Subscription marketing response figures

Response comparisons for email – ads – inserts – mailings

Email marketing promotions: response rates
What kind of response can you can expect to a series of emails to your prospects. What will the creative work cost?

These are the figures for an email marketing promotion for a consumer website which has 200,000 registered, unpaid members.

Response to email marketing promotion offering a risk-free trial is 0.23%. After the risk-free trial, the subscriber pays £60 by automatically renewing credit card.

Response is 70% pay-through conversion following the trial period.

Email marketing revenue figures

Email marketing expenditure figures

Profit: £16,920

(Broadcast costs and staff time are included in general company overheads, and not within the expenditure figures above)

Converting free publications to paid-for
There are lots of publishers currently thinking of converting B2B and other free specialist titles to paid-for subscription.

I have given two examples of results achieved for specialist free titles previously totally reliant on advertising revenue.

The first title is distributed mostly to individuals working in Govt departments in the UK and overseas. The second is sent to both public and private sector readers, central and local government departments, NGOs, charities and other agencies.

Similar results have been obtained in various B2B markets. Our experience is that if the magazine content also appears on the website free of charge, it has no effect on the response to our promotions.

These figures are based on creative copy and strategy produced by a professional copywriter / subscriptions consultant (i.e. not in-house work):

Government sector free title
In the first example the publisher commissioned a series of emails to build a paid-for subscriber list to run alongside his free list.

Response figures for email conversions

Here are the figures for this specialist magazine:

Profit: £26,180

In the example above initial price tests found that new subscribers would pay £77 for a quarterly publication, where subs were previously sold for £50 a year.

Converting free magazine readers to subscription
In this example, we sent out a series of conversion letters to all free magazine readers and prospects announcing the subscription rates. Here are the figures:

The emails can be re-vamped and the series extended to continue to collect more paid-for subscriptions, and the cost amortised over, say, five years.

General response rates

The results of direct marketing tests I have seen over the years have been pretty consistent, and are laid out below. These figures for email, advertisement, insert and direct mail promotions assume the creative work and strategy – the offer, concept and design – are created by a professional subscriptions copywriter.

I have used a magazine advertisement as a basis for this comparison, with the advertisement pulling one reply every thousand readers. So for every 10,000 readers, the response to a good ad would be 10, which is 0.1%.

That means an effective ad in a magazine like Cosmopolitan, which has a circulation of 321,475 in the UK and Ireland, would receive around 321 orders to a subscriptions advertisement.

Taking that response level as a base, you can see what happens to response when the creative work is re-vamped to appear in the various different formats.

Promotion response comparisons

So you can see that if you run a loose insert using the same kind of creative as your advertisement, the insert will pull in three times the response. A mail shot will pull in ten times more response than an advertisement.

Variables
Things that will affect response significantly are:

1. Age and quality of list

2. Offer

3. Concept (message, headline, USP)

4. Email open-rate

5. Email subject line

6. New launch

7. Repetition of promotion (a good email resent after three of four days will give half the response)

8. Day and date of despatch

9. Disposition (mood) of target audience

Contact and queries for quotes:

hobday@subscriptionsstrategy.co.uk

What's bugging the subscriptions marketers?

The marketers I speak to always complain of the same two things:

1. No money for researching readers / markets

2. Marketing revenue is not channeled back into marketing

As these two factors are central to running an effective publishing company, the marketing directors involved probably find it impossible to help their company grow.

Historically, the publishing focus has mainly been on editorial and advertising income:

Everyone agrees that has changed – advertising no longer makes the money it did.

Now, revenue is measured by marketing success. So editors and marketing directors now have similar responsibilities: to reach and monetize prospects on whatever platform works best.

Editors must also be marketers and a marketers job is to maximize revenue. But marketers of all kinds are being held back!

What’s this to do with the price of fish?
Marketers in publishing are usually restricted by fixed budgets, low-level staffing and seniority, and their work and motivation are stifled by the kind of old-school financial models that existed pre-Internet.

For many, ‘marketing’ means sending out a promotion, when it should mean ‘building and monetizing an audience in the most cost-effective way possible.’

Now to the fish question:

If you are selling fish you would catch the fish yourself to cut out the middle man. You would rent a low-cost retail outlet and run a seafood restaurant next door. Your customers could choose their fish, see it cooked, then enjoy their meal. In a couple of moves you have doubled your audience to include both retail shoppers and people who enjoy a meal out. Your investment in the boat has reduced costs, and the restaurant outlet has increased your audience and brought in high-end revenue.

Marketers cannot maximize company revenue unless they are autonomous and their budgets are open-ended: if you are catching fish, then you should be able to keep fishing. If your tests uncover a new, profitable audience, then you should be free to go after it.

