The Substack BlueprintAre you building something – or are you just posting?
There's a version of your Substack that supports the life you actually want – supplemental income, a creative career, maybe a full pivot. This is how you build it.
What makes a Substack actually work?
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Clear Positioning
Who it's for, what it's actually about, and why they should subscribe to yours instead of one of the other 50 in this niche.
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A Clear Paid Offer
Not "exclusive content" – a specific, articulable reason someone would hand over their credit card every month.
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A Trustworthy Brand
Visuals and voice that feel intentional, cohesive, and professional, so new readers assume you're worth paying before they've read a word.
The Substackers who are building real, sustainable income on the platform have these three things dialed in. Most early-stage creators are missing at least two of them.
Without all three, you're publishing. With all three, you're building a publication – one that can actually support what you're trying to build with it.
Enter: The Substack Blueprint
You know your Substack has potential. You've been showing up, writing posts, maybe even converting a few paid subscribers. But something still feels off – like the publication exists in pieces rather than as a whole.
Your positioning is fuzzy. You're not sure how to describe what you write about without listing five different topics.
Your branding was pulled together from a Canva template, a tutorial, and a 2am design decision you're not sure about anymore.
You have a paid tier, but you're not confident the value proposition is landing – because you haven't fully articulated it yet.
Nothing feels quite cohesive. Strategy from one source, visuals from another, copy from a third. It shows.
None of this means you're doing it wrong. It means you've been building a plane while flying it – which is exactly how most Substackers start.
Meet Your MentorI’m Lizzie Campbell – a brand strategist and designer with over a decade of experience.
I’m also the founder of Parenthetical, a bestselling Substack publication with 4,000+ subscribers. I'm not advising from the outside. I've done the work of figuring out what my readers would actually pay for, how to articulate it, and how to build a publication that looks like it deserves their trust before they've even subscribed.
I'm not a designer who happens to know what Substack is. I live on this platform. I know what makes a Notes carousel stop the scroll. I know why "subscribe for exclusive content" doesn't convert. I know what a paid welcome sequence email needs to say. The strategy and design you get from me are built from the inside out – not just assembled from best practices.
Package 01The Substack Strategy
$475 $950
The foundation everything else is built on. We get clear on who you're writing for, what you're actually offering, and how to structure your free and paid tiers so the upgrade feels like an obvious yes.
Deliverables-
The foundation everything else is built on – a clear articulation of what your publication is, who it's for, and what makes it worth reading over everything else in your niche. This document is the reference you return to when you're deciding what to write, what to pitch, and whether something fits.
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We’ll map out exactly what your paid tier includes, and how to communicate it in a way that makes upgrading an easy yes for your audience.
You'll walk away with a clear free/paid split, language you can use to pitch the upgrade in CTAs and conversation, a name for your paid tier if it needs one, and a plan for what happens the moment someone subscribes.
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Not a demographic spreadsheet, but a real portrait of the person you're writing for. Each profile includes psychographics, demographics, and a day-in-the-life paragraph that describes their daily habits, how they find content, what they spend money on, and what keeps them from clicking "upgrade."
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A grab-and-go collection of short-form copy you'll actually use: one-liners, taglines, Substack description options, bio variations for different contexts, post signoff language, and upgrade nudges.
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Your story, written in three lengths so you always have the right version ready for the right context. All three are written in your voice, and ready to use without translation.
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A practical voice reference to keep you consistent. Includes a tone description, a do/don't list specific to your publication, and a handful of example phrases and reframes that show the voice in action.
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A look at 3–5 comparable Substacks in your niche – what they're doing, where they're strong, and where the gap is that you can credibly own.
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Content pillars with a brief description of what belongs there, why it resonates with your audience, and what formats it's best suited to. Paired with a publishing cadence recommendation that's realistic for where you are right now, not where you wish you were.
Package 02 ✷ Most PopularThe Substack Blueprint
$1,000 $1,500
Strategy first, then branding built directly on top of it. When the two come from the same process, everything pulls in the same direction – and readers feel that, even when they can't name it.
