unusual paid newsletter strategy I’m planning to test

Like it or not:

When you say the words “paid newsletter”...

Most people think of the Substack model.

This is where you put your best content behind a paywall in the hopes that a small (but sufficient) percentage of your audience will pony up for a monthly subscription.

And it can work.

In fact, there’s a number of people making high 6 or 7-figures following this playbook:

- Heather Cox Richardson (Letts from an American)
- Lenny Rachitsky (Lenny’s Newsletter)
- Matthew Yglesias (Slow Boring)
- Bari Weiss (The Free Press)
- Etc etc

That’s not the paid newsletter model I’m interested in, though.

Partly because content subscriptions are under pressure right now.

It’s one thing if you’re offering proximity via coaching or some kind help with implementation…

But just for access to content?

That’s a much tougher sell IMO.

Like trying to sell craft beer to an alcoholic with a basement full of moonshine.

(and this is coming from a degenerate media junkie with 5-7+ paid subscriptions, lol)

Instead, I’ve got something else in mind.

You see, the #1 appeal of a paid newsletter to me isn’t the recurring revenue from subscriptions…

It’s the fact that your audience is made up of 100% customers.

People who trust you + vibe with you.

And serving these people is a totally different experience vs those who don’t.

Both in terms of engagement and profitability.

So…

My plan to convert this esteemed publication into a paid newsletter is as follows:

First, I’m shutting down all the lead gen I’m currently doing…

And then replacing it with a paid offer.

I’ve got a few different offers and price points I’ll be testing over the next 4-6 weeks…

But the punchline is:

The ONLY way to get on my newsletter from here on out will be by purchasing something.

(don’t worry, you’ll be grandfathered in ;)

Instead of the typical subscription model…

This works more like an admission fee.

Yet I expect the downstream effects to be similarly consequential.

I’ll be adding fewer new subscribers to the list each day…

But each and every one of them will be buyers.

Anyhow, as always, I’ll keep you posted on how this latest experiment unfolds.

Jim Hamilton

P.S:

This is an example of what Jeff Bezos calls a “two-way door.”

Meaning:

If it doesn’t work, I can simply revert the change…

And turn my lead gen funnel back on again.

These are the types of decisions that allow you to innovate quickly with minimal risk.