Subscription marketing: renewals

The information on this website is free. We have three levels of information we give out, and this website information is included in the first category below:

I will give you an idea of the information we provide. I have just come across a renewal form from AARP – that’s the American Association of Retired People. At first look the AARP appears to break a forbidden rule when marketing renewals:

‘Never offer a discount within your subscriptions renewal series’

Here is the AARP’s headline from their renewal letter:

‘Special Offer – Reduced rates when you renew today’

But what the AARP marketers are doing is very clever – signing up 5 and 3 year memberships as well as the standard one year membership. How do they do this without breaking the golden rule?

Well, I don’t post this kind of creative marketing information on the website because it falls into the ‘subscriptions reports and newsletter’ paid-for information category.

Or if you would like me to do some copywriting to adapt the tactic to bring in multiple-year subscriptions for your website, portal or publication, that would come under the ‘subscription renewals consultancy’ category, paid by the day (or half day). That kind of creative work costs more because your publishing company makes lots more publishing profits. And you can’t get that for free.

But on this occasion, I will break my own ‘golden rule’ and send you a scan of this excellent piece of creative subscriptions renewal work. Contact me to get your pdf at:

hobday@subscriptionsStrategy.co.uk

There is no obligation. I will leave any follow-up to you.

Note
The AARP is one of the largest membership organizations in the United States with more than 40 million members. The AARP’s marketing budget is also one of the largest in the USA and their subscriptions renewal methods are exhaustively tested before rolling out to their general membership.

Specialized information publishing

There are now many thousands of information publishing websites where once there were just a few – because, for most, the cost of entry into website publishing has dropped to almost zero.

But most of these specialist information publishers lack the vital ingredient: marketing.

Without marketing, those information websites will simply wither and die. Even big publishers with established marketing departments are finding it tough to make money through their websites. But they keep their websites going through vanity.

The specialized information publishing market
Marketing means more people will visit your website. Marketing means more people will register. Marketing means enough people will buy your products to bring in a good profit.

There are plenty of publishers who run highly successful and profitable websites. But you may not know which ones they are. Here’s a clue: the most successful websites are run by specialized information publishers.

Specialized information publishers

There are two types of specialized information markets for publishers. The first is the consumer market. A consumer newsletter is usually priced less than £60.

The subject of a consumer information product is more general in nature, such as investments, health and travel, or is aimed at a consumer special-interest group and is paid for by an individual.

Examples of consumer newsletters that you might recognize is The Kiplinger Washington Letter, thought to be the longest continually running newsletter, and Which? magazine, published in the UK.

The second specialized information publishing market is the business-to-business market. Products in this market generally contain very specific, niche information for a small audience, and are usually paid for by a business.

Examples of business-to-business subject matter would be telecommunications, business management (like the Subscriptions Strategy newsletter), energy, defense and healthcare, to name a few. High profit margins are the rule.

The B2B publishing market is where, mostly, the big money is made. Three of the most successful information publishers are:

Informa

Janes Information Group

The Motley Fool

The main membership organisation for specialized information publishers is the Specialized Information Publishers Association.

Register below for more information on the specialized information publishing market. I’ll send you some valuable tips I picked up at the last SIPA conference I attended in London:

Subscriptions Marketing Best Practice

Marketing Best Practice

The essential reference website for today’s website publisher

Our new Marketing Best Practice website covers each aspect of Internet marketing, email and online marketing and publishing, website marketing, magazine, newsletter, subscriptions and membership marketing, with illustrations showing how to apply each technique. Every kind of promotion and all aspects of subscriptions marketing are included:

Internet, online, email and web marketing

Test-drive the Marketing Best Practice website today with our 7-day risk-free trial

Direct mail

Test-drive the Marketing Best Practice website today with our 7-day risk-free trial

Subscriptions and off-the-page advertisements

Test-drive the Marketing Best Practice website today with our 7-day risk-free trial

Subscription marketing leaflets and card inserts

Test-drive the Marketing Best Practice website today with our 7-day risk-free trial

Subscription sales letters

Test-drive the Marketing Best Practice website today with our 7-day risk-free trial

Subscriptions sales brochure

Test-drive the Marketing Best Practice website today with our 7-day risk-free trial

Publishers subscription marketing tips and techniques

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Rule of thumb subscriptions marketing budgets for publishers

Test-drive the Marketing Best Practice website today with our 7-day risk-free trial

Subscription marketing for publishers

Test-drive the Marketing Best Practice website today with our 7-day risk-free trial

Subscription renewals and upgrades

Test-drive the Marketing Best Practice website today with our 7-day risk-free trial

Subscription copywriting

Test-drive the Marketing Best Practice website today with our 7-day risk-free trial

Media planning and buying

Test-drive the Marketing Best Practice website today with our 7-day risk-free trial

Subscription promotion design for publishers

20 years of unique subscriptions experience

The information and procedures contained on the Marketing Best Practice website have been accumulated over 30 years of launching and publishing subscriptions-based titles, both consumer and business.

As well as completely revised and up-dated material from the Subscriptions Strategy newsletter and our workbooks, we have added a great deal of new information and the latest subscriptions marketing innovations. This information is exclusive and not available from any other source. Every relevant question of principle has been asked, considered and answered undefined with a managing director’s, publisher’s and marketer’s view of profitability in mind.

