Case Study: Small Boats Monthly achieves 1,000+ organic subscriptions in six months with Leaky Paywall

How To Take Your Organic Subscriptions From Zero To A Thousand In Six Months

Small Boats Monthly is a three‑year‑old, all‑digital, issue‑based offshoot of WoodenBoat Magazine that publishes history, designs, reviews and events for small‑craft enthusiasts. Despite rich, well‑organized content, the site’s hard paywall prevented search engines and social sharing from finding or sampling articles, and as of early 2017 it had zero organic subscriptions.

Installing Leaky Paywall in spring 2017 opened controlled access—letting readers and bots view and share at least one full article before subscribing—so content became discoverable and shareable. Within months organic subscriptions rose from zero to four digits (over a thousand), with growth continuing daily.

Small Boats Monthly