I’m delighted by how many people have subscribed to Play Makes Us Human over the few months it has been gong so far. However, I would love to increase the number of paid subscribers. As you may know, I set the paid subscription cost at $50 per year, which is less than the Substack default of $80 per year. As you may also know, I use all profits from paid subscriptions to help support nonprofit causes I’m involved with that promote more play and freedom for children. My profits to date have gone to the Alliance for Self-Directed Education, Let Grow, Defending the Early Years, Alternative Education Resources Organization, and the National Institute for Play.
My plan is to keep my regular letters available to free and paid subscribers equally, but I’m thinking of adding one or more new offerings that would be available only to paid subscribers.
One offering might be a regular podcast, which would consist of me reading my letters so paid subscribers could listen to them ,whenever they choose, as they go about other activities. I could either record letters individually or in groups dealing with common themes. I tend to favor doing them in groups.
Another offering might be occasional Zoom meetings open to paid subscribers. These could be in the “ask me anything” format, or they could be discussions of specific topics, which I would comment on at the beginning and then open up for Q&A.
So, here are my questions:
Would either or both of these added offerings increase the likelihood that you would become a paid subscriber? If I were to add just one of these, which one would you prefer?
Is there any other offering you can think of that I might add that would increase the likelihood of your becoming a paid subscriber?
Hi Peter, I like the "ask me anything" zoom call, a podcast that high lights unstructured play. I also would like to see you share other nonprofits that are promoting fun FREE play events, etc. like letsplayamerica.org The more those of us involved in providing play opportunities and information for people, the more likely unstructured play that allows children to grow independently will increase.
I'm overloaded with podcast content as it is, so audio content isn't useful to me. I do think there can be value in building a community of people with shared interests but the Zoom call option (already have too many connected with work) isn't appealing to me either. What would motivate me to pay (which would mean I'd be dropping one of my other substack subscriptions, as I've maxed out my substack spending) would be an additional series of posts for paid subscribers. The downside of that is that you'd either have to restrict the free content or generate more content, and neither of those seem like a good thing for you!
My main 2 cents is that far too many substacks go on an expansion binge in terms of content that proves unsustainable. The great thing about substack is that I've been able to curate a list of interesting things that match my array of interests. The over-expansion of some (e.g. The Free Press) means average quality has fallen there. The more focused ones (e.g. Pirate Wires, which seems to have moved off Substack to its own platform quite seamlessly, but which still has a "substack" feel) are doing a better job (in their case, by subdividing the feed into 4 topical streams, so that people can opt into just the ones they want).
Your model of donating the proceeds to good organizations aligned with your writing is a great one (and something I'd missed). So I'll upgrade to paid to support that. Perhaps just highlighting that will be enough to get you more subscriptions without any additional content.
Both options would be reasons that would encourage me to upgrade to paid, though the option to have a conversation on zoom would be the one I'd prefer. A podcast would help me access your content more regularly and keep up with it. I have really valued having free access to this whilst a student and a home educator - both of which contribute to a very tight budget and so I really like it when alongside a standard subscription, there is also a 'pay as you feel you can afford' option, so that it is possible to show your support and access everything without a paywall and then adjust as your situation allows. If that was available, I'd make a small contribution now and increase it when I qualify later this year.
An audio/podcast version of the newsletter would be great; I’d happily pay for that. Especially if you could record previous letters as well (I’ve fallen a little behind), but podcasts of new letters would be fantastic on their own.
I think these features sound great, but I’m in a “wait and see” mode with Substack and don’t plan to pay for any content just now, sorry Peter. We seem to be in a moment of transition around publishing and social media and although I’m loving Substack at the moment, who knows how it will all pan out !
I would love to participate in a "ask me anything" Zoom call! I think that is a great idea, I would suggest maybe collaborative podcasts with individuals like Jonathan Haidt, I think chats where multiple perspectives and opinions are presents are the most interesting.
Love your Substack! The only reason I am not a paid subscriber is that I use my limited budget to support struggling young writers, journalists, and researchers. I appreciate that you donate proceeds to nonprofits, but supporting responsible non-legacy media is a top priority for our society and me personally now. Please keep up the good work and apologies for continuing to be a freeloader!
The “Ask Me Anything” Zoom. I always want to discuss things I read and end up typing long comments. I would love the back-and-forth of the occasional discussion.
I would very much appreciate the podcasts, not so much for me as for my daughter, who is raising two difficult children and needs your advice. She, like most of her generation, would rather listen than read.
I don"t like communication being behind a paywall, but I get it if the aspiration is to be a public figure...
I greatly prefer audio to written, but really i prefer being able to communicate with creators too, not just be a consumer.