Every piece of subscription and website marketing advice has been tested, regardless of cost. Much information is known only to the most experienced subscriptions publishers – and rarely, if ever, given away!

8-second index

As publishers ourselves, we know you have little time to read material not immediately relevant to your day-to-day work. The members index feature will enable you to locate all there is to say on the subject in about 8 seconds. Here is an example:

CREATING AN ADVERTISEMENT

Instructions on how to create an advertisement: refer to it when planning your next promotion. Each piece of advice will improve response by at least 10%. We explain each technique and how to use it, with important points cross-referenced to other chapters, such as:

Each chapter is illustrated with example promotions that have achieved high levels of response. Guidance is given on how to construct each aspect of the promotion: the headline, body copy, coupon, offer, premium, ‘attention hooks’, pictures, illustrations and design.

This describes how the first paragraph should read and how it gives the headline. Instructions are given on how copy is created and why perfect grammar is never the first consideration. The 14 point checklist is used to improve the finished effort.

The concept is the primary motor that drives copy — and the main element that makes or breaks the promotion. Readers learn how to create the kind of concept that will drive the promotion to the highest possible response levels.

The five different kinds of testimonial are given, and how each effects the reader. Instructions are given on how to obtain testimonials that communicate the benefits of the publication. We introduce an effective new method, invented by us, that doesn’t require the participation of a reader.

Speeding up response also has the effect of increasing response. We give four different ways to persuade prospects to subscribe immediately – a device that is omitted from around 99% of all subscription promotions.

If you do not discover at least 10 techniques worth at least £1,000 each in the Marketing Best Practice website, we will refund all money paid. This is an unlimited guarantee.

Test-drive the Marketing Best Practice website today with our 7-day risk-free trial

Paid content and silly surveys

What will consumers pay for content?

The number of surveys to date that we know of is eight.

Eight silly surveys and a total waste of money.

This kind of hypothetical ‘Would you pay?’ question isn’t suitable for a general survey and it isn’t really valid for any kind of discussion forum.

In marketing, the technical term for this kind of discussion is: ‘a total wast of time’. Sorry to lapse into jargon there!

Any direct marketer can tell you how to test the ‘paid content’ premise for any media that exists. You simply do what a scientist would do and test the premise.

This area of marketing is a science and there is no place for theory unless you have plenty of time and someone else’s money to spend.

8 paid content surveys

Here is a summary of the list of surveys to date. You can see the whole article at www.paidcontent.co.uk with links at:

Paid content article

—PCUK/Harris Poll: five percent of 1,888 UK adults said they would pay if their favourite online newspaper began charging

—Gfk: 18 percent of UK adults in international survey of 16,800 said they would pay for “content”, ie. “news, entertainment and information sites such as Wikipedia”.

—Continental: 37 percent of 500 UK adults said they would pay micropayment, larger fee or monthly/annual sub for online newspaper/mag.

—Olswang/YouGov: 19 percent of 1,013 UK adults and 536 teens said they would make micropayments frequently, a subscription or otherwise pay for news articles online, on mobile or ereaders if there was no free alternative.

—Oliver and Ohlbaum: 15 to 20 percent of respondents to a survey of 2,600 UK consumers said they would pay £2 a month for their favourite news website if it was the only one that charged.

—Forrester: 19 percent of 4,711 US consumers said they would make micropayment, pay a sub or buy a bundled print/web/mobile package for online newspaper.

—Boston Consulting Group: 48 percent of 5,083 regular internet users in nine countries, including 506 in UK, said they would pay for online news.

—KPMG: 11 percent of 1,037 people aged 16 and over “currently spend anything on online media” – findings vary for different media types).

Paid content survey summary
The mean proportion of consumers who would pay for online content is 21.8 percent.

Paid content advice from Subscriptions Strategy
Here is what we recommend: discover how many and how much people will pay by running a simple test. It would cost far less than any of these silly ‘surveys’!

To keep up to date with marketing news and comment, follow our group on twitter:

Twitter marketing group for publishers

Subscription site benchmark report 2010

New! Save GB £30 / US $50.00 on Practical Research to Grow Subscription Site Profits

New — the first 100% research-based guide for subscription, membership and paid content sites.

Discover what social media and marketing tactics are working as you learn about online subscription trends, best practices, pricing models and conversion rates across all kinds of markets.

185-charts of real-life business data with 389 real-life site execs revealing their own numbers including:
• B2B, consumer publishing, dating, dieting, news, hobby, games, video, & financial sites
• Pricing trends, conversion rates, renewal stats
• What’s working in marketing (and what’s not)
• Hybrid model info, including ad sales
• Typical profits, time-to-profit, and how to lift profits

Click here to learn more:
Subscription & Membership Site Benchmark Report

Who Will Find This Report Very Useful:

* Subscription site publishers who want research-based advice on tactics to improve revenues this fiscal quarter. * Ad-based online publishers considering adding (or switching to) a subscription model to add to revenues. * eBook publishers considering transitioning to a subscription model to generate steadier, ongoing revenues from your subject matter expertise. * Membergate publishers who want to see how they stack up against their peers. * Traditional print media executives who want to get more aggressive in the online space – without taking unnecessary risks. * Private equity considering investments who want reality-based forecasting data.

