Paste Attracts 31,000 New Subscribers with "Pay What you Want" Deal
January 3, 2008In a recent MediaWeek article, which heralded the return of Paste’s co-founder Nick Purdy to the Publisher role, Purdy discussed the success of their “Pay What You Deal” where subscribers could pay a minimum of $1 for a year of Paste.
Here are the details as reported by MediaWeek…
In a Radiohead-inspired move, Paste last fall offered people the chance to name their price for a one-year subscription, usually $20 for 11 issues.
Purdy said the offer netted Paste (which guarantees a rate base of 180,000) north of 31,000 new subscribers who paid an average price of $4. He called the experiment a success, given that its cost was minimal compared with the $1.5 million he estimated it would cost to enlist that many subscribers via direct mail, assuming a response rate of 1 percent and per-piece cost of 50 cents.
Purdy said the offer benefited from its novelty and no doubt wouldn’t be as successful the second time around. Still, he said the results were good enough to warrant repeating it, adding, “the proof will be in the pudding on conversion.”
It’s been 10 weeks and I haven’t seen an issue yet. The confirmation said 6-8 weeks. Wonder if they got a little overwhelmed?
I was wondering the exact same thing, Crhis. I didn’t want to be too much of a complainer as I was one of the people who was on the low end of the name your own price spectrum. But I am curious about what’s going on there…
David over at InDecatur asked this question moments after you guys…here’s the response he got from Paste.
“Because of the timing of the campaign (it fell during our Dec/Jan issue production cycle), subscribers who “named their own price” will receive their first magazines in February. (If it had been a month earlier, it’s likely the Dec/Jan issue would have been the first.) Subscription questions can be directed to our Customer Service team at any time by calling 866 370 9067 (option 2) or emailing paste@sfsdayton.com.”