I am interested in the angle that relates our educational experiences to the future society we'd like to see.Politically minded people seem to neglect or not consider education, then the ones that talk education rarely use the angle about making the next generation better.
Really I would just like to talk to you in a podcast format.
This is a good solution for people who wouldn't want to 'pay for an appointment' but have access to ask questions, interact etc. Those who don't need to interact but want to pay will have an opportunity to pay still, but this does meet a need many people have, even if that need isn't forever.
Hi Peter, I like the "ask me anything" zoom call, a podcast that high lights unstructured play. I also would like to see you share other nonprofits that are promoting fun FREE play events, etc. like letsplayamerica.org The more those of us involved in providing play opportunities and information for people, the more likely unstructured play that allows children to grow independently will increase.
Peter, the Zoom Sessions would be ‘Gold’.
Thank you for the invitation to share our thoughts. Here’s to your continued success; when you succeed, more children get to play.
I would definitely love the "ask me anything" zoom call. That would definitely be something I would pay for.
I'm overloaded with podcast content as it is, so audio content isn't useful to me. I do think there can be value in building a community of people with shared interests but the Zoom call option (already have too many connected with work) isn't appealing to me either. What would motivate me to pay (which would mean I'd be dropping one of my other substack subscriptions, as I've maxed out my substack spending) would be an additional series of posts for paid subscribers. The downside of that is that you'd either have to restrict the free content or generate more content, and neither of those seem like a good thing for you!
My main 2 cents is that far too many substacks go on an expansion binge in terms of content that proves unsustainable. The great thing about substack is that I've been able to curate a list of interesting things that match my array of interests. The over-expansion of some (e.g. The Free Press) means average quality has fallen there. The more focused ones (e.g. Pirate Wires, which seems to have moved off Substack to its own platform quite seamlessly, but which still has a "substack" feel) are doing a better job (in their case, by subdividing the feed into 4 topical streams, so that people can opt into just the ones they want).
Your model of donating the proceeds to good organizations aligned with your writing is a great one (and something I'd missed). So I'll upgrade to paid to support that. Perhaps just highlighting that will be enough to get you more subscriptions without any additional content.
Both options would be reasons that would encourage me to upgrade to paid, though the option to have a conversation on zoom would be the one I'd prefer. A podcast would help me access your content more regularly and keep up with it. I have really valued having free access to this whilst a student and a home educator - both of which contribute to a very tight budget and so I really like it when alongside a standard subscription, there is also a 'pay as you feel you can afford' option, so that it is possible to show your support and access everything without a paywall and then adjust as your situation allows. If that was available, I'd make a small contribution now and increase it when I qualify later this year.
An audio/podcast version of the newsletter would be great; I’d happily pay for that. Especially if you could record previous letters as well (I’ve fallen a little behind), but podcasts of new letters would be fantastic on their own.
I vote for the audio-version of letters!
I think these features sound great, but I’m in a “wait and see” mode with Substack and don’t plan to pay for any content just now, sorry Peter. We seem to be in a moment of transition around publishing and social media and although I’m loving Substack at the moment, who knows how it will all pan out !
I also vote Zoom AMA!
I would love to participate in a "ask me anything" Zoom call! I think that is a great idea, I would suggest maybe collaborative podcasts with individuals like Jonathan Haidt, I think chats where multiple perspectives and opinions are presents are the most interesting.
I would love to have the podcast option.
Hi Peter, I would pay for the "ask me anything" Zoom! Thank you for making yourself so available in so many ways.
Love your Substack! The only reason I am not a paid subscriber is that I use my limited budget to support struggling young writers, journalists, and researchers. I appreciate that you donate proceeds to nonprofits, but supporting responsible non-legacy media is a top priority for our society and me personally now. Please keep up the good work and apologies for continuing to be a freeloader!
The “Ask Me Anything” Zoom. I always want to discuss things I read and end up typing long comments. I would love the back-and-forth of the occasional discussion.
I would very much appreciate the podcasts, not so much for me as for my daughter, who is raising two difficult children and needs your advice. She, like most of her generation, would rather listen than read.
I would love a podcast so I could listen to your content
I don"t like communication being behind a paywall, but I get it if the aspiration is to be a public figure...
I greatly prefer audio to written, but really i prefer being able to communicate with creators too, not just be a consumer.
I am interested in the angle that relates our educational experiences to the future society we'd like to see.Politically minded people seem to neglect or not consider education, then the ones that talk education rarely use the angle about making the next generation better.
Really I would just like to talk to you in a podcast format.
Ask me anything type of Zoom meetings will be the perfect value addition.
This is a good solution for people who wouldn't want to 'pay for an appointment' but have access to ask questions, interact etc. Those who don't need to interact but want to pay will have an opportunity to pay still, but this does meet a need many people have, even if that need isn't forever.