APPS:
Overview
This Zapier workflow automatically creates a comprehensive archive of your Substack publications, ensuring you have a permanent, searchable backup of all your content. Perfect for newsletter writers who want to maintain control over their work and build a knowledge base over time.
What This Workflow Does
Triggers on New Posts – Monitors your Substack RSS feed and springs into action whenever you publish a new article.
Generates Sequential Numbering – Assigns each post a unique sequential number for easy organization and tracking.
Creates Timestamped Records – Formats dates in a clean YYYY-MM-DD format for consistent chronological sorting.
Builds Google Docs Archive – Automatically creates a Google Doc for each Substack post, preserving your content in an editable, accessible format.
Sets Proper Permissions – Configures file sharing settings to ensure you have full access to your archived content.
Adds Task Management – Creates a Basecamp to-do item with relevant tags, helping you track post-publication tasks like promotion or follow-ups (since categories can’t yet be automated).
Logs to Notion Database – Records each post in your “2040 Studio Substack Tracker” database, creating a searchable index of all your publications including:
Post title and subtitle
Publication date and time
Direct links to both the original Substack post and Google Drive archive
Tags and categorization
Publishing status
Success
✅ Steps 1–7 give you a complete, functional Substack (or other newsletter or content) archiving system. Your content is backed up, organized, and tracked.
Beyond Archiving
Steps 8–10 aren’t about documenting Substack articles—they document the Zap run itself. They are part of my automation tracking system inspired by a Phil Lakin one-liner in a handout that said to track your metrics in a database. I add these steps to every Zap to automatically build a comprehensive Automation ROI tracking system in Notion.
