Top things to know
The cost of living has risen dramatically this year. Steady creators and publications have requested the ability to increase prices for existing plans.
Normally, it’s not possible to increase prices except when creating a new plan, but this year’s inflation is extraordinary.
That’s why, until 18 August 2023, Steady allowed creators and publishers to increase prices for existing memberships on existing plans. This offer has now ended.
From Monday, August 21, Steady is contacting all members on all existing plans to suggest they increase their support and opt-in to the price increase – if members do not opt-in, their price will remain the same
If you did not set your own price increase, Steady will have suggested a default price increase of 20%, rounded up to the nearest 50 cents
Timeline & next steps
Until August 18, 2023:
If you do not take any action, Steady will contact current members to suggest a voluntary price increase of 20%, rounded up to the nearest 50 cents.
Starting Monday, August 21:
Steady emails current members on existing plans to suggest the voluntary price increase
If you have not set your own price increase or opted out, Steady will suggest a default price increase of 20%, rounded up to the nearest 50 cents.
Members accept the voluntary price increase by clicking the link sent to them via email.
If they accept, their new price will apply at their next renewal date.
If they do not accept, their price remains the same.
Your new prices are reflected on your plans page and/or Steady widget.
Until 18 August, you had 3 options:
Increase your prices manually by the end of the day August 18, 2023. Click here to set your prices and click Save Changes.
Opt-out of the price increase campaign by the end of the day August 18, 2023. Then Steady will not contact your members. Click here to opt-out and click Save Changes.
Accept Steady’s automatic price increase suggestion of 20% for every plan, rounded up to the nearest 50 cents. No action required.
Here is an explainer video to help you with the process.
FAQ
Why a price increase?
Why a price increase?
The cost of living has gone up significantly in the last year. Some Steady creators requested the ability to increase prices for existing plans and existing members to reflect inflation.
We think creators deserve a chance to increase their prices, the same way other businesses have raised their prices to survive.
Until now, Steady creators have not had the ability to adjust the prices of plans after someone purchases a membership.
Some projects on Steady have not been able to increase their prices for 7 years, since Steady launched in 2016, when inflation in the EU was near an all time low of 0.2%.
Why should I increase my prices? Won’t I lose members?
Why should I increase my prices? Won’t I lose members?
This campaign is voluntary for members. You have nothing to lose:
Your existing members decide for themselves whether they want to increase their support and accept new prices.
If they do not want to pay more they can continue on their current price.
If they do want to increase their support, they have an easy way to do so.
Why is Steady’s default suggested price increase 20%?
Why is Steady’s default suggested price increase 20%?
Here's an example:
Average gross (member-facing) price of the lowest-priced plans on Steady: €3.83
On average, these plans were created 2 years and 8 months ago (end of 2020)
The cumulative inflation in the E.U. since end of 2020 is 19.9%. This is based on historic data and the European Commission’s prognosis for 2023. Please see the cumulative inflation table at the end of this article for more information.
Let's say your lowest-tier membership plan, set in 2020, costs €3.83 per month for your members.
After sales taxes, payment provider fees and commission deductions, on average, you get €3.06 net income.
After 2 years and 8 months of cumulative annual inflation of 19.9%, you need €3.67 net income to maintain the same effective income as when you created the plan.
You decide to implement Steady’s recommended price increase, which increases your price by 20% (€4.60) and rounds to the nearest 50 cents → €5.00 per month.
The new price costs an additional €1.17 per month for each member.
On average, after taxes, payment provider fees and commission (20%), you would receive €4 net income from each membership after the price increase.
💡 Remember: you now need €3.67 net income from each membership to make the same amount you made in 2020. A 20% price increase covers that + 33 cents.
What will Steady say to my members?
What will Steady say to my members?
Steady will only contact members of projects that have not opted out by August 18.
The price shown will be an increase of 20% rounded up to the nearest 50 cents, unless you select your own price increase here by August 18.
Here’s the email copy. This is subject to change.
Hi [Name],
We’re Steady, the platform that takes care of [publication_title]’s membership programme.
We have a request for you. This year, we’ve seen much-loved magazines and podcasts close up shop.
We’re asking all supporters of Steady projects to help creators like [publication_title] to cover their costs due to inflation.
Will you voluntarily increase your membership payment to [publication_title]?
