Data & Integrations · Full walkthrough
Bring your newsletter into search.
Ask & Search and Site Editor Chat can use your imported Substack posts alongside episodes.
Before you start
Have your publication address ready and decide separately whether you want it used by search, listed as News cards, and used for newsletter sign-ups. You need access to the account and each website you are configuring. This walkthrough covers an existing website; new sites built from Substack may already have these choices filled in.
Add your publication in Dataweaver
Open Podspun Dataweaver → Add channel → Substack. Enter your publication’s name.substack.com address, custom domain or substack.com/@name profile link. Choose Preview, check the publication name and post count, then Add channel.
Connect the publication that contains the posts you want to use. Preview confirms the address before importing. A profile link is resolved to its publication; do not use the URL of one individual post as the publication address.
Podspun reads published posts, including only the free preview of subscriber-only posts. Importing a publication does not import its subscriber list, copy paid-only text or send a newsletter.
Wait for the posts to finish importing
Open the new Substack channel. Check Posts, the read status and when it was last checked. Wait for the read to finish before expecting posts in search or News. Use Check now for a fresh read; it is unavailable while a read is already running.
A successful connection and a completed import are different stages. The channel page shows the imported count and any error. If the count has not appeared yet, revisit the status instead of adding a duplicate channel.
On a paid plan, new posts are checked daily. Check now requests a fresh read; it does not bypass the publication’s paid-content boundary.
Choose which website reads this Substack
Open Website Builder → Open Builder for the intended website. Go to Site Settings → Search → Your Substack. Under Substack This Site Reads, select the connected publication. This choice saves immediately. Each website makes its own selection; None stops using a Substack.
Adding a channel to the account does not automatically select it for every existing website. Configure each website that should use it. This source supplies Ask & Search and the AI Site Editor’s article ideas and writing voice.
Ask & Search can show up to three Related posts that its answer actually drew on, with links to the originals. The AI Site Editor can use the posts to draft articles in your voice; it does not automatically turn the article into a list of Substack citations.
Optionally list the posts in News / Blog
In that website, open Content → News / Blog → Automation Config. Turn Substack Posts in News / Blog On, then Save Settings. Imported posts become title, date and cover-image cards that open the original Substack post in a new tab. Leave it Off if you only want the archive used by AI.
The listing is a separate setting from the source chosen under Search. Turning it On adds posts already read, then adds newly read posts when subsequent imports finish. Turning it Off stops new cards; cards already listed remain until removed.
A podcast episode already present on the website is not listed again as a duplicate Substack episode. Publication sections become News categories so readers can browse one newsletter at a time. Showing a card does not send it to members.
Optionally send newsletter sign-ups to Substack
Open Site Settings → Email Popup → Config. Under Signups Go To, choose Substack and fill Substack Address with the publication’s address. Save the settings. The website’s subscribe box then uses Substack’s form. Choose Podspun if you want new sign-ups stored in your Podspun list instead.
Search, News cards and newsletter sign-ups are independent choices. Connecting a publication does not move existing Podspun contacts or subscribers. A blank Substack Address falls back to the Podspun sign-up form, so confirm the address is present.
Open Automatically controls whether the sign-up popup appears by itself. If enabled, configure its delay and return behavior; it is not required for a visitor to open a sign-up button. New websites built from a recognized Substack start with the source, News cards and Substack sign-up choice configured; existing websites need these choices checked explicitly.
Check the listing, sign-up form and search sources
Open News / Blog → List and select the Substack filter. Check a post’s title, date and original link, then open the website’s News presentation. Open its subscribe box and confirm the correct publication. Ask a specific question about an imported post and compare the answer with the original.
Use a concrete question from a post you can open, such as “What steps did my digital-decluttering post recommend?” The point is to verify the correct archive is connected. Related posts appears only when the answer actually used a post; its absence on an unrelated question is expected.
News cards and website blocks are separate: a post in the CMS list needs a News block configured to appear on a page. Check that block’s type, category and other filters if an imported card is absent from the public presentation. Paid Substack access still happens on Substack.
Maintain the connection and troubleshoot missing posts
Return to the Dataweaver channel to check the latest read, errors and Where It Appears. Use those website links to review each site’s configuration. For a missing new post, request Check now and wait for completion before rechecking News. Do not reconnect the same publication just to refresh it.
If AI uses the wrong publication, check Substack This Site Reads. If News does not gain new cards, check Substack Posts in News / Blog and the import status. If sign-ups reach the wrong place, check Signups Go To and Substack Address; changing search cannot fix sign-up routing.
Removing the channel disconnects that imported source from the account. It does not delete the original publication or its subscriber list, and existing website News cards are a separate listing. Review websites under Where It Appears before deciding to remove a connection.
Review checklist
- The imported publication and post count are correct, with a completed read.
- Each intended website selects that publication under Search.
- News listing is explicitly On or Off, and its settings have been saved.
- Newsletter sign-up routing and the publication address are intentional.
- A public News card opens the original post, and the subscribe box shows the correct destination.
If you get stuck
The publication connected but search ignores it
Wait for the import to finish, then select the publication in the intended website’s Site Settings → Search.
Posts are imported but absent from the website
Turn on Substack Posts in News / Blog, Save, then check the News block’s display filters.
Turning the listing off did not remove old cards
Off stops adding new cards. Previously listed cards remain; decide separately which existing cards to remove.
Sign-ups still go to Podspun
Choose Substack under Signups Go To, enter a nonblank Substack Address and Save.
A paid post seems incomplete
Only its free preview is imported. Subscribers read its full paid content on Substack.