How Our Exclusive, Practical Research Was Gathered:

389 real-life subscription site executives took extensive surveys for this Report (thank you!) and revealed everything from what’s working in marketing, how profitable their sites are, and their sales conversion rates. Respondents included 175 Membergate publishers and 87 SIPA members, as well as executives from many of the biggest subscription sites in the world.

Plus, SubscriptionSiteInsider.com’s research team conducted an observational study of 550 subscription sites — including B2B and consumer sites of all sizes — examining everything from their search marketing results to their site design, traffic, and pricing structures.

Lastly, more than 100 industry vendors, consultants, financiers, and third party researchers agreed to share their data — often exclusively — with us to help make this Benchmark Report the most comprehensive resource possible.

All in all, you’ll find 185 charts, tables and illustrations. (See below for a detailed Table of Contents!)

Table of Contents: 185 Charts, Tables & Illustrations on Subscription Sites

Based largely on three new SubscriptionSiteInsider.com studies, the Benchmark Report features more exclusive, NEW data on subscription sites than any other source on the planet. If the data’s not here, it probably doesn’t exist (yet.) Here’s what your copy includes:

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Subscription & Membership Site Benchmark Report

CHAPTER ONE: Subscription & Membership Site Industry — Profits & Challenges
Part I. Show Me the Money
-> Current Financial Data
TABLE 1.01: Subscription Revenues of Named Sites and Service Providers
TABLE 1.02: US Consumer Spending on Paid Internet Content: 2009 VSS Estimate
CHART 1.02: Typical Annual Profits Reported by Profitable Subscription Site Execs
CHART 1.03: Typical Annual Profits Reported by Profitable Subscription Site Execs: B2B vs B2C
CHART 1.04: Typical Annual Profits Reported by Profitable Membergate Sites
CHART 1.05: Launch-to-Profitability Timeframe for Profitable Subscription Sites
CHART 1.06: Launch-to-Profitability Timeframe: B2B vs B2C Profitable Subscription Sites
CHART 1.07: Non-Sub Site Publishers Estimate Sub Site Build Costs
CHART 1.08: Non-Sub Site Publishers Estimate New Sub Site Breakeven Timing
-> Historic Financial Data
CHART 1.09: US Consumer Spending on Online Content 2001-2005 By Quarter
CHART 1.10: US Online Content Spending by Category of Content, 2004-2005
CHART 1.11: US Ratio of Single Purchases to Subscription Sales by Content Category, 2005
CHART 1.12: US Paid Content Consumer Growth by Average Annual Spend, 2005
CHART 1.13: US Paid Content Consumer Growth by Market Penetration, 2005
TABLE 1.03: US Adults Online Content Purchasing Habits: September 2007
TABLE 1.04: Internet Publishing & Broadcasting —Estimated Revenue & Expenses 2004-2006
TABLE 1.05: US Electronic Shopping & Mail-Order Houses – Total & Ecommerce Sales by Merchandise: 2006-2007
Part II. Types of Sites & Content Offered
CHART 1.14: Internet Pureplay vs. Mixed Offline & Online Offerings
CHART 1.15: Content Features Offered on Typical Advisory/Guru/Coaching Subscription Sites
CHART 1.16: Content Features Offered on Typical Connecting People/Dating Subscription Sites
CHART 1.17: Content Features Offered on Typical Entertainment Subscription Sites
CHART 1.18: Content Features Offered on Typical Instructional/Training/Course Subscription Sites
CHART 1.19: Content Features Offered on Typical Directory/Database Subscription Sites
CHART 1.20: Content Features Offered on Typical News/Specialized Journalism Subscription Sites
CHART 1.21: Subscription Sites Offering Email and/or Mobile Editions
CHART 1.22: User-Generated Content on a Typical Advisory/Guru/Coaching Subscription Site
CHART 1.23: User-Generated Content on a Typical Dating/Networking Subscription Site
CHART 1.24: User-Generated Content on a Typical Entertainment Subscription Site
CHART 1.25: User-Generated Content on a Typical Instructional/Training Subscription Site
CHART 1.26: User-Generated Content on a Typical Directory/Database Subscription Site
CHART 1.27: User-Generated Content on a Typical News/Specialized Journalism Subscription Site
Part III. Biggest Challenges for Subscription Sites Currently
CHART 1.28: Subscription Executives Name Their Site’s Biggest Barriers to Success
CHART 1.29: Subscription Executives Name Their Site’s Biggest Barriers to Success: B2B vs. B2C
CHART 1.30: Weakness Most Subscription Sites Need To Fix: Vendors Speak Out
CHART 1.31: Top Business Challenges Reported by SIPA Members Publishing Subscription Sites