Your new price for [an annual / a monthly] membership is [new price].
Your current price is [current price].
CTA: Accept the new price
If you agree, you will be charged the new price the next time your membership renews.
If you don’t want to increase your support, there’s nothing you need to do.
Questions? Check out our FAQ.
Thank you for keeping independent media alive.
Best wishes,
Your Steady Team
Are members required to pay the new price?
Are members required to pay the new price?
No.
If they wish to increase their support, they must click a link and agree to the new price. It will kick in at their next renewal date.
If they do not agree, nothing changes and their prices remain the same.
How many times will Steady contact my members?
How many times will Steady contact my members?
At maximum, 3 times – one announcement, one reminder, and a final reminder.
Will Steady raise its fee?
Will Steady raise its fee?
No. This is a one-off opportunity to adjust your prices to inflation in response to creators’ requests. Steady’s fee will remain unchanged. Comment end
Some or all of my plans are not listed on the price increase page. Why is that?
Some or all of my plans are not listed on the price increase page. Why is that?
There are a number of possible reasons your plan might have been excluded from the price increase campaign, for example:
Your plan is still a draft.
Your plan currently has no members, and never has. If that’s the case, you can go to Business > Plans, click “edit” on the plan and change the price there.
Your plan has only been published or gained its first members in the days before the start of the price increase campaign, in which case prices should be current and already reflect inflation.
If none of these reasons seem to apply, please contact our support team.
Which price will show up on my Steady page, the new or the old one?
Which price will show up on my Steady page, the new or the old one?
If you do not opt out of the price increase, then from August 21, new prices will be shown on your plans page and/or Steady widget. Any new members will pay the new prices.
If you do not select your own new prices, the new prices will be the Steady default: 20% rounded up to the nearest 50 cents.
If you change the prices for any archived plans, these will stay archived and continue to not appear on your Steady page.
Can I change my prices after August 18?
Can I change my prices after August 18?
No. It is important that members can expect the prices of their plans to remain the same for a reasonable period of time. This is a one-time price increase window in response to inflation.
You can change your mind and edit or adjust your price anytime before the price increase window closes on August 18, 2023.
Can I raise my prices by less than 20%?
Can I raise my prices by less than 20%?
Yes. However, we recommend an increase of at least 20% to reflect inflation to date and to prepare for future fluctuations in the global economy.
Can I raise my prices more than 20%?
Can I raise my prices more than 20%?
Yes.
Can I lower my prices?
Can I lower my prices?
No. This is a one-time price increase opportunity in response to inflation and creators’ requests.
You can always create a new plan with a lower price.
Is there a maximum price increase?
Is there a maximum price increase?
No, but we recommend checking in with your community about what they’d be willing to pay first, e.g. by using a survey.
Strategies to get the most out of a price increase
Communicate with your members. We will send emails to your members, but communicating authentically about why you’ve decided to increase your prices makes a difference.
Break it down to daily amounts. If a member currently pays 5 EUR a month, that’s 16 cents a day. If they pay 6 EUR in the future, it’ll be 4 cents more per day, equalling 20 cents a day.
Encourage annual memberships, as transaction fees are only charged once per year, rather than every month.
Review and adjust member benefits if you want to increase prices significantly more than 20%.
Recap: What you need to do
If you want to set your own price increase
Steady emails members starting Monday, August 21
If you want to accept Steady’s automatic suggested price increase of 20% (rounded up to the nearest 50 cents) for all plans
No action required
Steady emails your members, starting Monday, August 21
If you do not want to participate and do not want Steady to contact your members:
If you do nothing:
Steady will email your active members after Monday, August 21 with the automatic suggested price increase of 20%, rounded up to the nearest 50 cents
Appendix: Cumulative inflation since 2016 with forecast for 2023
Year | Inflation rate | Cumulative inflation starting this year until the end of 2023 |
2023 | 6,7 %* | 6,7 % |
2022 | 9,2 % | 16,5 % |
2021 | 2,9 % | 19,9 % |
2020 | 0,7 % | 20,7 % |
2019 | 1,4 % | 22,4 % |
2018 | 1,8 % | 24,6 % |
2017 | 1,6 % | 26,6 % |
2016 | 0,2 % | 26,9 % |
Data according to Statista for EU-27.
* Forecast for 2023 according to data from the European Commission.