If you’re asking, “Is Substack right for me?” keep reading …

You’re here because you don’t need more Substack opinions — you need a clear-eyed ROI read and a decision you can stand behind.

I help founders, public-facing leaders and small media teams evaluate the true value of joining Substack, staying, leaving or pivoting in a new direction.

I’m not Substack affiliated and use data, audience intelligence and early adopter patterns to help evaluate your audience’s readiness. I recently helped a client grow their paid subscriptions by several thousand and then used messaging and data to support 200,000+ readers into a dual-platform revenue model.

To help you objectively evaluate Substack’s fitness …

I offer a Substack ROI & Publishing Intensive designed for founders and public-facing leaders who want to know, without the fluff:

  • Is Substack still worth it for me?

  • If yes, how do I use it in a way that supports my business and public work (without becoming a content machine)?

  • If no, what platform path makes more sense — and what’s the smarter next move?

Start with the 5-question fit check →

What this intensive involves

A 90-minute, high-clarity strategy intensive designed to help you make confident publishing decisions when time, reputation and opportunity cost are real.

I work with operators — founders and public-facing leaders — who need publishing to do actual work:

  • strengthen authority

  • build trust with the right people

  • support offers, visibility and future opportunities

  • integrate cleanly into an existing ecosystem (speaking/book/company narrative/etc.)

This is not “newsletter coaching,” and it’s not about churning basic content. It’s about ROI, positioning and opportunities to get more visibility on your work.

What we’ll explore together

In 90 minutes, we’ll explore:

1) Editorial opportunity

  • What lane you can own (and sustain)

  • What you should stop diluting your voice with

  • How to structure your publishing around real opportunities and constraints

2) Substack ROI (the real version)

  • The sunk cost question: what’s worth building vs what’s fantasy

  • Discoverability + network realities (what compounds / what doesn’t)

  • What reader data can actually tell you — and what it can’t

3) Platform fit

  • Substack vs alternatives (and the hidden switching costs)

  • What you truly need from a platform based on your business model and public work

4) Audience differentiation + nurturing

  • How to stand out in a “everyone has a newsletter now” moment

  • How to nurture without becoming a content treadmill

  • What trust-building looks like for your audience

5) Integration + resourcing reality

  • How publishing supports your broader public work (speaking, media, authorship, leadership visibility, advisory work, launches)

  • What’s sustainable with your time, team, budget, and bandwidth

  • Roles/workflow guidance at the level you actually need (not a fantasy plan)

What you get

90-minute Intensive + Publishing Recommendation Memo

After our session, you’ll receive a memo that includes:

  • Platform recommendation: Substack vs other vs hybrid — and why

  • Editorial edge: the strongest lane to pursue next (plus 1–2 alternates if needed)

  • Audience signal: who you’re for now, what to emphasize, what to stop diluting with

  • Resourcing reality check: what this requires (time/roles/budget) and what to cut to make it doable

  • Next Best Step: one clear strategic move to execute next — and why

  • Success criteria: what to look for in the next 2–6 weeks to confirm it’s working

You’ll leave with clarity you can actually act on — without the overwhelm of a 12-step plan.

Who this is for

You’ll get the most value if you:

  • have a business or a public-facing leadership role

  • already have visibility (or an ecosystem of work) and want publishing to support it

  • want a decisive recommendation on Substack (stay, go or pivot) vs alternatives

  • want editorial direction that fits your voice and your constraints

  • care more about trust and leverage than “growth hacks”

This is a strong fit for:

  • founders/operators

  • public leaders and executives

  • established authors building a larger ecosystem

  • leaders with meaningful existing readership/following

What this is not

To keep this intensive high-value, it’s not for:

  • tech setup, deliverability troubleshooting or platform migration execution

  • draft editing or line-by-line feedback

  • full-service ghostwriting / “do it for me” production

  • ongoing accountability (I’ll point you to the right container if you want implementation support)

If you’re not sure what you need, start with the Discernment Session.

Why Amanda

Most newsletter advice is built for creators who are looking for platform hacks.

My work is built for operators — founders and public-facing leaders who need publishing to earn its keep.

What I bring that’s different:

  • Real editorial + production experience (pre-Substack): I’ve worked inside environments where audience, cadence and standards actually matter.

  • Nearly two decades stewarding high-stakes public voice: I’ve been trusted with leaders’ voices across fields where clarity and credibility are non-negotiable — including healthcare, engineering, politics, CEOs and executive coaches.

  • Founder-grade strategy (including software acquisitions): I understand business models, positioning and opportunity cost — and I’ve worked inside acquisition environments where narrative and clarity have real consequences.

  • Early-adopter Substack platform knowledge + audience pattern tracking: I separate platform mythology from what truly compounds, grounded in data and real publishing behavior.

  • Resourcing is part of the strategy: We choose a next step that fits your actual bandwidth and team reality.

Many of my clients were building independent publishing engines early — self-publishing their books back in 2016 — so this work is grounded in real execution, not trend-chasing.

Start with the 5-question fit check

FAQ

Do I need to be on Substack already?

No, but you can be. This is for evaluating whether Substack is right for you, if you need to pivot away from Substack and if/how it should integrate into your broader work.

Will you review my existing work?

Yes — you’ll have the option to share 1–3 links (newsletter/site/talks) in the intake form so I can see your context and voice.

Is this a plan or implementation support?

No. This is a decision-focused intensive: a clear recommendation + one best next step, tailored to your constraints. If you want support implementing afterward, I’ll recommend the best container.

What if I’m not sure whether I need the Intensive?

That’s exactly why the 5-question fit check exists — it routes you to the right next step.