This *one thing* worked to grow my subscribers

“Anyone can tell, few can do.”

Internet sensation Jay Yang tweeted this earlier this month, and while it’s not revelatory on its face, I loved his point about living your advice.

Marketers are kinda famous for this BS.

Spouting off generic recommendations like “everyone needs to do shortform video” and confusing the hell out of indie businesses who, frankly, just need to know what’s gonna *actually* work for them.

Last week, I asked for ONE THING that worked FOR YOU this year.

What worked to grow your newsletter?
What worked to get you more paying subscribers?

What actually worked, not what seems like it should work.

10 of you brilliant publishers came through. I heard everything from a change in pricing to a deeply transparent reveal, and even, a neighborhood pop up—and I’m sharing it all back with you today.

Speaking of living your advice, I threw one of my own in here so we’ve got 5 list growth tricks and 6 paid sub tricks that worked for readers of this newsletter.

See if you can find one idea in here that might work for you too and try it!

Here’s to our collective success growing and getting paid in 2025! 🎉 

We’re going to start with what worked to drive paid subscribers and then go to the newsletter list strategies. Fair warning that this is kind of a mega issue, but it’s a super useful one to bookmark for later.

Remember as you read that data is relative! We’re not comparing publishers to each other. Publishers sent in something that stood out to them based on their own data and testing.

Huge thanks to all our contributors for their candor. This level of transparency helps us all get better at running independent publications.

This one thing converted paid subscribers

1) A here’s what I’m up to email got Rose Thomas Bannister 15 new subscribers and 3 paid subscribers

🗞️ Publication: Modo di Bere by Rose Thomas Bannister

🧪 What Rose Thomas tried: Rose Thomas sent an announcement email about the launch of Modo di Bere Magazine to her friends, family and former colleagues. She explained how the magazine came about and invited them to subscribe.

🎯 How it worked: 15 new subscribers and 3 paid subscribers from this announcement.

Rose Thomas remarked that it was “Such a basic thing…but I didn’t think to do it sooner!”

She’s not alone! A lot of us find it easier to talk to strangers than our existing network, but your existing audience (no matter how close) is most likely to step up with paid contributions!

✏️ Try it: Send a personal note to people who know you but may not know about your recent work. Include an ask or two!

2) A visionary call to action got L’Oreal Thompson Payton 2 paid subscribers

🗞️ Publication: LT in the City Weekly by L’Oreal Thompson Payton

🧪 What L’Oreal tried: L’Oreal put a nice plug in a recent newsletter for her paid subscriptions and it included 1) some of her future plans that require funding 2) a price increase deadline 3) a target for the end of the year and 4) a perks rundown.

🎯 How it worked: 2 new paid subscribers from this email.

L’Oreal is going to run another similar message before Jan 1 when she’s increasing subscription pricing.

✏️ Try it: This is a meaty call to action! It is much stronger than Substack’s default “upgrade to paid” block because it is specific and it’s urgent. Beef up your call to actions every once in a while with some of the factors L’Oreal used here like future plans or a goal you’re aiming for.

3) A can’t miss that button got Andy Dehnart 4 annual paid subscribers in one day

🗞️ Publication: Reality Blurred by Andy Dehnart

🧪 What Andy tried: Andy’s been running Reality Blurred for over 20 years, but had NEVER tried a dedicated reader appeal asking for paid supporters.

Andy’s publication makes money mostly from ads (you’re going to hear all about it because I interviewed him for our revenue series in January) but he also has a super loyal fanbase who wanted to support him and didn’t know they could! He sent them a one off email asking for their support and letting them know how to do it in early December. Nice big buttons! Can’t miss how to click pay!

🎯 How it worked: 4 new annual subscriptions within a day.

Andy did note that one of the subscribers was his in-laws “which is either a cheat or even more evidence that direct appeals really do work!” I’m going with the latter.

✏️ Try it: Send a one off email to your newsletter asking them to become a paying subscriber (with no editorial content included.) Don’t forget the big button!

Need inspiration? Check out Andy’s email below or skim these motivation message templates I pulled recently.

4) A behind the scenes letter got Kaitlyn Arford 5 paid subscribers

🗞️ Publication: Freelance Opportunities by Kaitlyn Arford

🧪 What Kaitlyn tried: Kaitlyn wasn’t promoting her paid subscriptions much until recently. Her newsletter makes money multiple ways, including through sponsorships and ads.