CHAPTER TWO: Subscription Site Audience & Traffic
-> Consumers and Online Content
CHART 2.01: If Facebook Charged $1.99 per Month, Would You Pay?
CHART 2.02: If Facebook Charged $4.99 per Month, Would You Pay?
CHART 2.03: Apple “i” Users Upgrade Pattern: Free Upgrade vs. $10 Upgrade
TABLE 2.01: US Content Subscription Adoption by Consumer Age Group, 2007
CHART 2.04: Is Online Content You Paid for Higher Quality Than Free Content?
Chart 2.05: Likeliness to Buy an Online Video Subscription: Business Professionals Ages 45-63
CHART 2.06: Subscription Services Business Professionals Ages 45-63 Are Most Likely To Cancel
CHART 2.07: US Consumers Time Spent With Online Content vs Other Online Activities, 2008-2009
CHART 2.08: US Consumer Page Views of Online Content vs Other Types of Sites, 2008-2009
CHART 2.09: Unique US Visitors Per Month to Content Sites vs Other Sites, 2008-2009
CHART 2.10: US Consumers’ Sources for Personal Financial Information
-> Consumers and the News Media
CHART 2.11: Time Spent Per Week Reading Internet Newspapers, 2007-2008
CHART 2.12: If Your Print Newspaper Went Online, Would You Visit More?
CHART 2.13: Loyalists as a % of Typical Newspaper Site Unique Visitors
CHART 2.14: Loyalists as a % of Typical Newspaper Site Page Views Per Month
TABLE 2.02: Favored Local News Sources by US Age-Group, 2009
CHART 2.15: Consumer Preferences, Offline vs Online Media: Fall 2009
CHART 2.16: Online News Consumption by Household Income, 2008
TABLE 2.03: Increasing Consumer Criticism of Press Accuracy
-> Real-life 2009 Subscription Site Traffic
CHART 2.17: Total Traffic of 550 Observed Subscription Sites, 2009
CHART 2.18: Unique Visitors of 550 Observed Subscription Sites: Percent B2B vs B2C
CHART 2.19: Golden Oldies: Traffic Stats of Classic Sub Sites Still Going Strong
CHART 2.20: Dating Sites Unique Monthly Traffic
CHART 2.21: Dieting Sites Unique Monthly Traffic
CHART 2.22: Subscription Sites Connecting Friends/Colleagues: Unique Monthly Traffic
CHART 2.23: Music Subscription Sites: Unique Monthly Traffic
CHART 2.24: Movie Subscription Sites: Unique Monthly Traffic
CHART 2.25: Top Online Game Subscriptions: Unique Monthly Traffic
CHART 2.26: Fantasy Sports Fan Subscription Offers : Unique Monthly Traffic
CHART 2.27: Greeting Card Sites: Unique Monthly Traffic
CHART 2.28: Real Estate Info Sites: Unique Monthly Traffic
CHART 2.29: Consumer Credit Rating Sites Unique Monthly Traffic
CHART 2.30: Reference Sites: Unique Monthly Traffic
CHART 2.31: General B2B Interest Sub Sites: Hoovers vs Payscale
CHART 2.32: Get Rich on the Internet Sites: Unique Monthly Traffic
TABLE 2.04: Traffic to a Typo (Rhapsody vs. Rhaposdy)

