Latest / The Newsletter Podcast with Fexingo: Substack, Beehiiv, and Email Newsletter Business / How Newsletter Writers Use Webinars to Convert Free Subscribers
Transcript
- Lucas: So last week I got an email from a newsletter called The Money Lens — it's a personal finance newsletter run by a guy named Derek Chen — and the subject line was 'The three numbers that predict your retirement.' Luna: Okay, that's a strong subject line. Did you click? Lucas: I did. And it led to a registration page for a live webinar. That's the angle today: how newsletter writers are using webinars — live and automated — to convert free subscribers into paid ones. Luna: I've seen this pop up a lot lately. But I always wonder — do people actually sit through a 45-minute webinar from a newsletter they barely know? Lucas: That's the key question. Derek's numbers are interesting. He's got about 25,000 free subscribers. He sent a three-email sequence — the one I got was email two — and 4 percent of his list registered. That's a thousand people. Of those, 38 percent attended live. So 380 people in the room. Luna: And then what happened after the webinar? Lucas: He offered a discount on his paid tier — $99 per year, normally $120 — and 12 percent of attendees converted. That's 45 new annual subscribers. Roughly $4,500 in revenue from one webinar. Not bad for a guy working out of his home office. Luna: And the content of the webinar itself — was it evergreen, or tied to a specific event? Lucas: It was evergreen but framed as timely. 'The three numbers that predict your retirement' — any subscriber could benefit. He didn't mention current market conditions. He just taught the framework and then said, 'If you want me to walk through your personal numbers, that's what the paid newsletter does.' Luna: So it's a taste of the premium content. That makes sense. What's the email sequence before the webinar look like? Lucas: He sent three emails over ten days. Email one was the teaser — 'You're probably missing the most important retirement number.' Email two was the one I got — more direct, with a countdown. Email three was a last-day reminder with social proof: 'Over 800 people have already registered.' That urgency and validation combo works. Luna: And after the webinar? Is there a replay or a deadline? Lucas: He sent a replay link to everyone who registered, even if they didn't attend. Then a two-day follow-up with the same discount. After that, the offer expired. So there's a clear window. That's standard, but it works. Luna: What about the people who didn't register at all? Do they get anything? Lucas: That's a good point. Derek didn't send a follow-up to non-registrants. That might be a missed opportunity. You could send a recap email with a few key takeaways and a link to the replay anyway. Some people convert just from the summary. Luna: So what's the biggest mistake you see newsletter writers make with webinars? Lucas: Overpromising. If your webinar promises to reveal the secrets of retirement planning, but your newsletter is mostly about budgeting tips, you'll get high attendance but low conversion — and worse, low retention. The people who convert based on a one-time promise might unsubscribe after a month because the ongoing content doesn't match. Luna: Right. So the webinar has to be a genuine sample of what the paid newsletter delivers regularly. Lucas: Exactly. Derek's paid newsletter is about actionable personal finance frameworks. The webinar was exactly that. No bait and switch. Luna: I also wonder about automated webinars versus live. Is one better? Lucas: Derek did live, but he told me he's building an automated version now. The advantage of live is the urgency — you show up at a specific time or you miss it. Automated webinars can run on demand, but they lose that live feel. Some writers use a hybrid: record a live session once, then use it as a replay with a countdown timer for the offer. Luna: So the replay still has a deadline. That keeps the pressure on. Lucas: Yeah. And you can A/B test the offer: a discount off the annual plan versus a free month. Derek went with discount because he wanted upfront revenue. Some writers prefer a free trial to build habit first. Luna: What about the tech stack? Do you need expensive webinar software? Lucas: Not really. Derek used Zoom Webinar, which is about forty dollars a month. His email platform is ConvertKit. Total cost for the whole thing was maybe a hundred bucks. The return was forty-five hundred. That's a forty-five-to-one return. Luna: That's a solid ROI. But not every newsletter will see that. The Money Lens has a very