Treat all your subscribers as "paid subscribers", I like this vision, but how subscribers see the fremiun content from value perspective?. I am afraid some of them consider free content are low or medium quality
"My free stuff is my main weapon. I go 100% max effort. I don’t earn a cent from it, but I write as if my paycheck relied on it." It's a great advice to new writers when it comes to sharing paid and free content.
Veronica, I read every word and I totally believe that I'm doing about four things wrong. I'm going immediately to settings and try and collect a couple of those things right away. Appreciate your writing and your response to me.
Respecting free subscribers is definitely not mentioned enough. For every post about "how to gain X subscribers in Y months", there is....wait...zero posts I've come across that mention the readers' perspective. Great point and thanks for a generous piece packed with applicable tips.
I'm just getting started on Substack and I like your idea offering the weekly ecourse. I have a bit a delivery question - is the course delivered through Substack or do you use a different platform to send out the ecourse?
Interesting strategies. I’m still just trying to figure out the best strategy for myself and I’m gonna consider some of the things you mentioned. Thanks
Thanks Veronica, so useful. I also launched a mini course which also resulted in 5 upgrades over a weekend. I’m in the middle of it now though have been trying to find the balance as I do still want to post for my free subscribers as totally free posts get much more engagement which I also value. It's fun to work through it all and see what works!
Congrats, Kate, that's wonderful regarding the upgrades in a weekend!
I'm totally with you regarding the balance, that's why a lot of my content remains free, and even if I add a paywall, readers can access 70-80% of the content.
I do miss the engagement when it's paid only though...
Freemium is the model used by many major media publications today. I believe the New York Times allows you 10 free articles a month before they activate the paywall. It’s tried and true, and it works.
100% Nadine, and we are also afraid of creating new things that people might not like. It's all about taking risks embracing that sometimes it won't work.
I think the branding and look & feel of the publications is really important to attract readers. I was thinking about writing about it with some tips of what worked for me.
I will definitely be posting consistently every week, and sticking to my designated day of posting. That’s something I’ve been struggling to adhere to. Reading your post most definitely reinforced this!!
Treat all your subscribers as "paid subscribers", I like this vision, but how subscribers see the fremiun content from value perspective?. I am afraid some of them consider free content are low or medium quality
I agree with everything you wrote.
I want to add that subscriptions are the hardest thing to sell online. Unless the price is extremely low (1$ per month low).
To get their feet wet, writers can start with a short ebook
"My free stuff is my main weapon. I go 100% max effort. I don’t earn a cent from it, but I write as if my paycheck relied on it." It's a great advice to new writers when it comes to sharing paid and free content.
Veronica, I read every word and I totally believe that I'm doing about four things wrong. I'm going immediately to settings and try and collect a couple of those things right away. Appreciate your writing and your response to me.
Respecting free subscribers is definitely not mentioned enough. For every post about "how to gain X subscribers in Y months", there is....wait...zero posts I've come across that mention the readers' perspective. Great point and thanks for a generous piece packed with applicable tips.
I'm just getting started on Substack and I like your idea offering the weekly ecourse. I have a bit a delivery question - is the course delivered through Substack or do you use a different platform to send out the ecourse?
So many great take aways here, especially for a beginner like myself. Saving this post so that I can read it again later.
Thank you- really helpful article.
Interesting strategies. I’m still just trying to figure out the best strategy for myself and I’m gonna consider some of the things you mentioned. Thanks
That's great, Yan!
I'm always reviewing my strategy and tweaking things. If it doesn't work, we keep experimenting.
Good luck and if you have any questions or want to see what others are doing, you can visit the Thread.
Thanks Veronica, so useful. I also launched a mini course which also resulted in 5 upgrades over a weekend. I’m in the middle of it now though have been trying to find the balance as I do still want to post for my free subscribers as totally free posts get much more engagement which I also value. It's fun to work through it all and see what works!
Congrats, Kate, that's wonderful regarding the upgrades in a weekend!
I'm totally with you regarding the balance, that's why a lot of my content remains free, and even if I add a paywall, readers can access 70-80% of the content.
I do miss the engagement when it's paid only though...
Balance is the key!
Thank you for the article ! It’s super helpful for me as I figure out what to do with my own Substacks.
That's great, Jodi!
If you check the Thread you will see what other writers are doing too and you can ask questions and share your own strategy.
Good luck!
Freemium is the model used by many major media publications today. I believe the New York Times allows you 10 free articles a month before they activate the paywall. It’s tried and true, and it works.
Exactly and it's a brilliant model where they hook readers.
It would be a great idea for Substack to implement something similar actually, e.g, read 3 articles for FREE before you upgrade.
I suspect most people get stuck at the "Beyond bread and butter" section. We all struggle to detect our own value!!
100% Nadine, and we are also afraid of creating new things that people might not like. It's all about taking risks embracing that sometimes it won't work.
Great information! Thanks for sharing your tips with us!
You are welcome, Leanna!
Anything new you are thinking to implement or change?
Thank you for the exceptional article. I took lots of notes! And I love the whole ''lemon" approach -- very innovative and, well, fresh.
Thank you! I really appreciate it.
I think the branding and look & feel of the publications is really important to attract readers. I was thinking about writing about it with some tips of what worked for me.
I love this! Thank you for sharing this! I found it very insightful and helpful!!
That's great, Gina!
What are you thinking of changing/ starting?
I will definitely be posting consistently every week, and sticking to my designated day of posting. That’s something I’ve been struggling to adhere to. Reading your post most definitely reinforced this!!