The Substack Shift I Saw Coming (and why you need to build differently now)

It was never your business partner

Substack is not the same platform it was six months ago and if you’ve been here that long, you’ve felt it.

Whenever I try to gauge the direction of a platform I look at what it is doing in terms of new features, and set priorities rather than what it’s founders are saying.

It’s founders have said substack is different because it doesn’t optimise for time spent on platform but for connecting readers with what they want to read

However in the last few weeks and months they have rolled out bestseller badges, “rising” tags, Paid newsletter flowers, trending tabs, category leaderboards, go lives, and substack even sends you email nudges - congratulations on (insert arbitrary milestone here), or just a quick reminder that you haven’t posted in a month. It’s persuasion not coersion but the direction is clear.

These features are aimed at creators not readers. A top priority for Substack is to attract big creators to the platform and so the attention is still on trying to make it an attracting place for them to move their audiences to.

The truth is that every one of these new features is a dopamine lever. They are specifically designed with behavioural economics and human status seeking psychology in mind. Meanwhile behind the scenes features such as email sequencing. automation flows, deep integrations and CRM connectivity have not seen the light of day.

The paid newsletter flowers are there to signal status, the rising categories pressure you to pursue paid subscribers. The ever increasing analytics subtly nudge you to obsess over what seems to get views vs. what you want to create…none of these appear to be aimed at helping readers find interesting writing…

They are all there to serve one aim: To keep creators coming back, checking stats and craving hits. It’s the same psychology used in slot machines and other social media feeds. Variable rewards, performance cues and visibility spikes.

And slowly…quietly…the writing platform became a content platform…and then a media platform…and I fully expect the advertisers to land in 2026.

This might seem like a cynical take but it’s just realistic. I don’t see this as good or bad I just see it as what it is. I will get to how to position yourself advantageously in just a minute but first you need to understand how you are being groomed to feed the machine so that you know how to resist it.

I. Social engineering and behavioural economics

You don’t just notice these changes, you feel obligated to chase them. You’re told that if you really want to “grow” you need to start posting video clips. Host lives. Crosspost with bigger writers. Think about trending categories. Engage in Notes like it’s Twitter. Repurpose your essays into Reels. Film hot takes. Build a media flywheel, cross post to Linked-in etc etc.

This is known as digital nudging. Interface designs, reward loops and choice architecture are all crafted to guide your own behaviour without you realising it.

Badges are not decoration. New “rising” labels are not innocent. They are steering mechanics. A study of the Q&A platform Stack Overflow found that badges create predictable behaviour changes, users contributed more when badges were at stake.

It is not a coincidence that every platform has them. Even YouTube, which is not technically a “social media” platform has a full suite of badges to segment and rank your audience members. It is social engineering through and through.

And so the quiet act of writing starts to fray because you’re now carrying the invisible weight of a thousand growth strategies that all contradict your original intention.

Substack doesn’t have to push these features, the fact that they exists and are constantly being mentioned and celebrated by others is enough to make you question your direction if you do not have a strong foundation.

You came here to write and to publish something of meaning and now the platform keeps whispering: That’s not enough anymore.

II. Substack Is No Longer Just a Newsletter Platform

For a long time, Substack was seen as the writer’s refuge, a quiet corner of the internet, immune to the noise and chaos of social media. It was email-first and Writing-first.

That has changed.

Substack has become a hybrid: part inbox, part algorithmic feed, part social network, part media platform. It’s no longer just a place to build a newsletter. It’s a full-blown attention ecosystem and it’s evolving fast.

If you’re new here, you might not notice the shift. But if you’ve been building here for a while, you’ve probably felt it in your gut.

Because the writers who are growing today are no longer just writers. They’re also performers, marketers, community managers, growth hackers, collaborators, video hosts, livestream guests, thumbnail designers, and headline optimisers.

They’re fluent in Notes. Strategic with mentions. Deliberate about tags. Aggressive about crossposts, and none of this is inherently bad, it’s just…not how it started.

III. The Algorithm Is Not Your Business Partner. (This may sting)

The problem isn’t that Substack is changing, it’s that the way we relate to these changes is quietly breaking us.

I’ve seen this all before.

I was there when YouTube rolled out shorts. The same pattern unfolded almost word for word. Shorts were the supposed new golden ticket to exponential growth. Every “creator coach” was pushing them with evangelical zeal.

My inbox filled with emails from YouTube with case studies, success stories, and carefully crafted guilt.

“Look how this creator gained a million subscribers in a month just posting shorts”.

“Here’s how to make your first viral video”.

It was everywhere, the pressure was relentless, and I almost gave in.

But something about it felt wrong. The pace was extreme and the noise deafening. I didn’t want to turn my creative practice into a daily performance treadmill and so I stayed the course.

A year later, the tide turned. Those same creators who’d been preaching virality began to confess what had happened behind the scenes. Their subscriber counts exploded, yes, but their businesses collapsed.

