How Headspace optimized revenue by gating content — Shreya Oswal and Keya Patel, Headspace

Headspace, a meditation and sleep app, discovered that referral marketing without incentives and locking content effectively promoted user growth and conversions. Initially, Headspace offered much of its content for free on platforms like YouTube and Netflix to fulfill its mission of accessible meditation resources. However, the company began testing locked content strategies, which led to higher conversion rates as users became accustomed to encountering paywalls similar to those in other subscription services like Spotify. This approach resulted in increased paid subscribers and heightened user engagement, as paying users tended to explore the app more deeply. Headspace strategically targeted newer users with fewer expectations about free versus paid features and cautiously transitioned experienced users to the new model. Shreya Oswal and Keya Patel discussed on the Sub Club podcast how Headspace balanced its mission with monetization, evolving its freemium model by combining product and lifecycle messaging during onboarding.