Only 4-5% are willing to buy a subscription, whereas (in studies) 30-45% say they are willing to use micro-payments.
[thread]
First of all, it's not 5% vs. 45% ... those are not equals.
In my country, for instance, a subscription for a newspaper is $40/month (digital only) ... or $480/year.
That's just not happening.
30%-45% might say they are willing to use micro-payments a few times, but not 3,200 times per site.
As a reader, you still have to create an account. In many cases, you have to 'add funds' to your wallet...
Let me tell you, clicking buttons are seriously annoying the 100th time you have to do that.
When focus on getting people to subscribe, you are focusing on the long term. You are asking your readers to commit to your journalism. This means we focus on loyalty and value.
...
But most magazines and especially niche sites don't have that.
I just not a good model.