Thompson (Stratechery) - Former Microsoft analyst who provides deep technology and business strategy insights, influencing Silicon Valley decision-makers

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‍Lenny Rachitsky (Lenny's Newsletter) - Former Airbnb executive sharing product management and growth strategies, essential reading for product professionals

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Anne Helen Petersen (Culture Study) - Cultural critic and author providing social commentary that reaches millions of engaged readers

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Peter Attia (The Drive) - Physician and longevity expert sharing health optimization insights based on cutting-edge research

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Strategic Methods for Finding Substack Influencers

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1. Use Substack's Discovery Features

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Explore the Leaderboard: Substack maintains rankings of top publications by subscriber count and engagement.

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Browse by Category: Use Substack's built-in categorization system to find influencers in specific niches like technology, politics, culture, or business.

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Follow Recommended Lists: Many top Substack writers create recommended reading lists featuring other newsletters in their network.

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2. Leverage Social Media Cross-Promotion

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Twitter Integration: Most Substack writers actively promote their newsletters on Twitter. Search for tweets containing "substack.com" or "newsletter" combined with your target keywords.

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LinkedIn Professional Networks: Business-focused Substack writers often share content on LinkedIn. Use LinkedIn's search function to find professionals who mention their newsletters.

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Reddit Communities: Subreddits like r/Substack and niche-specific communities often feature newsletter recommendations and writer introductions.

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3. Utilize Third-Party Discovery Tools

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Newsletter Aggregators: Services like AllTop and Newsletter Crew curate lists of notable newsletters across different categories.

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Use Favikon to Filter for Substack Influencers: Favikon is an influencer marketing platform that includes Substack newsletter creators in its discovery engine. Here’s how you can use it to find Substack influencers:

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1. Go to the Search/Discovery section.

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2. Use the Filters panel:

• Under Industry, select the vertical you’re targeting (e.g., "Business & Startups", "Marketing & Sales", "Food & Nutrition").

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• Under Social Media, choose Substack. This will narrow results to creators who have linked their Substack profile.

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3. Click on "Refresh Search" and check the list of filtered creators.

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Building Relationships with Substack Influencers

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Authentic Engagement Strategies

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Actually subscribe and engage first. Don't just cold-email someone asking for a partnership. Take the time to subscribe to their newsletter, read their content, and genuinely engage with what they're sharing. Leave thoughtful comments, share their posts, show that you're a real reader, not just someone who found their contact info.

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Lead with value, not asks. Before you pitch anything, think about what you can offer them. Maybe you have insights from your industry that would interest their audience, or connections that could help their work. Share something useful first, then build the relationship from there.

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Treat them like the expert they are. These creators have built their reputation by knowing their stuff inside and out. When you do reach out about working together, make it clear that you see this as a collaboration between equals, not just another influencer transaction. Respect their expertise and show how partnering with you would actually benefit their audience too.

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How to Actually Reach Out Like A Pro

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Make it personal. Don't send some generic template email. Reference a specific newsletter they wrote that caught your attention, or mention an insight they shared that really resonated with you. Show that you've actually been reading their work and aren't just blasting out partnership requests to every creator you can find.

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Focus on their audience, not your goals. When you explain why you want to work together, lead with how it would genuinely help their readers. Maybe your product solves a problem their audience faces, or your expertise fills a gap in their content. Make it clear that you're thinking about their community first, not just trying to get in front of eyeballs.

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Give them options. Don't just pitch one specific type of collaboration. Maybe they're not interested in sponsored content, but they'd be open to a guest newsletter swap. Or perhaps a joint webinar makes more sense than a written partnership. The more flexible you are, the more likely you'll find something that works for both of you.

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Measuring Influencer Impact

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Key Performance Indicators

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You need to know if these partnerships are actually working, so keep an eye on the numbers that matter. Are you gaining new subscribers to your own newsletter after a collaboration? Check your analytics to see if you're getting more website traffic from their mentions, and pay attention to where those visitors are coming from.

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But don't just look at vanity metrics, track what people actually do after they discover you. Are they signing up for your newsletter? Downloading your resources? Making purchases? That's where you'll see the real impact.

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Also watch for the softer stuff that's harder to measure but equally important, like whether people are talking about your brand more or mentioning you in their own content. Sometimes the best partnerships create buzz that goes way beyond the initial post.

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Long-term Relationship Building

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The real magic happens when you move beyond one-off collaborations and start building actual relationships. Instead of constantly hunting for new partnerships, focus on the creators who already get your brand and work well with your audience.

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Set up regular collaborations, maybe a monthly newsletter swap or quarterly joint content. Create systems where you're both promoting each other's work naturally, not just when there's a formal partnership in place.

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The goal is to work together to build something bigger than what either of you could create alone. When you find the right creative partners, you can actually grow each other's communities around shared interests and values.

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Common Pitfalls to Avoid

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Audience mismatch disasters. Just because someone has a newsletter doesn't mean their readers will care about what you're offering. If you're selling B2B software but partnering with a lifestyle newsletter, you're probably wasting everyone's time. Take a close look at who actually reads their content and whether those people would genuinely be interested in your brand.

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Chasing big numbers instead of the right people. It's tempting to go after newsletters with tens of thousands of subscribers, but you might be missing out on the real gems. That niche expert with 2,000 highly engaged readers who hang on their every word? They might deliver way better results than someone with 50,000 subscribers who barely get any replies.

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Treating it like a billboard. Substack isn't Instagram or Facebook, the culture is completely different. People expect authentic, valuable content, not obvious promotional stuff. If you approach creators like they're just another advertising channel, you'll get shut down fast. These readers can smell a sales pitch from a mile away.

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Getting caught up in vanity metrics. A newsletter with 10,000 subscribers sounds impressive, but if nobody's actually reading or engaging with the content, what's the point? Look for creators whose audiences actually respond, who leave comments, share posts, and clearly value what they're reading. Those engaged communities are worth way more than passive subscriber lists.

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Conclusion

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Finding the right Substack creators isn't about chasing big follower counts, it's about connecting with people who've built real trust with their communities. These aren't typical influencers; they're independent experts with audiences that actually listen and engage.

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Use Substack's discovery tools, follow social media breadcrumbs, and try platforms like Favikon to find the right matches. But most importantly, approach these partnerships authentically. Take time to understand their work, offer genuine value, and think long-term.

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Whether you're growing a brand or looking to collaborate as a creator, remember that Substack runs on authenticity. People can tell when you're genuinely interested in adding value versus just trying to get something from them.

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This shift toward personal, thoughtful influence isn't going anywhere. Substack is leading the way toward a future where creators build direct relationships with their audiences without algorithms getting in the way.

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Also See 👀
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How to Reach Out to Influencers

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