Why I Chose Not to Put The Next Era Edit Behind a Paywall

The creator economy has given us more ways than ever to monetize our ideas. But building a profitable creative business doesn't require monetizing every point of access. Here are Three lessons on building access, creating opportunity and bringing your heart work into the world.

I am a fashion editor who came home and opened a showroom to serve women navigating seasons of transition.

That experience has taught me something I now carry into almost everything I create: people often need resources at precisely the moment when their own resources are most limited.

A woman starting over may need a new wardrobe for work. She may need information she didn't previously have access to. She may need to discover a program, an opportunity, a community or simply a story that helps her see what could be possible for her next.

And she may need all of those things at a time when paying for another monthly subscription simply isn't a priority—or a possibility.

So when I began building The Next Era Edit, I knew I wanted it to be a resource first.

I didn't want the women I created it to serve to have to become paying subscribers before they could access it.

That doesn't mean I don't believe creative work should make money.

Quite the opposite.

Access and Profitability Aren't Opposing Ideas

We are living through an incredibly interesting time to be a creator.

Platforms like Substack and YouTube have given writers, editors and independent creators more opportunities to build audiences around their ideas and turn that work into sustainable income. Memberships, subscriptions, digital products, courses, brand partnerships and creator-led businesses have expanded what's possible.

As a creator, those opportunities matter to me, too.

I want my work to create income. I want my ideas and expertise to create opportunities. I believe creators should be compensated for the value we bring into the world.

But I've also come to believe something else:

Building a profitable creative business doesn't require monetizing every point of access.

Sometimes the thing you create can simply be useful.

The question then becomes: How do we create access and build sustainable businesses?

Here are three ideas I'm using in my own work.

1. Decide What Is the Resource—and What Funds the Resource

When we create something valuable, our first instinct can be to ask:

How do I monetize this? I'm learning to ask a different question:

What job does this play in my ecosystem?

Not everything you create has to generate revenue directly. A free article might establish expertise that eventually leads to a paid speaking engagement. An educational resource might introduce someone to a larger body of paid work. A free community experience might be supported by a sponsor. A YouTube video might provide information without charging the viewer while contributing to a much larger media business.

One thing can create access while something else creates revenue. That distinction gives us much more freedom in how we design our businesses. Instead of forcing every idea to become its own product, subscription or revenue stream, we can allow different parts of our work to perform different jobs. Some things generate income. Some build trust. Some create visibility. Some deepen relationships. Some demonstrate expertise. And some exist because they're useful. A healthy ecosystem can have room for all of them.

2. Don't Assume the Person Who Needs the Resource Has to Be the One Who Pays for It

This may be one of the most important lessons my community work has taught me.

The person who needs the resource doesn't always have to be the person financially sustaining the resource.

That shift in thinking can completely change the way we approach access. There are organizations, Companies, Brands, Institutions and Sponsors looking for opportunities to support work that aligns with their values. There are many possible economic relationships surrounding useful work. If the only business model we can imagine is:

audience → payment → access

Then the person with the least financial flexibility will always have the least access. I don't want to build that way. Sometimes the better question is not “How much should I charge this person?”

It's:

“Who else benefits from making sure this resource exists?”

That question can reveal an entirely different set of customers, partners and opportunities.

3. Trust the Opportunities Created by Being Useful

There is also something I've learned to trust more as I've grown as a founder:

Useful work moves. 

People share it. They remember it. They send it to someone who needs it. It demonstrates what you know without requiring you to announce your expertise. It gives people a reason to mention your name in rooms you're not in. And sometimes it leads to a partnership, invitation, client, booking, opportunity or relationship you never could have manufactured from the beginning.

That doesn't mean giving everything away and hoping money magically appears. It means recognizing that value can travel before revenue does. I don't need to put a checkout page between myself and every person who encounters my expertise in order for my expertise to have economic value. I can create something useful because I believe it should exist.

And I can still build a profitable business around the opportunities, products, partnerships and relationships that grow from the larger body of work.

I want to build a business where generosity and profitability aren't opposing forces.

Leave Some Doors Open

Choosing not to put The Next Era Edit behind a paywall is one small expression of a much larger business philosophy I've been developing. I want the different parts of my work to support one another rather than requiring every idea I have to become its own revenue stream.

Some doors will lead to things you can purchase. Some will lead to opportunities to work with me. Some may lead to organizations and brands investing in the work. And some doors will simply be open.

The Next Era Edit is one of them and for this particular part of my work, I've already decided what its job is.

Be useful. Be accessible. And leave the door open.

— Marquita Bianca

Editor, The Next Era Edit

If you're thinking about how the different parts of your own work can support the life and business you're building, continue reading: 

Build Your Business Around the Ecosystem of Your Desires https://www.marquitabianca.com/post/build-your-business-around-an-ecosystem-of-desires