The day after Black Friday, Kaitlyn sent the below letter to her readers, sharing her newsletter origin story and her mission with it. I particularly love the details about how she has to bug editors for rates on their LinkedIn posts (which I see her doing!) She also included 4 testimonials from readers—always a great addition!

🎯 How it worked: 5 new paid subscribers from this one email.

Kaitlyn noted that this was lower than she’d like it to be but it was also “enough evidence to show me that being personal and vulnerable is a winning strategy. People need to see the person behind the inbox.” A win is a win!!!

✏️ Try it: I love this strategy for labor intensive reporting and writing. Help your reader understand what your job is and why that work is so valuable in what they receive. I wrote a few other examples up in this post on behind the scenes costs.

5) A birthday sale got Aftermath hundreds of new paying subscribers

🗞️ Publication: Aftermath (submitted by Luke Plunkett, Co-Founder, Worker-Owner)

🧪 What Aftermath tried: Aftermath ran their first sale ever on the one year birthday of their gaming and internet culture publication’s launch.

Luke said they were “reluctant to devalue our subscriptions in any meaningful way during our first year” but once they hit that anniversary, they wanted to get as many of their fans to financially back them as possible. They offered first month for $1, renewing at $7/month after that. This was a cross-channel promotion on web, email and social media.

🎯 How it worked: REALLY WELL! Luke said this sale brought in hundreds of new paying subscribers and, with that first trial month now past them, most are sticking around at the $7/mo rate and actually using their subscription.

✏️ Try it: Publication birthdays/anniversaries are a great excuse to run your biggest promotion of the year (sale or no sale). You’ll find out really fast how many of your readers are price sensitive and how many have a different motivator that convinces them to go from free to paid.

6) A real talk revelation on Giving Tuesday got The 51st 117 paid subscribers

🗞️ Publication: The 51st (submitted by Maddie Poore, Co-founder, Worker-Owner)

🧪 What The 51st tried: The 51st ran a bold reader appeal on Giving Tuesday, penned by co-founder/worker-owner Colleen Grablick. Colleen’s subject line was “This is my nightmare — but hear me out” which surely stood out amidst a hundred “Support independent journalism” emails.

Colleen’s letter to readers used a few smart strategies beyond the subject line, including highlighting the worker-led media movement, sharing their goal and comparing the cost of support to a half a bagel sandwich or a ticket to Gladiator II. A nice break from the latte joke we usually get.

🎯 How it worked: 117 new paying members in one day.

Maddie said it was one of their highest sign up days so far.

The 51st just launched a couple months ago and had super strong reader support even pre-launch. Their team is hustling like hell to hit newsletter reader and paying member goals and they are very close to their 2024 goals (which is good because 2024 is almost over!)

✏️ Try it: Are you convinced now that a direct, personal, specific appeal to your readers works? Use it! A few times a year at least. Drive your fans into action!

And for the love of God, will someone please send this example to The Guardian so they know their donation pleas don’t have to be such a drag?

This one thing grew newsletter subscribers

1) A contrarian view got Dave Kang 183 new subscribers

🗞️ Publication: Dave Kang’s Octopus Life

🧪 What Dave tried: Dave wrote a post in September titled “Ikigai Ruined My Life” which debunked a popular self-help framework through his own experience with it.

Dave mentioned to me that his readers already know Ikigai so he wasn’t introducing a new concept to them, but that it was probably a “surprising” take for them to hear.

🎯 How it worked: 4.92k views and 183 new subscribers.

Dave said “[This] has just shown me the value of creating a great post that resonates with people, and pushed me more towards the ‘quality over quantity’ camp.”

✏️ Try it: Start a list of your most contrarian or surprising takes on your typical beat or topic. Pick one most people would likely have a reaction to and write it! Take note of Dave’s punchy subject line too.

2) A neighborhood event got Mon Plateau 250 new subscribers

🗞️ Publication: Mon Plateau (submitted by Gaëlle Engelberts, editor)

🧪 What Gaëlle tried: Gaëlle is based in Montréal, and more specifically in Mile End, where she found a neighborhood festival that she could set up a booth at for free! (If you know my farmer’s market origin story, you know this is a strategy near and dear to my heart).

Gaëlle’s publication is hyperlocal and Mile End is one of the neighborhoods she covers. She created a wheel visitors could spin where they could “win prizes like chocolates, magnets, mugs, or a free subscription if they signed up for the newsletter.”

🎯 How it worked: 250 subscribers in two days.

