Why Should Anyone Pay To Read Your Substack?
That's a real question and I want you to answer it.
Today’s post is purely about engagement because I love participation more than anything! I have no Substack tips to share this week, but I do have a question I’d love for you to answer in the comments.
Whether you strategically add paywalls in your posts…
Whether you only allow paid subscribers to comment…
Whether you have paid subscriptions enabled but don’t block anything off…
Why should people pay to read your Substack?
Okay, now I’ll tell you the reason I’m asking. It’s only because I’m curious about what YOU think. I’d love to know your reasons for paywalling or not.
I have THREE Substack publications with the option to pay on all three.
On Dog Snobs, I’ll probably never paywall any content, yet I still have a handful of paid subscribers who enjoy my content.
On Wildhood Wanted (by far my biggest, most engaged audience), I have paywalls on select posts that either teach readers a life/business/writing skill or provide incredible inspiration to go out, be brave, and find yourself. My paid subscribers there equal less than one percent of total subs.
And then we have the one you’re reading right now…Unstack Substack. This is where I provide actionable advice and executable instructions to Substackers who wish to up their game on this platform. Paid subscribers here equal two percent of total subs.
I have gone a little more in-depth about my strategy in this post:
Again, today’s post is purely for engagement purposes and I hope you engage WITH EACH OTHER in the comments!
Why do you think people should pay to read your content?
I don't force or intimidate people to read my writing or pay for my work- it's entirely their choice to decide to give me a paid subscription, and I respect that. What I need to do is produce content for them that is worthy of being paid for, and then we can go from there.
Hi Kristi, I have 3 newsletters all under the umbrella H A G. I don't promote them as separate newsletters, all my subscribers are to the H A G site. According to Substack, people can subscribe to each individually, if they want but no one has done that yet. I'm not sure if readers are aware of that function. Anyway, I tried going paid and did get 20 paid subscribers. I decided a year later to go back to free content but kept the paid function for those that like to pay for their content. I emailed those paid subscribers in advance to let them know what I was doing. I thought they would all revert to free subscriptions, but I only lost 1. I haven't produced any paid content since. I always include an upgrade button, and it's in my footer, too. But more important than money to me is engagement, so comments will always be free, I would never consider putting a paywall on comments. Thanks to you and your wonderful knowledge and advice, I now add 'Buy me a Coffee' to all my posts. A lot of people don't want to commit to a subscription but want to pay what and when they can. I also make my subscriptions really low cost, on account of the cost of living crisis. I put a lot of effort and research into my newsletters, and I find it upsetting sometimes that writing is always expected to be given away for free. Nearly all my subscribers open and read my newsletters, but only a small proportion bother to like, or share or comment, even when I specifically ask them to. I'm thinking of introducing paid products, such as tutorials in the near future, so we'll see how that goes. Sorry for the essay, but I hope it answers your question! Thanks for sharing your knowledge here. 💕