Invite your friends to read The Cosmopolitan Globalist

And learn how to edit like Claire while you're at it.

Substack tells me that I should send you an email reminding you that you get benefits for inviting people you know to subscribe to the Cosmopolitan Globalist. I bet they’ve tested this marketing advice extensively, so I’ll do what they suggest.

They suggested this phrasing:

If you enjoy The Cosmopolitan Globalist, it would mean the world to me if you invited friends to subscribe and read with us. If you refer friends, you will receive benefits that give you special access to The Cosmopolitan Globalist.

Except I don’t like that. “It would mean the world to me?” It’s not like I’m asking you for a kidney, right? I’m just telling you that if your friends subscribe, you get a discount. It’s not as if I’d be completely devastated if you didn’t ask them. (And “special access”—what’s that supposed to mean? The point is you get a discount.)

The appropriate tone here, in my editorial judgment, is grateful but not servile. I’m not asking you to refer your friends as a favor. It’s a business proposition. A good one, too. I mean, if you’re really determined, you could Ponzi-scheme it so well that you never have to pay for your subscription again.

So I’d strike the above and replace it with:

Please invite your friends to subscribe. If they do, you’ll get extra months.

That gets to the point, doesn’t it? The point is that there’s something in it for you.

How it works:

1. Share the Cosmopolitan Globalist. When you use the referral link below or the “Share” button on any post, you get credit for any new subscribers. Just send the link in a text, email, or share it on social media with friends.

2. Earn benefits. When your friends use your referral link to subscribe (free or paid), you’ll receive benefits.

• Get a 1 month comp for 3 referrals

• Get a 1 month comp for 5 referrals

• Get a 1 month comp for 10 referrals

To learn more, check out I FAQ.