Case Study: Modern Drummer Magazine achieves major web traffic and digital subscription growth with Leaky Paywall

Traffic Surges and Web Growth: A Year With ZEEN101

Modern Drummer, a 40‑year print title, faced the challenge of turning a modest news blog and PDF‑hidden articles into a true issue‑based digital magazine that could attract readers and paid subscribers. The goal was to improve discoverability, social reach, and subscriber acquisition while preserving the magazine’s editorial strengths online.

Working with ZEEN101’s Anvil suite (IssueM, Leaky Paywall, UniPress), Modern Drummer implemented a leaky paywall and shareable content, plus a regular, ad‑free email program. The result: 900 digital subscriptions in the first two weeks and sustained growth across channels — 65% more organic traffic, social traffic up 118%, referral traffic up 193%, email traffic up 189%, and direct traffic up 109%.

Modern Drummer Magazine