Nurturing reader loyalty and engagement should be the main focus of publishing agencies looking to make the most of their paywall strategy. Figuring out what makes people subscribe is not easy. The universal solution for publishers of all sizes and profiles doesn’t seem to exist.However, various industry studies have proven there is a strong link between the high level of engagement, the number of articles written, recency of visits, established reading habits, and the probability of one reader converting to a subscriber.Metrics that indicate engagement on the number of articles written on the website can be attention time, engagement velocity (aggregate number of engagement actions per minute), the number of comments, the number of active usersThere is a general one consensus among publishers that increasing levels of engagement can help with increasing subscriptions.Subscription Strategy and User-Participation Strategy Work Hand in HandSubscription strategy must stand shoulder to shoulder with a user-participation strategy: a group of researchers discovered there is a more concrete relationship between user engagement and website profitability, and that publishing agencies need to take a more active approach to engage and interact with their readers, guiding them up the so-called ‘ladder of participation’.Here’s what publishers need to do in order to strengthen the relationship with their audiences and create a solid paywall strategy: