If you’ve been hanging out on Substack for more than five minutes, you’ve probably saw people posting about “restack swaps” or “exchanging restack’s” for growth.

At first, it sounds like some kind of growth-hacking trick. But honestly, it’s much simpler and way more effective - by using community engagement to be seen and grow.

Let’s break down what it actually is, why people do it, and why it’s secretly one of the best ways to grow without constantly feeling like a self promoter.

What is a Restack Swap, Anyway?

A restack swap is basically just Writer A shares a post from Writer B to their own audience, then Writer B does the exact same thing for Writer A.

It’s mutual support.

The Real Magic is What Happens with a Restack

To understand why restack swaps actually matter, you have to look at how Substack’s ecosystem works - specifically on Notes!

When you drop a thought or a link on Notes, who sees it? Mostly your own followers and subscribers. Which is great, but let’s be real - those people already know you exist. They already hit subscribe. They’ve already bought what you’re selling.

Publishing to your own feed is preaching to the choir. It’s comfortable, but it doesn’t get you seen anywhere new.

This is where the restack changes the entire game.

When another writer restacks your post, it instantly goes out to all of their followers, too. People who have never heard of you. People who might stumble across your writing, realize you share their exact weird obsessions, and hit subscribe.

The Compounding Effect & Why It Works

This creates what people call the compounding effect, though I just think of it as the digital version of word-of-mouth.

If you just rely on your own reach, your growth hits a natural ceiling. You can only shout so loud on your own street corner. But when you partner up with other writers, you start building bridges to entirely different neighborhoods.

• Let’s say one restack introduces you to 10 new people.

• Then from there, two of those people share your stuff or subscribe.

• Suddenly, you’re popping up in feeds you didn’t even know existed.

It turns growth from a grueling solo grind into a community effort. You’re no longer just staring at your dashboard, sweating over “how am I going to get more views?”

Instead, you’re writing, your peers are sharing your best work, and you’re doing the same for them.

And best of all, it’s actually the Substack Community helping one another grow!

Come join the new Substack Restack Exchange - where we’re currently looking for other people like you, who are interested in doing Restack Swaps.

Paul Arino
The Substack Restack Exchange Newsletter

Leave a comment

Subscribe now

Helpful Reference Links:

• What is a Restack on Substack Notes

• What happens when someone Restacks my post

• A guide to growth and collaboration on Substack Notes

If you feel like you’re struggling to get your writing noticed on Substack, or searching for a better way to connect with like-minded writers… your search ends here!

This newsletter is officially launching as The Substack Restack Exchange.

What is the Restack Exchange?

Think of this as a cross between a discovery engine, a networking hub, and a mutual growth engine. The concept is simple, powerful, and built entirely on the collaborative spirit of the Substack ecosystem - a dedicated place to find, share, and restack other people’s posts, and in return they will restack yours.

Growth on Substack doesn’t have to be a lonely uphill battle fought entirely through SEO or Recommendations.

True growth happens through community and it’s restacks - and putting that great work in front of fresh eyes.

That is precisely what we’re going to be building together!

Oh, and it will always be FREE to Subscribe

Why I Built This

Substack’s built-in recommendation and restack features are some of the most potent tools available for writers, but connecting with & finding people can be overwhelming.

So I created the Substack Restack Exchange to solve three major problems for writers:

• Discovery Limitation of Notes: Posting on Notes only goes out to your own followers or subscribers - who already know you exist! But when someone else restacks your post, it goes out to all of their followers as well - which creates the compounding effect, and NEW visibility for that post!

• The Visibility Gap: Great writing deserves a wider audience. By sharing and restacking each other’s work, we amplify individual voices to get them heard by people outside of our own neighborhood.

• Isolated Growth: Building this audience is way easier and much more fun when you do it shoulder-to-shoulder with other creators who share your drive.

How It Works

Moving forward, every edition of this newsletter will serve as a launchpad for community connection. Here is what you can expect:

• Featured Spotlights: Hand-picked posts from our community restack members that deserve a wider read.

• The Comments Section: This will be a dedicated space where you can drop your best recent post, find fellow writers in your niche, and coordinate restacks.

• Growth Insights: Actionable tips, tricks, and strategies on how to optimize your Substack, engage your subscribers, and make the most of the platform’s network features.

Let’s Build Together

The Substack Restack Exchange is only as powerful as the community inside it. Whether you’re a seasoned writer with thousands of subscribers or just published your very first post today, you have a home here.

Here’s what you can do right now to kick things off:

1. Leave a Comment on this post so others can see you - or post a link to the Article or Note you’d like to be restacked by others - then you restack one for them!

2. Subscribe so you never miss an edition or an opportunity to share your work

3. Hit the Restack button on this post to spread the word to your own subscribers and welcome other writers into this community.

4. Keep an eye on your inbox - every Tuesday I’ll be featuring a few of our most engaging restackers, to get their work in front of ALL our free members.

Let’s find, share, and grow together.

Come learn the Benefits of a Restack Swap - and why you’d want to use them!

Paul Arino
The Substack Restack Exchange

Want to learn more about how a Substack Restack works!

Leave a comment

Subscribe now