Tip: Get more paid subscribers by offering a complementary newsletter

Paid newsletters are all the rage these days, but your readers are busy and they may not be interested in paying for more of the same. To get paid subscribers, offer a complementary (but distinct) paid newsletter instead of a paid tier.

@joshspector of For The Interested figured his subscribers would pay for an expanded version of his free newsletter. But it turned out that they didn't want more — they wanted different. After the paid tier flopped, he decided to keep his original newsletter free and invite his subscribers to pay for a complementary one. Not only were his subscribers willing to pay, but they were willing to pay more. Within two months of launching it, he had more than doubled his subscribers and revenue compared to his first attempt. And he also maintained the quality of his free newsletter since he didn't have to save the best content for a paid tier. If you give it a shot, make sure both newsletters have well-defined roles and that they complement each other nicely. For example, Josh's free newsletter helps subscribers with their creations, while his paid newsletter shows exactly how he grows his own creations.