Memberships and Subscriptions

The Membership Guide Link toThe Membership Guide

Our guide offers practical, tactical advice on designing and implementing membership strategies and workflows.

Spending money to make money, Part II: Case studies of newsrooms using paid acquisition Link toSpending money to make money, Part II: Case studies of newsrooms using paid acquisition

After publishing the first report back from our paid acquisition experiments with publishers last year, I started to receive a…

Smart investments in paid lead acquisition to grow membership (or, spending money to make money) Link toSmart investments in paid lead acquisition to grow membership (or, spending money to make money)

  Back in 2004, I helped one of the early online environmental “blogs” undertake a big technical upgrade. At the…

How today’s news publishers can use data, best practices, and test-and-learn tactics to build better pay-meters Link toHow today’s news publishers can use data, best practices, and test-and-learn tactics to build better pay-meters

The past half-decade has seen a digital subscription renaissance in the news publishing industry. Publishers are increasingly recognizing a market…

Digital subscription reader revenue benchmarks and best practices from 500+ publications worldwide  Link toDigital subscription reader revenue benchmarks and best practices from 500+ publications worldwide 

As news organizations have been pressed to develop digital subscription and membership models to support themselves, there’s been one question…

How Today’s News Publishers Can Use Data, Best Practices, and Test-and-Learn Tactics To Build Better Pay-Meters Link toHow Today’s News Publishers Can Use Data, Best Practices, and Test-and-Learn Tactics To Build Better Pay-Meters

A Shorenstein Center and Lenfest Institute White Paper By Nicco Mele, Matthew Skibinski, and Matthew Spector Our research suggests a…

Using Newsletters to Drive Loyalty Link toUsing Newsletters to Drive Loyalty

As news organizations have focused on membership-based business models that build on relationships with loyal readers, they’ve turned to an…

With a boost from Stephen King, The Portland Press-Herald highlights why local publishers should invest in coverage that drive subscriptions Link toWith a boost from Stephen King, The Portland Press-Herald highlights why local publishers should invest in coverage that drive subscriptions

Last month, the Portland Press-Herald decided to stop publishing regional book reviews focused on Maine authors. It was a business…

Optimizing Your Checkout Flow Link toOptimizing Your Checkout Flow

For publishers, it’s the moment of truth: A reader has decided they want to become a digital subscriber, and they…

How The Christian Science Monitor rethought its workflows with its readers in mind Link toHow The Christian Science Monitor rethought its workflows with its readers in mind

Last year, The Christian Science Monitor totally changed its digital operations. It refocused its daily reporting into a subscription-supported daily…

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