Hey, Your Paywall Just Slapped Me in the Face!

The right spot for your paywall is never and in the trash. Hear me out.

Look, I know we're all trying to make a dollar, but there are a lot of paywalls out there in the wrong spot!

Why are you gatekeeping your own content?

Substack sends out a few fairly useful emails each week with suggested reads from their platform. I am completely ignorant of the mechanics of these emails, but they get better all the time.

The format is simple:

They usually contain 5-ish headlines laid out like you see above. Most of the time, the majority of them compel a click.

I clicked that one ^.

I got this:

I get it.

Folks want to get paid.

Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING these days is a money-grab.

I’m not going to lie, one of the perks of Substack is that you can easily monetize it. It’s great to have options.

There’s a few problems. This is the first time I’ve seen this dude to my knowledge.

He earned my click, but slapped me in the face with his paywall.

Bro, you’re trying to get me to your apartment without taking me out for dinner and drinks first.

You don’t know me like that!

Does This Actually Work?

I simply closed the tab and moved on. Do people actually just shell out the clams when they hit these paywalls?

If I’m clicking for info you promised in one article and you’re linking to one behind a paywall, what exactly have you done to convert me?

So far, you’ve earned 2 clicks, quite the feat, really: one onto your original content, and a second to a link that promises me more information…if I pay for it.

Regardless of if this works or not, it seems rather counterintuitive.

It’s like standing there with a sandwich on the other side of a brick wall from a starving guy.

So where’s the right place to present your money grab?

I mean, that’s what it is.

I call it like I see it.

If your tidbit is so super high-value that it would compel someone to fork over a nominal monthly fee…wait, is it really though?

You seriously want me to commit to a monthly subscription based on this one thing I wanted to know?

Again, you don’t know me like that!

Here’s an idea: give people the best you have to offer without asking them to pay for it.

Monetize indirectly through ads and/or affiliate marketing.

Ask folks to buy you a coffee if they found your content helpful.

I know monthly subscriptions are all the rage, but everything is about to 10-dollar-per-month us to death.

This is the online equivalent to standing around with a cardboard sign and your hand out.

I’m not talking about your book. You should absolutely charge for that.

I’m not talking about your course, software, product, service or any of that.

I’m talking about the stuff you’re publishing online.

Your blog, Substack, Medium, or whatever should be a complete work in and of itself.

Don’t ask me if I want to know something, drop me a link, ask for money, and then expect me to jump all over that.

I need a warning that the thing I want to know is something you want to get paid to tell me.

That warning is not a paywall. Your paywall is a sledgehammer that is demolishing the bleachers where your audience is supposed to be sitting!

Will I Ever Charge People to Read My Substack?

I did a whole post on this topic in February of 2023 and the short answer was “not now”.

18 months later, the short answer is “probably not ever”.

What I hope to give my readers here is:

• Food for thought

• Hopefully a chuckle here and there

• The courage to write

• Ideas you won’t see anywhere else

• Useful information including tools, services, etc.

• Value in exchange for your time

• Encouragement

• A path to freedom

I’m not going anywhere you can’t go with me. The tickets, the admission, is free.