Click here to learn more:
Subscription & Membership Site Benchmark Report

CHAPTER THREE: Marketing Subscriptions
ILLUSTRATION 3.01: The Online Content Subscription Conversion Funnel
ILLUSTRATION 3.02: Subscription Brand Awareness Impact: The Ease of Conversion Ladder
TABLE 3.01: Example of Multiyear Profitability: 5 Years from Initial Campaign
CHART 3.01: Common Marketing Tactics Used by 550 Observed Subscription Sites
CHART 3.02: SIPA-Member Subscription Sites Rate Marketing Tactics by Results
TABLE 3.02: Upcoming Marketing Budget Changes Projected by SIPA-Member Subscription Sites
CHART: 3.04 How Membergate Site Publishers Differ From Other Publishers: Marketing Tactics
-> Online Tactics to Market Online Subscriptions
CHART 3.05: Subscription Site Execs Rate Effectiveness of Online Marketing Tactics
CHART 3.06: Percent of Subscription Sites Using Common Online Marketing Tactics
CHART 3.07: Online Marketing Tactics Used by Dating Subscription Sites
CHART 3.08: Online Marketing Tactics Used by Personal Investment Subscription Sites
CHART 3.09: Online Marketing Tactics Used by Personal Investment Subscription Sites
CHART 3.10: Online Marketing Tactics Used by Personal-Business Subscription Sites
CHART 3.11: Online Marketing Tactics Used by Dieting Subscription Sites
CHART 3.12: Online Marketing Tactics Used by Fan Club Subscription Sites
CHART 3.13: Online Marketing Tactics Used by Entertainment Subscription Sites
CHART 3.14: Online Marketing Tactics Used by Hobby-Topic Subscription Sites
CHART 3.15: Online Marketing Tactics Used by Get Rich Online Subscription Sites
CHART 3.16: Online Marketing Tactics Used by Health-related Subscription Sites
CHART 3.17: Online Marketing Tactics Used by B2B Trade Subscription Sites
CHART 3.18: Percent of Subscription Sites with Aggressive Search Marketing
CHART 3.19: High SEO Sites Offering Free Content without Registration
CHART 3.20: Percent of Observed Subscription Sites With High SEO Rankings
CHART 3.21: Subscription Sites With SEO Success — by Topic
CHART 3.22: Subscription Sites Actively Using Google AdWords— by Content Topic
CHART 3.23: Surveyed SIPA Subscription Site Execs ‘Unsure’ of SEM-Driven Revenues
TABLE 3.03: Top Referring Sites & Unique Traffic for High-profile Subscription Sites, Sept 2009
CHART 3.24: Sub Site Execs Rate Social Media Marketing Effectiveness
CHART 3.25: Percent of Sub Sites Using Common Social Media Marketing Tactics
CHART 3.26: Social Media Marketing Tactics Used: B2B vs. Consumer Sub Sites
CHART 3.27: Sub Site Execs rate Effectiveness of Email Rentals & Co-Reg
CHART 3.28: Percent of Sub Sites Using Email List Rentals & Co-Reg
CHART 3.29: Email List/Co-Reg Outreach Used: B2B vs. Consumer Sub Sites
-> Offline Tactics to Market Online Subscriptions
CHART 3.30: Sub Site Execs Rate Effectiveness of Offline Marketing Tactics
CHART 3.31: Percent of Sub Sites Using Offline Marketing
CHART 3.32: Offline Marketing Tactics Used: B2B vs. Consumer Sub Sites
CHART 3.33: Broadcast TV & Cable Advertising Expenditures: US Dating Sites Jan-Sept. 2008
CHART 3.34: Upcoming Offline Tests Planned By SIPA-Member Subscription Sites
-> Site Design & Marketing
ILLUSTRATION 3.03: Content-Focused “Editorial” Subscription Site Homepage Style
ILLUSTRATION 3.04: Longform Letter-style Subscription Site Homepage Style (left)
ILLUSTRATION 3.05: Promotional Conversion-Focused Subscription Site Homepage Style
CHART 3.35: Homepage Style By Site Topic: Consumer Sites
CHART 3.36: Homepage Style By Site Topic: Business Sites
CHART 3.37: Homepage Style for Subscription Sites with Very Low Traffic
CHART 3.38: Homepage Style for Subscription Sites with Very High Traffic
CHART 3.39: Homepage Style by High vs. Low Inbound Links
TABLE 3.04: Percent of Total Site Traffic to Subscription Info: Forbes, Fool, Yahoo
ILLUSTRATION 3.06: Fool.com Homepage With Subscription-Driving Tab
CHART 3.40: Impact of Landing Page Tests on Conversion Rates: General Web Marketers
CHART 3.41: Online Test Effectiveness Rated by SIPA-Member Subscription Sites
CHART 3.42: Online Tests Used by SIPA-Member Subscription Sites
CHART 3.43: Tests Used by Subscription Sites to Maximize Profits
CHART 3.44: Tests Used by Membergate Subscription Site Publishers vs Others

Click here to learn more:
Subscription & Membership Site Benchmark Report

CHAPTER FOUR: Offers, Pricing, Terms & Conversions
-> Conversions
CHART 4.01: Reported Subscription Site Conversion Rates: As a Percent of Monthly Unique Traffic
CHART 4.02: Subscription Site Conversion Rates as a Percent of Unique Traffic: Membergate Publishers vs Others
CHART 4.03: Conversion Trends Reported by SIPA-Member Sites 2008-09
TABLE 4.01: Named-Subscription Site Conversion Metrics as Reported in the Media
-> Lead Generation Marketing & Trials
CHART 4.04: Registration Required for Free Content Access by Site Topic
ILLUSTRATION 4.01: Suggested Method of Getting Email Opt-ins With Fewer Errors
CHART 4.05: Percent of Observed Subscription Sites Offering Online Trials
CHART 4.06: Types of Trials Offered Online by Observed Subscription Sites
CHART 4.07: Most Popular Copywriting for Various Trial Lengths (3 charts)
TABLE 4.02: Most Popular Trial Term Lengths
ILLUSTRATION 4.02: Price Increases & Demand Fall-Off: The Humps of Reality
TABLE 4.03: US Subscription Site Pricing By Topic & Subscription Term
TABLE 4.04: US Subscription Site Pricing By Service Type & Subscription Term
CHART 4.08: Price Testing Tactics Used (Or Not) by Subscription Sites
CHART 4.09: Price Tests Used by Subscription Sites: B2B vs B2C
CHART 4.10: Price Testing: Membergate Subscription Publishers vs Others
-> Subscription Terms & Renewals
CHART 4.11: Most Frequently Offered Online Subscription Terms
CHART 4.12: Percent of Sites Offering More Than One Term Length-Option, B2B v. B2C
CHART 4.13: If Monthly vs. Annual Terms Are Offered: What Percent of Subscribers Choose Each?
CHART 4.14: Monthly Online Subscription Account Average Lifetime
ILLUSTRATION 4.03: Monthly Subscription Account Lifetime as “Leaky Buckets”
CHART 4.15: Annual Online Subscription Account Average Renewal Rate
CHART 4.16: Renewal Rate Trends Reported by SIPA-Member Sites 2008-09
CHART 4.17: Typical Subscription Billing Credit Card Declines in 2009: Monthly vs Annual
CHART 4.18 B2B Sites Offering Groups/Site Licenses
CHART 4.19: Group Online Subscription Average Renewal Rate
ILLUSTRATION 4.04: How Renewal Rates May Rise Over Account Lifetime

