4 Ways To Monetize Your Newsletter (Besides Paid Subscriptions) And Make Yummy Lemonade
How to squeeze the lemons out of your newsletter
What do you want to do when you grow up?
I want to be a full-time writer who makes a living out of her passion.
I’m slowly getting there, one step (aka article) at a time and if that’s your dream too, I want to take you along the journey.
Thanks to technology, the possibilities to monetize your writing are endless today: courses, ebooks, paid platforms, cohorts, sponsors…
Although I only launched my Substack newsletter 15 months ago, it’s quickly becoming my most efficient channel to promote and monetize my writing.
If you think the only way to earn money from your newsletter is through paid subscriptions, keep reading…
1. Sell your books
Think of your newsletter as your exclusive PR agent that’s working for you 24-7.
Your subscribers are not strangers: they are people who have already endorsed your work and given you a vote of trust. They are the most likely to listen to your recommendations and even buy from you.
I recently stopped investing in paid ads (Amazon and Meta Ads) to promote my 3 books because my newsletter is doing a much better job…for free!
Instead of buying expensive clicks from strangers, I now invest in creating high-quality free content that generates clicks from people who already read and like what I write: my tribe.
Last week, my Substack Post generated 27 clicks for my book, The Lemon Tree Mindset. The same number of clicks via paid ads would have killed my profit.
For context, in 2023, the average CPC (cost per click) on Amazon was 0.91$. It doesn’t sound like much until you realize that you pay per click, and there’s nothing more frustrating than paying for clicks that don’t convert into sales. It feels like throwing money in the bin.
Don’t overdo it, but if you have a helpful book or guide that complements your newsletter and adds value to your readers, then it’s a no-brainer: make it your CTA.
Let your newsletter become your sales ambassador and climb up the ranking charts.
2. Turn your newsletter into a digital product
I actually did this the other way around: I first launched my ebook, The Lemon Tree Mindset, and then published this newsletter to promote it by sharing one chapter every week.
If you are producing a newsletter, your digital product is already there: you have your raw diamond. It’s just a matter of polishing, repackaging, and turning it into a finished product: a guide, an ebook, a course…
I’m currently sending a weekly course to my paid subscribers called Personal Brand Studio🎬. Once I finish sending all the lessons, I plan to curate the content, reformat it, and turn it into a digital guide that I will sell on Gumroad.
Pro tip:
- For digital products such as guides and courses, I prefer Gumroad because they charge a flat 10% commission, whereas Amazon keeps 30%.
- For books and ebooks, I choose Amazon because it helps me build brand equity as an author.
They are not mutually exclusive, so you can pick both.
3. Affiliate marketing
Affiliate marketing can work well if you are growing your subscribers but don’t have your own products yet. It basically means recommending a third-party platform or product and getting a commission from the sales you generate.
I don’t do this very often because I’m very selective about what and whom I recommend, but I love sharing tools and things I find useful and support others in the process.
- Platforms
Many platforms offer their own affiliate marketing programs. I’m enrolled in the Amazon Associates Program, and whenever one of my recommendations turns into a sale, I get a small commission. It’s not a big focus for me, but if you are creative, you can find ways to make it work.
For example, if you have your own podcast, you can recommend the toolkit you use to new podcasters who want to invest in the setup.
If you have a newsletter about photography or technology, you can suggest products and gadgets your readers will enjoy.
- Creators
Many creators have their own affiliate programs and you can partner with them for a win-win.
For instance, I love writing on Medium and have published 500+ articles there. My buddy Derek Hughes has a great course for beginners, and I happily endorse him because he is a Top Writer there and has cracked the code.
If you want to make your first 1,000$ on Medium, his guide will get you there (offer available until 2 June only).
You win, I win, he wins: that’s affiliate marketing at its best.
Pro tip: here are some affiliate marketing programs:
- Canva
- Amazon
Check the full list here.
4. Boost your paid platforms
If you write on platforms that pay creators (X, Medium, YouTube…), you can create digital cross-pollination, invite your subscribers over, and drive incremental traffic.
While I had an epic failure on Twitter (I made zero $ after 6 months), I’m doing alright on Medium, where I have grown to 5K+, and generate some side money every month.
This was my most popular article in May:
![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F307e9003-a6f4-4d76-ab22-f57a82aa59ef.heic)
The cool thing is Substack is helping me earn more on Medium. This is how…
I often add a Medium article to my newsletter that I think will add value. It’s always an exclusive story to create FOMO.
This strategy attracts traffic to my Medium article, signaling to the platform that it’s popular. As a result, it pushes it to more readers, generating more traffic and earnings.
My Substack newsletter makes me money on Medium while I sleep. Crazy.
Pro tip: if you share your Medium article, share the Friends Link so that all subscribers can read it for free.
Read more about my Substack-Medium strategy here.
Think like an entrepreneur
There are other ways to monetize your newsletter, such as offering sponsorship slots or private coaching.
I have shared the ones I am currently using because I don’t like to talk about theory. I like to get my hands dirty, plant my seeds, and show you how I’m planting my little lemon trees so that I can help you plant yours.
Don’t think like a writer: think like an entrepreneur and treat your newsletter like your start-up.
Ready for more?
Lemons & Lemonade🌳🍋
My dream is to become a full-time writer, but I’m not there- yet! 😉
A lot of my work is FREE because I believe in adding value and growing together.
If you would like to support me, you can upgrade to get some tasty lemonade:
🍋Monthly Webinars on writing, publishing & personal brand
🍋 2 ebooks: The Lemon Tree Mindset + From Zero To Amazon Bestseller
🍋 Personal Brand Studio course to build and monetize your brand
Thanks. I really value your advice and the fact that you give it freely is incredibly generous
Another great, actionable post!