specific niche — people worried about retirement. That's a high-intent audience. Lucas: True. If your newsletter is about, say, knitting patterns, a retirement webinar wouldn't work. But you could do 'The three stitches that will change your sweater game.' The principle is the same: teach a specific, valuable framework that previews your paid content. Luna: That makes me think — the webinar doesn't have to be video. Could it be a slide deck with audio? Or even a structured email series called a 'webinar'? Lucas: I've seen people do that. They call it a 'email webinar' — a sequence of five emails over a week, each with a lesson and a call to action. Conversion rates are usually lower because it's less engaging, but it's also less work. Derek's was full video with slides and Q&A. Luna: So for a first-time webinar, what would you recommend? Live or automated? Lucas: Start live. It's scarier, but you get real-time feedback. You can see which questions people ask, which parts they engage with. That helps you refine the content. Then convert it to an automated version once you know it works. Luna: And how do you promote it beyond your email list? Social media? Lucas: Derek posted about it on Twitter and LinkedIn. He also did a cross-promotion with two other personal finance newsletters — they each emailed their lists about the webinar. That added maybe 200 extra registrations. So partnerships help. Luna: That's a good tip. One more thing — retention. You said 12 percent converted. How many of those annual subscribers are still active three months later? Lucas: Derek shared that retention after three months is about 85 percent. That's high. Compare that to typical newsletter churn of 5 to 10 percent per month. So webinar converts seem to stick. Probably because they've already invested time in the webinar — they know what they're getting. Luna: That's the key insight. The webinar is a filter. It attracts people who are genuinely interested in the content, not just bargain hunters. Lucas: Exactly. If today's conversation helped you think about your own conversion strategy, and if it was worth a coffee to you, there's a link in the show notes — buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Literally the smallest ask we can make. No pressure. Luna: Yeah, it's just a way to say this show matters to you. We keep it ad-free because of that support. Lucas: Alright — back to webinars. One thing we haven't touched on is the length. Derek's was 45 minutes. Is that the sweet spot? Luna: I've seen data that says 30 to 45 minutes is ideal. Longer than that, drop-off increases. Shorter than 20 minutes and it feels like a teaser, not a real lesson. Lucas: Yeah. Derek structured his as 25 minutes of teaching, 10 minutes of Q&A, and 10 minutes for the offer. That pacing worked. He also had a poll mid-webinar to keep engagement up — 'What's your biggest retirement worry?' — and that boosted attendance through the whole thing. Luna: So interactivity matters. What about the landing page? What did his look like? Lucas: Simple. Headline: 'The Three Numbers That Predict Your Retirement.' Subhead: 'Join 800+ subscribers for this free 45-minute workshop.' A photo of Derek, a short bio, a big green register button. No distractions. One page. Luna: That sounds clean. And the thank-you page probably had a calendar link to add the event. Lucas: Exactly. He used Calendly to let people choose their time zone. That reduced no-shows by about 15 percent, he said. Luna: So the whole funnel is: email sequence -> landing page -> registration -> thank-you with calendar -> live event -> offer email -> conversion. Each step optimized. Lucas: Right. And the key metric isn't how many people register — it's conversion rate per attendee. Derek's 12 percent is good. Some writers see 20 percent if the offer is a free trial instead of a discount. But you also have to factor in the time cost. He spent about 10 hours preparing and delivering the webinar. Forty-five hundred dollars for ten hours is four hundred fifty dollars an hour. Luna: That's a great hourly rate. Even if half the subscribers churn after a year, it's still worth it. Lucas: Exactly. So if you're sitting on a list of free subscribers wondering how to convert them, a webinar might be the lever you haven't pulled. Start small, test, and iterate. Luna: And if you want to see Derek's exact email sequence, I think we can link to a breakdown he posted on his site. Lucas: We'll put that in the show notes. For now, that's the playbook. Next episode, we'll look at how newsletters are using AI to personalize their free-to-paid conversion paths.