Case Study: The Seattle Times achieves 30% higher digital conversions and 25% improved retention with Zuora

The Seattle Times - Customer Case Study

The Seattle Times, a family-owned daily founded in 1896 and the largest paper in Washington state, moved to an audience-centric, subscription-first model but found its legacy subscription and payment systems couldn’t support digital growth. Friction in sign-ups and frequent payment failures caused significant involuntary churn—62% of digital cancellations were due to processing issues—hindering acquisition and retention.

Zuora’s cloud-based subscription platform provided fast digital sign-ups, frictionless payment processing, and end-to-end subscriber lifecycle management. After implementing Zuora, new digital conversions rose 30% and retention improved 25%; the paper grew to 65,000+ subscribers and saw a 35% increase in subscriptions between March and June 2020.

The Seattle Times

Curtis Huber

Senior Director, Circulation and Audience Revenue