6 Reasons Influencers and Substack Writers Still Need a Website

This topic is close to my heart. As a business owner and website designer, I genuinely enjoy helping women in business discover their brand voice and share it with the world.

You’ll come across plenty of perspectives on this subject, each shaped by personal experience and bias. There’s much to say on this topic, but for now, I’m starting with transparency and a foundation rooted in real data and experience.

Without further ado, here are six reasons why you most definitely need a website as an influencer and writer in today’s fast-paced digital world:

1. You Don’t Own Social Media or Platforms Like Substack, and That’s a Risk You Shouldn’t Ignore

This might be the most important reason on the list.

Think of social media and even platforms like Substack as renting, not owning. When you rent a home, you don’t control what happens to that space long-term. The landlord could decide to sell or not renew your lease, and suddenly, you’re forced to move with little notice.

The same is true with any platform you don’t own. Whether it’s Instagram, TikTok, or even Substack—you’re building on borrowed land. You don’t own the infrastructure, and you certainly don’t control the rules. Unless you’re a founder or stakeholder, you’re at the mercy of platform changes, policy shifts, or even shutdowns.

Imagine building a loyal audience of 100,000 followers on Instagram, only to wake up one day to a massive algorithm change, a platform sale, or worse, a total shutdown. We’ve already seen platforms like TikTok face potential bans in the U.S., with no clear resolution in sight.

When you rely solely on platforms you don’t own, you risk losing access to your audience, your content, and the business you’ve worked hard to build. Having a website gives you control, ownership, and stability. Your website is a true digital home for your brand.

2. Your Content Isn’t Backed Up, and That Puts Your Business at Risk

What happens if your Instagram gets hacked and the platform takes days or even weeks to restore your account (if at all)? This happens more often than you might think. If you do not have a backup method for reaching your audience, you could lose valuable time, income, and trust in an instant.

In the fast-moving world of content creation, time is money. If you rely on platforms like Instagram or TikTok to generate income through brand partnerships or affiliate marketing, losing access means you are not getting paid.

Can websites be hacked too? Yes, of course. But platforms like Squarespace offer built-in security and regular maintenance handled by their tech team, making this type of platform a safer and more stable option. I go deeper into this topic in another post, which you can read here about The Art of Streamlined Blogging on Squarespace. I also recommend Squarespace over the traditional “gold standard” blogging platforms, and I explain my reasoning in this post.

One feature I truly appreciate about Substack is the ability to export your email list at any time. This means that if you ever need to pivot to a new platform, you can take your audience with you. That level of control is a huge advantage compared to relying solely on social media, where you have no ownership of your followers or content. 

3. Ease of Use That Saves You Time and Energy

This point applies especially to digital creators and influencers, but it’s relevant to any industry where creativity drives content. Let’s take ShopMy (or LTK, if that’s your platform of choice) as an example.

Curating affiliate content takes time and effort. Fortunately, these platforms make it easy to extend the value of your work by embedding curated collections directly onto your personal website—if you know how to work with simple embed codes.

One of the features I love about ShopMy is that once you embed the code properly, any updates you make within the platform automatically reflect on your website. That means less time spent manually updating links and more time focusing on content creation.

Once your site is designed and the code block is set up, keeping your content fresh becomes incredibly easy. Here’s an example of a ShopMy embed on a Squarespace website:

ShopMy Embed on a Squarespace Website

4. Platform Limitations Can Create More Work for You and Your Audience

Let’s return to Substack as an example. While it is a fantastic tool for long-form content and community building, it does have limitations, especially when it comes to embedding third-party components like ShopMy or LTK. Currently, Substack does not support live embeds for these platforms. This means you have to manually insert images and individual links into your posts instead of displaying a real-time, curated selection that updates automatically.

This creates more work for you, and it also adds friction for your audience. Instead of clicking one link to view your latest picks in a clean and branded space, they have to scroll through multiple posts or search through your ShopMy page to find what they are looking for.

A personal website solves this problem by offering a centralized and easy-to-navigate destination that keeps your content fresh and accessible without the extra steps.

5. You Are 100% Missing Opportunities for Discovery Without Your Own Website

Without a website tied to your brand, you are missing valuable chances for people to find you. Owning a domain that matches your publication name or Instagram handle greatly increases your visibility in Google search results and emerging AI-powered search platforms.

For example, if you search my name, you will find my Instagram account, my business website for North 8 Designs, my LinkedIn profile, and my Substack—all working together to build my online presence.

Because you own your domain, you have full control over this digital real estate. You can take it with you, expand it, and create a centralized hub to showcase your creativity and connect with new audiences.

6. Ownership Means Creative Freedom and a Clear Customer Journey

A website allows you to fully brand and customize your space to reflect your unique vibe and build a stronger connection with your target audience. If I were a digital influencer, this would be my ideal marketing engine.

• I would use a newsletter on Substack to build my list of subscribers. Then, I would embed that newsletter sign-up on my website to drive even more subscribers from the site to Substack.

• Instagram would be my platform for quick content posts and to grow my community.

• Pinterest would serve as a place for evergreen content and ongoing traffic opportunities. Pinterest content has a much longer shelf life than Instagram.

• My Squarespace website would be the central hub for all communications, linking to my social media, Substack, and affiliate platforms. It would feature a thoughtfully curated shopping section for my favorite products, along with a dedicated page where followers can get to know me on a personal level. As I always tell my clients, “People buy from people.”

Bringing It All Together

Owning your website is more than just having an online presence. It is about creative freedom, control, and building a clear, seamless journey for your audience. While platforms like Substack and Instagram each have their strengths, your website serves as the central hub where everything connects and grows.

If you are ready to elevate your brand and create a space that truly reflects your voice, style, and business goals, I am here to help. Together, we can build a website that not only looks great but also works hard to grow your audience, streamline your content, and turn visitors into loyal fans.

Let’s bring your brand experience altogether. Please reach out if I can help you design a brand identity and simple, yet beautiful, website to bring your hard work altogether for the world to see!