✏️ Try it: If your publication is local, keep an eye on events where you could table or even clipboard for new subscribers. This could also work for interest-based publications if there’s a place where your readers congregate (like sports arenas or theaters).

3) A paywall change got Jenni Gritters to 1750+ subscribers

🗞️ Publication: The Third Door by Jenni Gritters

🧪 What Jenni tried: Jenni is a former journalist turned coach for creative entrepreneurs. She made her newsletter free this year as a way to attract new clients and collaborators and she also added a new Q&A column where she interviews solopreneurs. She still has a paid option if you want to support her work, but she’s optimizing more for reaching new readers and potential clients than paying subscribers.

🎯 How it worked: Jenni called this her “best growth strategy for the year” and said it paved the way for a lot more cross-promotions which helped add 750+ subscribers to her list.

She also said her newsletter attracted new coaching clients to the tune of nearly $100k in 2024 alone noting that those people “originally read my Substack as a way to get to know my perspectives,” making that free tier well worthwhile.

✏️ Try it: If you have a bigger dollar upside like coaching, sponsorships or something else that benefits from more free readers, you can give a generous free tier a shot. You could also try longer previews of articles or a delayed paywall like 404 Media talked about on their podcast (they hold the paywall on stories so readers can share them and add it in a few days after the buzz dies down). ← Substack has a feature that can do this for you.

4) A free template got Robert Brandl 254 new subscribers

🗞️ Publication: Email Tool Tester (submitted by Robert Brandl, Founder)

🧪 What Robert tried: Robert runs a review site for email marketing tools (think Wirecutter but for software). They make most of their income from affiliate revenue and also some from paid consulting calls. To grow their newsletter this year, they launched a lead magnet—a downloadable comparison spreadsheet.

🎯 How it worked: 254 new subscribers from this page and counting with some of the new subscribers booking paid consulting calls with the team.

✏️ Try it: Lead magnets are tricky to get right but they can work if you a) have info your readers would be Googling and b) can bundle that info up in something simple like a downloadable PDF.

Good candidates for this strategy are publications like LA TACO which gatekeeps restaurant finds for paid subscribers (and rightfully so) or Jeremy Caplan’s Wonder Tools which uncovers the best new tools for journalists and teachers.

5) A powerhouse partner got me 352 new subscribers

🗞️ Publication: This one you’re reading—Journalists Pay Themselves

🧪 What I tried: We just crossed 1000 readers for this newsletter and I dug into my sources to figure out what worked best this year. The answer? Kaitlyn Arford from Freelance Opportunities.

I can’t remember how Kaitlyn and I found each other—I think it was Freelance Twitter—but Kaitlyn’s been both a recommendation and a boost partner for me this year. Both of these mechanics are features of our platform beehiiv and they appear in a pop up after people subscribe. Boosts is just the paid version to get a little more airtime there.

🎯 How it worked: Kaitlyn drove 352 new subscribers my way this year with 303 still here. It’s pretty likely you heard about me from her!

✏️ Try it: Find yourself 2-3 right fit partners to cross-promote with for a few months. Right fit means your audiences overlap a lot and ideally, that you’re growing at the same pace (I’m way behind Kaitlyn. I’ve only sent her 32 subscribers).

If your platform doesn’t have this built-in, just agree on a certain number of newsletter shout outs. I would never in a million years recommend SparkLoop but they are a platform agnostic way to do this. You could also use Jordan Gill’s one click Add to List tool.

Whew, that was a lot! I recapped the tricks here so you have a nice little cheatsheet.

For getting more paid subscribers, you can try:

• A here’s what I’m up to email like Rose Thomas

• A visionary call to action like L’Oreal

• A can’t miss that button like Andy

• A behind the scenes letter like Kaitlyn

• A birthday sale like Aftermath

• A real talk revelation like The 51st

For growing newsletter subscribers, you can try:

• A contrarian view like Dave

• A neighborhood event like Mon Plateau

• A paywall change like Jenni Gritters

• A lead magnet like Email Tool Tester

• A powerhouse partner like me

Don’t do them all. Just choose one to try. Can’t pick? Come to our next live session and we’ll help you narrow it down.

Thank you again to all our contributors to this issue: Dave Kang, Gaëlle Engelberts, Jenni Gritters, Robert Brandl, Rose Thomas Bannister, L’Oreal Thompson Payton, Andy Dehnart, Kaitlyn Arford, Luke Plunkett and Maddie Poore. You make the internet a better place for us all.

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