Should I use Substack for my business blog? Why it could be a terrible idea for consultants, executive coaches, speakers and business authors

Substack has become one of those platforms that seems to be everywhere.

Journalists use it. Creators use it. Founders use it. People casually drop phrases like “I wrote about this on my Substack” as though they’ve just stepped out of a Soho House breakfast meeting wearing expensive trainers and holding a very small coffee.

And to be fair, there is a reason for the buzz.

Substack is quick, simple and easy to set up. It gives writers a ready-made way to publish articles, build an email list and charge readers for subscriptions. For some creators and journalists, it has become a genuine income stream.

So, is it useful?

Yes. Absolutely.

But is it the right blogging tool for every small business owner, founder, solopreneur, author, speaker or coach?

I don’t think it is.

That is especially true if you run a knowledge-led business and your real aim is not to collect small monthly payments from individual subscribers, but to build authority, credibility and enquiries for higher-value work.

If you are a consultant, coach, trainer, speaker or business book author, your content is not just content. It is part of your reputation. It helps people understand what you know, how you think and whether they trust you enough to take the next step.

That means the place you publish it matters.

Because when you write on Substack, you are building content on Substack.

When you write on your own website, you are building an asset you own.

That difference may sound technical, but it is important. Your blog should not just be somewhere your ideas go to sit nicely in public. It should work hard for your business. It should help people find you, understand you, trust you and eventually enquire.

For some people, Substack is a great option.

For many knowledge-led businesses, I think your own website is the better home for your best ideas.

Who is Substack for?

Substack works best for people with a clear audience willing to pay regularly for their thinking, writing, or reporting.

That might include:

• Niche and specialist journalism
• Specialist commentators
• Independent creators
• Writers with a loyal following
•  Experts selling low-cost paid subscriptions at scale

In other words, it suits people whose business model is based on lots of individuals paying a relatively small amount each month or year.

That is an important distinction.

If the writing itself is the product, then Substack makes sense. A journalist covering a specialist topic, for example, might build a loyal readership that values their insight enough to subscribe. The same could be true for a commentator with a distinctive point of view, or a creator who has built a strong following around a narrow area of interest.

In those cases, Substack’s simplicity is part of the appeal. You can publish quickly, collect payments and build a subscriber base without needing to create a more complex website.

But that does not mean it is the right fit for every business.

If you are a consultant, coach, speaker, author, or knowledge-led business owner, your content usually serves a different purpose. It is not just there to generate small subscription payments. It is there to build trust, demonstrate expertise and lead people towards a higher-value conversation.

And that is where the Substack question becomes more complicated.

Reasons why Substack is not the best solution for some knowledge-led businesses

If your business sells higher-value services, such as consultancy, coaching, training, speaking or advisory work, Substack may not be the best home for your best ideas.

The main issue is ownership.

When you publish on Substack, you are building content on Substack’s platform. Yes, your name is on it. Yes, it may look neat and professional. Yes, people can subscribe to it.

But the article lives there, not on your own website.

That matters more than it might first appear.

Imagine you write a really strong article. People like it. They share it. Someone links to it from their own blog. Maybe a respected trade publication, newspaper or high-authority website mentions it.

Lovely stuff.

But where is all that attention going?

It is going to the article's location. And if the article is on Substack, that location is Substack whereb lots of other writers are competing for eyeballs.

If the same article sits on your website, those links, shares, visits, and signals help strengthen your digital home. They help build your search visibility. They add credibility to your site by sharing a little of their own PageRank.

Think of PageRank as an authority-sharing system. If a bigger, more popular site shares a link to your site, it shares some of that authority with you.

So do you want that authority for yourself? Or to give it to Substack?

For a knowledge-led business, a blog on your domain is not just a place to publish opinions. It is part of your trust-building system.

Your website also gives you far more control over that system. You can shape the reader journey. You can add clear calls to action. You can show testimonials, client logos, book links, case studies, podcast episodes, speaking pages, enquiry forms and useful next steps.

You can design the experience around your business model.

Substack is simple, which is part of its appeal. But simple is not always the same as strategic.

If your aim is to build a paid readership, Substack may do the job nicely.

But if your aim is to generate serious business enquiries, your own website gives your content more room to work.

Is Substack right for me?

Ask yourself what you are really trying to build.

If you want to charge a large audience a small recurring fee for regular writing, Substack could be worth exploring.

But if you want your ideas to build trust, authority and better enquiries for a knowledge-led business, your own website is probably the better home for your best content.

Substack may feel fashionable. Your website is the asset.