Click here to learn more:
Subscription & Membership Site Benchmark Report

CHAPTER FIVE: Hybrid Models & Ancillary Sales
CHART 5.01: Non-Subscription Revenues of Hybrid Sites: Typical Percent of Total Sales
CHART 5.02: Types of Non-Subscription Revenue Sources for Hybrid Model Sites
CHART 5.03: Hybrid Model Sites Observed: Visible Ancillary Offerings by Site Topic
CHART 5.04: Hybrid Publishers Rate Revenues From Specific Non-Subscription Sources
ILLUSTRATION 5.01: Example AdSense-Supported Niche Topic Site: MyFederalRetirement.com
CHART 5.05: Additional Revenue Sources Reported by SIPA-Member Subscription Sites
TABLE 5.01: Sales Changes for SIPA-Member Subscription Site Publishers’ Revenue Streams 2008-9
TABLE 5.02: A Sampling of Subscription Email Newsletter Lists Currently on the Rental Market
ILLUSTRATION 5.02: Co-Registration Offers Appearing During Registration Process: Away.com
CHART 5.06: B2B Trade Subscription Sites Selling Event Tickets: Real-World vs. Virtual
ILLUSTRATION 5.03: Webinar Sponsorship Media Kit Sample
ILLUSTRATION 5.04: Example Virtual Trade Show Homepage — Forbes iConferences
CHART 5.07: Non-Sub Site Publishers’ Attitudes Toward Selling Ads on Paid Sub Sites
ILLUSTRATION 5.05: Advertising Media Kit for a Subscription Site – Ancestry
ILLUSTRATION 5.06: US Advertising vs Marketing Spending: 2006-2009

Click here to learn more:
Subscription & Membership Site Benchmark Report

CHAPTER SIX: M&As, Launches & Other Investments
TABLE 6.01: Selected Past M&As of Note
CHART 6.01: M&A and Expansion Investments Under Consideration by Subscription Sites
CHART 6.02: M&A and Expansion Investments Under Consideration by Subscription Sites: B2B vs. B2C
CHART 6.03: M&A and Expansion Investments Under Consideration by Membergate Sites
CHART 6.04: Non-Sub Site Media Executives Considering M&As/Investing in Sub Sites
CHART 6.05: Launches Per Year: Observed Subscription Sites 1990 Through Mid-2009
CHART 6.06: Non-Sub Site Publishers’ Interest in Launching a Paid Subscription Site
CHART 6.07: Minimum Profits Non-Sub Site Publishers Require to Consider Launching One
CHART 6.08: Publishers’ Reasons for Not Launching a Subscription Site
CHART 6.09: Non-Sub Site Executives’ View of Potential Sub Site Exit Strategies
CHART 6.10: Subscription Sites Considering Going on the Block
CHART 6.11: Subscription Sites Considering Going on the Block: B2B vs. B2C
CHART 6.12: Membergate Sites Considering Selling Out
CHART 6.13: Truth Beyond 2009’s Hype on Subscription Sites: Vendors Speak Out

OBSERVATIONAL RESEARCH DETAILS
LIST 7.01 Brand Names of 550 Subscription Sites Examined by SubscriptionSiteInsider.com
TABLE 7.01 Topics of 550 Subscription Services Examined by SubscriptionSiteInsider.com
TABLE 7.02 Types of 550 Subscription Services Examined by SubscriptionSiteInsider.com

Click here to learn more:
Subscription & Membership Site Benchmark Report

Media Week closes - no classified advertising


h2. Media magazines have terminal problems

Media Week was launched around 1984/5: ‘media’ had separated to become a huge budget area for companies – and advertising agencies were dividing to specialise.

Tim Brooks, Media Week’s editor, and the publishers were ahead of their time, but unlike their close rivals Marketing Week, had overlooked and misunderstood an important revenue source: classified advertising.