Those shorts viewers didn’t care about their deeper work. Shorts had gamed the algorithm but destroyed the signal. Channels with millions of subscribers were suddenly pulling just a few thousand views on the work that once defined them…work that before the shift was getting millions of views.

That’s the danger of mistaking reach for resonance. So when I see the same pressure building here — to diversify, to livestream, to publish video, to be everywhere all at once — I recognise the pattern.

Do not mistake this for innovation, It’s anxiety inducing FOMO disguised as strategy…do not forget that it’s not just you who is trying to find your voice and build an audience…the platform is on the same journey just at a much larger scale. They are currently courting big video, audio and multi-media creators, in fact they’ve set aside $20 million exactly for that.

The push for video is specifically aimed at attracted big Tik-Tok and YouTube creators and it makes business sense. What makes less sense is a complete beginner trying to “grow” through daily reels (…maybe we should call them “short-stacks”?) on this platform.

If you love video, make videos. If you’re drawn to conversations, start a podcast. But don’t get confused about “golden tickets” to growth just because the platform is currently pushing video.

Create because it aligns with your rhythm, not because it feeds the machine. The work that lasts has no shortcuts. Only roots.

The question isn’t whether Substack will keep shifting. It will. The real question is: will you keep contorting yourself to match it? Or will you build a system that carries your voice through the noise, regardless of what’s trending this week?

What’s Worked in 2025 And What Will Still Work in 2026

By now, the pattern is clear.

Every few weeks, Substack changes shape. A new feature rolls out. A new badge appears. The algorithm shifts, the interface redesigns, the rules of engagement quietly evolve.

And with each shift, a subtle pressure builds: You should try this. You should do more. If you don’t adapt you will miss out.

But here’s what I’ve learned in a year and a half on this platform: You don’t have to play the game to stay in the game.

The writers who’ve grown sustainably didn’t chase visibility. They built systems. They focused inward and they found a rhythm that made sense to them and stuck with it, even when the platform moved the goalposts.

Here’s what actually works and will continue to work in 2026:

1. Build a system that doesn’t burn you out.

This is where most people fail.

They try to write more instead of writing better…the problem is the platform rewards them just enough to keep them trapped in that loop. They worry that if they stop posting they will loose momentum and visibility and so become addicted to that schedule even though it’s not serving them.

What works long-term is rhythm, structure, and voice. A repeatable output system that honours your energy and builds recognisability over time.

I used to hate short form and it was only after a lot of thought that I decided to give notes a go when they rolled the feature out. I quickly realised that it was not sustainable to try and post multiple notes a day without a system. That’s why I built the 15-Note System and why it continues to work even as everything else shifts.

2. Start real relationships.

Growth doesn’t come from shouting louder. It doesn’t come from posting more or writing better. It comes from building connections. This is what substack mean when they talk about their algorithm being optimised for connection. Algorithms are necessary. If you want to meet new people you will have to engage with notes, join chats and send people messages.

Real relationships are not obviously transactional. This isn’t just about growth but connection. If you have a group of substack friends who you can talk to and engage with it is much more likely that you will stay the course and still be here in six months time.

Collaboration is the most undervalued growth strategy on Substack, and the most human one.

3. Send emails, not just posts.

Your subscribers matter more than your followers.

Many creators post consistently but rarely send emails only (yes, it is possible to send an email to all your subscribers without posting it to your Substack). This is a mistake. Posts disappear. But when you send an email, you show up in someone’s inbox, their most personal digital space. This is where trust is built.

On a side note when I send emails only the open rate is about 20% higher, than my email/post essays, as are the views (I know…it seems counterintuitive). I have heard this from many other writers on the platform. It is tied to Substacks questionable delivery system and the drive to keep people on platform, not private email inboxes.

4. Download your email list regularly.

This is your insurance policy. If Substack pivots hard, implodes, or introduces pay-to-play visibility, and it might, your audience goes with it unless you’ve exported your list. Download it every month. Store it safely. Build elsewhere if you want, but never give up ownership of your connections.

5. Experiment

Approach these changes with curiosity and do what feels right for you. Substack will continue to roll out new features and it will not be possible to invest in all of them. By all means test and experiment but do so from a place of curiosity, not… will this by my ticket to explosive growth?

Growth takes just as much experimentation and persistence as finding your voice. Usually it is just 10% or recommendations, collaborations or cross promotions which drive 90% of growth and so it will take some time to find those collaborations that really fit and make sense.

5. Remember: you are not married to this platform.

Substack is a tool. It is not your identity. The minute it starts demanding more than it gives, you are free to leave — and the people who truly care about your work will come with you.

That’s the beauty of email. That’s the power of sovereignty. We are at a critical stage in the entshitification of this platform…the focus is shifting away from user experience and towards questions of growth and revenue, so be prepared.

If you feel overwhelmed and don’t know where to start with writing short form check out my system for building consistency, voice and authority through short form - 15‑Note System.

Other than that, keep writing, keep reaching out to others and keep moving forward the next steps will reveal themselves as you go.

If this was helpful consider sharing it with someone else.

Take care,

Ben