Wired · B2C · tech magazine
Make editor Q&A sessions subscriber-only and add them to the subscription
What they did
In their words
How Condé Nast Experiments, Bundles, and Wins — Michael Ribero, Condé Nast
David Barnard… where I think we're going to see the subscription industry going is these kind of bundles. Okay, you're a huge outdoor fan with AllTrails and they have some weather features in there, but can they bundle AllTrails with the Weather channel to create this synergistic bundle between the two? And I'm just throwing ideas out there, but those kinds of things, and you did that at The Washington Post. What did that look like, bundling with Headspace?
Michael RiberoYeah, I would go two different. So bundle internally, I do think there's a path bundling internally you have more assets than I think you think you have. We recently relaunched the Wired subscription and one thing that we were doing but maybe not necessarily charging for was AMAs with editors. And now all of a sudden we said, "Hey, this is now part of the subscription. We're only going to make it subscription only."
Michael RiberoAnd so I think there are things that either you're doing that you can now put into a subscription and call it a bundle or probably low lift, but maybe high impact to continue to build that existing offering you had on the partnership front. I'll just warn buyer beware. Partnerships are really hard, really hard. And we did multiple at The Washington Post, which I think is super exciting. I think the theme, we really tried to coalesce around one of …
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More from this episode
- Make readers register to read a site that was always freeBacklash the next day; wall taken down to reset the product first
- Let the editor-in-chief pick which content goes behind the new app paywallGuest says her gut was right; no numbers
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- Bundle the news subscription with Headspace for readers overwhelmed by newsGuest cites business results but warns partnerships are very hard
- Right after someone subscribes, offer the business membership in a pop-up~5% take it, adding $100-200 LTV each at zero extra acquisition cost
- Offer a $2-a-month, 4-stories plan only to visitors unlikely to subscribeLTV impact not shared; aimed at getting people into paying at all
- Sell coaching, 4-hour online events and week-long retreats to app subscribersRevenue up 50%
- Launch new premium tiers for fans willing to pay moreAdoption stuck at 1-2%; now default no unless a bigger cohort is proven
- Bring readers together in person and use the app to connect event to eventGuest describes a positive cycle; no numbers
- Offer everything from a free app to pricey white-glove in-person experiences
Tags: bundle, subscriber-perks, ama