Before Publishing Labs, there was Pivot Hour — a lightly structured AMA-style experim
ent in reader strategy. These replays are less polished but offer some gems from my earlier work with paid members.
Our Pivot Hour this month was a rich, freeform space to tackle some of the challenges and opportunities we face as newsletter creators.
Here are some of the big themes we explored this time:
The Impact of Seasonal Trends on Growth: Addressing how factors like holidays or major events can cause fluctuations in subscriber growth and engagement, and why consistency is key during these times.
Communicating Value for Price Changes: Highlighting strategies for announcing subscription price increases while emphasizing the value you’ve added, creating urgency for readers to lock in the current rate.
Leveraging Complimentary Subscriptions: The thoughtful use of complimentary subscriptions to reward and engage your most loyal supporters and build community behind the paywall.
Effective Lead Magnets for Growth: Strategies for delivering valuable resources to attract new subscribers, like using tools to track downloads and ensure a seamless user experience.
Selling Products Through Substack: Exploring how newsletters can complement offerings like books, emphasizing intentional use of free content to drive interest without giving away too much.
It’s always amazing to see how these conversations evolve.
New to Amanda and The Publishing Spectrum? Here are 3 ways we can work together:
→ Publishing Pattern Tap-In – Quiet, high-signal weekly touch points where we connect on your publishing strategy, storytelling and way-finding questions. Get thoughtful feedback, data insights and grounded decision-making as you navigate your next publishing steps. Learn more about the $50 trial.
→ Substack Signal Scan – A 1:1 strategy session to review your publication, spot creative patterns and unlock audience insight through a mix of intuition and analytics. Book a time here.
→ Publishing Studio Library – Explore my growing, reimagined archive of serialized guides, tools and frameworks designed to support intentional publishing — from audience trust to writing seasons. See the library.
Complete Summary of Questions and Answers
Converting Free Subscribers to Paid
Question: “The question I had for you was this dilemma I have about converting more free subscribers to paid subscribers or attracting more paid subscribers. I don't offer a service, I offer myself and my writing. The quality and consistency of my writing is strong, but my paid subscriber number has stayed very stagnant for a long time. I've tried writing twice a week, but the data showed me that wasn’t converting anyone. I also made personal voiceovers a paid perk, but that didn’t work either. So, why would anyone go from free to paid if everything is available?”
Answer: “I relate to the instinct to think that I have to add more to what I’m doing to get people to upgrade. But sometimes, adding complexity can steal from our creativity. I recommend getting back to the basics: define where you're taking your readers. What’s the journey from where they are when they find you, to where they’ll end up? That’s your value proposition. Be clear about what free readers get and what paid readers get. And if you’ve added a lot of bells and whistles and they’re not working, stripping back to the basics can be fruitful for both your creativity and your strategy.”
Understanding and Using Data
Question: “I manage a Substack with 20,000 subscribers and about 1,000 paid subscribers. We’ve grown organically without promotions, but now I want to analyze our data. I’m confused about how to track income (numbers in Substack, Stripe, and the bank don’t match), and I also want to figure out what content is working and what’s not. Where should I focus?”
Answer: “Substack’s financial forecasting is pretty much useless—they’re projecting what might come in. Focus on Stripe and what’s hitting your bank account for reliable numbers. To figure out what’s resonating editorially, consider doing a data audit. Look at your high-performing essays and find the themes. For someone your size, I’d recommend a 10x5 audit: analyze your top 10 essays across five categories of reader actions (likes, comments, conversions, etc.). Lastly, check Substack’s retention rate metric—that’s one area where their data is accurate.”