Deliverables-
The foundation everything else is built on. We get clear on who you're writing for, what you're actually offering, and how to structure your free and paid tiers so the upgrade feels like an obvious yes.
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The visual anchor of your publication – a mark that works across your Substack header, your profile, and anywhere else your name needs to show up and mean something.
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The small-format version of your brand, built to be recognizable at thumbnail size – where most of your first impressions actually happen.
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Two to three styled dividers that give your posts visual structure and make your formatting feel considered rather than default.
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Three on-brand image templates in Canva for your post headers – so every piece you publish looks like it belongs to the same publication, without starting from scratch each time.
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Three to five templates built specifically for Substack Notes – designed to stop the scroll and stay on-brand, ready to customize and publish in minutes. (Plus, they can easily be repurposed across Instagram and Pinterest too!)
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Your publication's visual DNA in one reference document – the exact colors, fonts, and usage rules that keep everything cohesive whether you're designing something yourself or handing it off.
Add onsAbout Page Copy
One draft, one round of revisions. Your positioning, in your voice.
$250Freebie Design
Up to 6-page PDF freebie, designed in Canva and ready to publish.
$200Welcome Email Copy
Welcome email copy for free and paid tiers that turns new subscribers into invested readers.
$150Available at time of booking or within 30 days of project completion.
Step 01Intake
You fill out a detailed form covering your publication, your audience, your goals, and your aesthetic direction. Prefer to talk? You can swap the form for a 45-minute Zoom.
Step 02Strategy
I deliver your positioning document first. You review, we align, and nothing moves to design until the strategy is solid. There's no point making something beautiful that's pointed in the wrong direction.
Step 03Design
Branding is built directly from the strategy – not alongside it, not after the fact. One round of revisions on each deliverable. Everything is delivered in Canva so you can always stay on-brand.
Step 04Launch
You walk away with a publication that has a clear positioning, a paid offer you can actually pitch, and a visual identity that earns trust before anyone reads a word. Total turnaround: 3–4 weeks from intake.
Ready to start building?
Book the full package, start with strategy only, or get on the waitlist. I only offer 2–3 spots per month. Fill out the form below and I’ll get back to you ASAP!
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No. The branding phase requires either completing The Strategy with me first, or arriving with a clear positioning document you've developed elsewhere. I won't design a visual identity for a publication that hasn't figured out what it is yet. I’d only be doing you a disservice!
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That's actually the ideal time to do this. We'll build your paid offer strategy before you launch it – so you're not retrofitting positioning onto something that already exists. You'll walk away knowing exactly what to offer, how to price it, and how to talk about it.
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If you have a few hundred subscribers and real conviction that this is something you want to build, you're ready. You don't need to have it figured out – that's the point.
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Depends on what "some branding" means. If it's working and you like it, we build around it. If it's a placeholder that became permanent, we talk through it in the intake and figure out the right approach together.
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Yes – templates are delivered in Canva so you can edit them independently after we're done. A free account handles most deliverables; Pro gives you more flexibility with fonts.
Client Love
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“Lizzie truly helped us build our brand from the ground up.”
Lizzie truly helped us build our brand from the ground up. Her creativity, thoughtfulness, and attention to detail were unparalleled. We've received nothing but rave reviews on our website and branding!
– Jenny Bakos
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“You are truly a graphic design and creative goddess!”
You are truly a graphic design and creative goddess! I absolutely love the look and feel of what you created for me. It is always a pleasure working with you.
– Priscilla Chesney
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“I am so in love with my new branding, colors, logo and website.”
I am so in love with my new branding, colors, logo and website. It feels soooo me and I feel more confident. You were a dream to work with and I am so grateful I got connected with you for this project. I’d say we were a perfect match!
– Sarah Dunn
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“You made this whole process so easy and pain free.”
You were wonderful to work with and made this whole process so easy, pain free and I feel like you really listened and understood what I was going for.
– Billye Donya
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“I feel like you went straight into my mind!”
Oh my gosh, this is so amazing! I absolutely LOVE the drawings you did. I feel like you went straight into my mind - it was exactly what I was looking for.
– Kelsey Reaves
