DotCom Secrets · Chapter 2
The Formula
Subscribers × Value × Frequency
Every dollar this business earns is a function of three variables. Move any one, and revenue moves with it. Here's the math, the benchmarks, and the calculator — so you can see exactly how the pieces fit.
The three variables you can move
Variable 1
Subscribers
How many people are on the list. Every visitor who joins the Sunday email enters the funnel. This is the top of the ladder — the raw fuel.
Goal: grow 10% month-over-month
Variable 2
Average Value
What each buyer pays on average — including bumps, upsells, and cross-sells. This is where the order bump and First Look ladder do their work.
Goal: lift AOV via bumps + OTOs
Variable 3
Frequency
How often each buyer pays. A €49/mo subscription has frequency 12 (yearly revenue per buyer). A €7 one-time has frequency 1. Retention = frequency.
Goal: >12-month average retention
Interactive
Funnel Math Calculator
Drag the sliders. Watch the formula work. The numbers update live — this is the actual math behind the business.
Monthly new buyers
10
Monthly revenue (steady state)
€1,396
AOV (first invoice)
€12.07
Base + bump lift
Bump revenue / mo
€21
Pure margin
LTV per buyer
€139.58
Base × retention
Annual revenue potential (12-month cohort)
€23,326
Based on 200 subs/mo, Targets (not yet measured at scale): 15% opt-in, 5% conversion, 30% bump attach, 14-month retention.
The ladder
Each rung moves a different variable.
Free
One-time tripwire
Subscription
Premium subscription
Custom one-time
The bump sits between the rungs — it doesn't replace a tier, it lifts the average value of whichever tier the buyer is on. That's why it works on every checkout, not just one.
Where we stand
Benchmarks vs. target
15% → growing. The multi-step hero qualification lifts this above industry average.
5% → the tripwire (First Look) and Soap Opera sequence are the levers.
Just shipped — tracking starts now. Pre-checked default targets 30%.
~3% → founding-rate lock-in + weekly habit = stickier than typical SaaS.
The math only works if the signal is real.
The formula is simple. The execution is the moat. Every week the field updates, every week the methodology holds or breaks in public — and every week the numbers above move.