Stu McLaren Reveals the Messaging Shift That Will Transform Your Sales

Learn how shifting your messaging can help you build predictable profits and grow your subscription box business with confidence.

Have you ever found yourself stuck at a certain number of subscribers, wondering what you're missing? Asking yourself if this is as good as it’s going to get for your subscription box business? 

That was me in 2018. I’d quickly grown from 44 to 300 subscribers, but then I hit a plateau. I had 300 subscribers who loved my subscription box, but I couldn’t seem to grow past that number. 

I believed my subscription box could be better. That it could continue to grow. I just didn’t know how.

That's when I found my mentor, Stu McLaren—and everything changed.

I always love a chance to sit down and talk with Stu, and it’s even better when I get to share those conversations with you! I recently interviewed Stu for an episode of the Launch Your Box podcast, and we talked about the shift that transformed my business. 

The best part? You can start applying that one shift to your business, too.

Why Recurring Revenue Changes Everything

Before I understood recurring revenue, I felt like I was always hustling.  

Every day, I had to show up and make sales to pay the rent—literally.

Adding a subscription box to my business gave me things I didn’t know I was missing. Stability. Predictable income. The confidence to make decisions and invest in my business’s future.

Stu has spent the last 17 years helping business owners build profitable memberships and recurring revenue streams. Because he knows recurring revenue changes everything. 

Recurring revenue reduces stress, builds stability, and gives you the freedom to think and grow long-term.

Instead of worrying about whether you’ll make enough sales to cover your overhead expenses, you can focus on serving your audience and building the business you want.

The Big Messaging Shift: It’s Not About the Stuff

When I first started my subscription box, I focused on the products (the “stuff”).

The cute bags. The monogrammed shirts. The accessories. I talked about all the things inside the box.

But something was missing—and I didn’t even realize it.

People don’t buy products. They buy outcomes. They buy experiences. They buy transformation. 

People buy feelings.

My audience wasn’t buying a cute t-shirt. 

They were buying confidence.

They were buying the feeling of walking out the door each day feeling stylish, put-together, and confident about how they looked.

When I shifted my messaging from "buy this cute thing" to "feel confident and stylish every day," my business started to grow—and it hasn’t stopped since.

Align Your Messaging Using the "Now vs. Future" Exercise

During our conversation, Stu shared a simple exercise to help you reframe your messaging—and it’s one I come back to over and over again.

1. Take a piece of paper and draw a line down the middle.
2. On the left side, write "Now." List all the thoughts, feelings, and struggles your ideal customer is experiencing today.
3. On the right side, write "Future." List what their life could look like after experiencing your product or your subscription box.

We mapped this out for my ideal customer–a busy, southern mom.

Once you truly understand your audience’s transformation—from where they are now to where they want to be—you can speak directly to their hearts. 

And that’s when converting audience members to customers and subscribers gets easier and more natural.

Suddenly, you go from talking about “the stuff” to talking about what you want for a friend. Because that’s how we see each of our subscribers–they’re our friends and we want them to feel good! 

Why Messaging Alignment Makes for Easier Sales

When your messaging aligns with what your audience truly wants, you don't have to convince them to buy.

Instead, they see your subscription box as the obvious solution to get them from the life they have to the life they want.

Instead of selling to them, you’re inviting them to experience a better version of themselves.

That’s powerful.

And that power can be the difference between hitting a plateau in your subscription box business and breaking through that plateau to new levels of growth.

3 Messaging Tips to Serve (and Sell to) Your Audience Better

Now that Stu and I have convinced you that a shift in messaging can be powerful, are you ready to start shifting your messaging today? 

Start with three quick tips:

1. Understand Your Audience’s Now

Take time to understand what your audience is thinking, feeling, and struggling with right now. Be specific. Go deep.

2. Paint Their Future

Show your audience (don’t just tell them) what’s possible with your product. How will their life look and feel different? 

3. Bridge the Gap

Position your subscription box as the easy solution that helps your audience move from their "Now" to their "Future."

Stu’s New Book: Predictable Profits–A Great Resource for Subscription Box Owners

Building predictable profits in your business isn’t just about bringing more revenue into your business. It’s also about what you, as a business owner, gain from recurring revenue. Confidence, freedom, and stability. 

Stu’s new book, Predictable Profits, lays out the exact frameworks that helped me double—and then quadruple—my subscription box growth.

Stu makes it so easy to get what you need out of this book. Inside, you’ll find practical, bite-sized chapters packed with strategies you can apply immediately. 

(And trust me... Chapter 5 alone is worth the entire price of the book!)

Whether you're just starting out, getting ready to launch, or you've been running your subscription box for a while, remember this:

It’s not about the products. It’s about the people.

When you focus on the transformation you provide—and align your messaging with what your audience truly wants—you open the door to predictable profits and long-term success.

Remember that you have the ability to change lives with your subscription box. And it starts by seeing—and speaking to—your customers where they are.

Listen to the full conversation with Stu on the Launch Your Box Podcast. 

Or… Catch this episode of the Launch Your Box Podcast on YouTube!