Which publishers and editors often do.

The original idea for Media Week was being touted around to prospective investors around 1981. The idea was to achieve a broad advertising base to take on The Guardian. The Guardian in the 80s was taking the Mickey by carrying ten or more pages of media vacancies supported by just one page of editorial. (These days, most newspapers write lots about the media but don’t carry much advertising).

Media Week has always struggled, like the Press Gazette. Media Week became just a body, passed from one company to another, motivation to motivation, make-over to make-over. It has never been able to exist alone, never earned its own pay packet, always relying on others for support. Why? It’s a great idea, looks good too. But if we hark back to its parents we find neither Media Week (nor Press Gazette) were ever able to take their rightful place in the world.

Media Week failed because the young turks who originated the concept and touted the idea to prospective investors back in 1980 had inserted a ‘poison pill’ in their launch plans in case the idea was ‘borrowed’ and launched without them by a prospective investor. Which it was. Publishing isn’t a pretty business.

Ripped from its natural parents, Media Week became a foster child. And like Press Gazette, isolated from proper medical (marketing) attention.

And so it struggled, never to reach maturity and died as a child …

Why subscription marketing?

All the current hot discussions on website business models, paid content, converting free-to-paid magazines, charging for news audience development etc., come back to one thing: subscriptions marketing.

Those discussions are similar in scope to the economists, accountants and bankers who, until recently, forecast continual growth. Now, of course, we are well into a long, scary recession and everyone knows they got it wrong.

But, despite all that, I see that financial and economic forecasts are creeping back into mainstream media on the assumption that readers have forgotten that they were massively misled just a few months ago by the very same people.

You just cannot tell what an audience will do or how they will react.

Publishers, meanwhile, are busy debating the popular subjects listed above – free-to-paid, paid content, new revised business models etc. – which is really all about three things:

1. Their business models are wrong

2. They have run out of money

3. They should have monetised editorial content years ago

What every publisher knows
Every publisher knows advertisement revenue falls during a recession by up to 40% or thereabouts. The difference this time is that no-one thinks that revenue will come back: it’s going – gone – to the Internet.

As so many companies in other markets have discovered – publishing, oil, motor, property, banking – no business can lose a large percentage of income without serious damage. Not unless they have an effective survival strategy that prepares them for future changes.

So why subscription marketing?
Subscription marketing has the answers, because it’s all about maximising long-term income from your target audience. The debate about paid content and free-to-paid is mostly unnecessary because a series of tests within a market is all that’s needed to answer the two vital questions.

Go here to see our new website and read the full article:

Why subscription marketing?

Come on Cosmo!


Cosmo free e-letter sign-ups have just jumped from 30,000 to 84,399. But it took them 11 months to send a subscription promotion out!

Cosmopolitan’s new email promotions
Illustrated in issue 76 of the Subscriptions Strategy newsletter is the first Cosmopolitan subscription promotion we have seen since we registered on the site in October 2008 — it took 11 months for NatMags to send one out.

A pretty weak promotion – and very late!

Cosmo is a great brand. We think it could have a much wider circulation and has been held back.

Glamour, Conde Nast’s rival to Cosmo, has a total circulation of 526,145. Cosmo has a circulation of 441,663 – 84,482 fewer.

How Cosmo loses money
What’s 84,482 extra sales worth to Cosmo?

In newstrade revenue, 84,482 means a loss of £1.4 million

In subscription revenue 84,482 means a loss of £3.34 million

And you have to account for all that extra advertisement revenue the extra 19 per cent in circulation brings in.

Things are changing though, with some deft marketing touches. Cosmopolitan’s sign-up page now has our best-practice standard of five fields (see our marketing best practice website). It has also added four ‘benefits’ under ‘main reasons to register’.

The copy isn’t strong but overall it’s not bad going: last year we reported the sign-up page had 24 fields to complete just to receive its free newsletter! That’s a small clue to why sign-ups have since increased. Someone there is reading our newsletter.

Things could improve a lot with more of that ‘best practice’ marketing. Now let’s check on the money and how much is being lost while we wait.

How discounting affects Cosmopolitan’s profit
Cosmopolitan’s overall subscription sale has grown from 38,491 in 2007 to 55,813 in 2009, a 45 per cent increase, which is impressive.

If all those copies were sold at the basic annual rate of £39.60, revenue would be £2,210,195. But Cosmopolitan sells 32,527 (58 per cent) at an average discount of 54 per cent below the annual subscription rate.

Cosmo is losing more than £696,000 a year by discounting.

Cosmo’s ‘average discount’ includes promotions like the one illustrated in issue 76 of our newsletter, selling at 62 per cent off the basic price. Some of Cosmopolitan’s promotions sell at £12 – a 70 per cent discount.

Ten years ago, Cosmo was selling just 121 copies below 50 per cent.

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P.S I love those hammocks they show in all those womans magazines; Go here to get one! Hammock mexican, mexican hammock, Mayan hammock

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