Bundle Passes
What a Bundle Pass is, who decides what, and how to create one.
What is a Bundle Pass?
Bundle Passes are a way to get discovered by new audiences who are happy to pay for your journalism. And to get paid in the process.
A Bundle Pass lets new audiences try paywalled publications for a limited time. Audiences buy access to your publication and your collaborators' publications together, on one checkout page, with a one-time payment.
A few things to know:
A Bundle Pass has up to 3 publications: yours, plus up to 2 collaborators.
You need a connected Ghost, Beehiiv or Steady publication and a connected Stripe account.
Audiences always pay just once. Nothing renews.
You earn your discounted tier's price with every sale. Trustfnd takes no revenue cut, only Stripe's fees apply.
You sell through a collaboration link you can share anywhere, and each collaborator can add a widget to their Link in bio.
Who decides the discount and the Pass length?
Each collaborator chooses the publication and paid tier they'd like to offer.
The organizer, the collaborator who sets up the bundle, chooses the settings that apply to everyone:
Discount: from 20% to 100% off, in steps of 5. It applies to the entire bundle.
Pass length: 30 days, 60 days, 90 days or 1 year. If the organizer offers a yearly tier, the Pass runs for 1 year.
Add a free month: extends every buyer's access by 30 days at no extra cost.
How do I create a Bundle Pass?
It takes about five minutes. Before you start, you need:
A connected Ghost, Beehiiv or Steady publication with a paid tier.
Go to Growth, click Create new and select Bundle Pass.
On the page that opens, click the button to get started.
Step 1: Bundle Setup
Under Your publication, select the publication you'd like to offer, then the paid tier. Your tiers and their prices come straight from your connected publication.
Under Bundle Pass, choose the Discount and Pass length, and switch on Add a free month if you like. These settings apply to every publication in the bundle, so everyone offers access on the same terms.
Optionally, add a Bundle Pass name (up to 33 characters). Leave it empty to use the default name.
Under Getting paid, we check your Stripe connection. If something's missing, you'll see a button to fix it.
Click Save and invite collaborators.
You can edit all of this any time.
Step 2: Invite collaborators
Enter Trustfnd handles (@username) or email addresses. Press Enter or Space after each one. You can invite up to 2 other creators, so 3 in total including you.
Add a private note if you like, to tell them why you'd love to collaborate.
Click Send invitation, or Skip for now to invite collaborators later.
If your account is verified, your Bundle Pass is live right away and shows up on your Growth page. If we're still verifying you, it's saved as a draft until then.
Next: share your collaboration, and add an Upgrade offer so Pass holders can become subscribers.
Why don't my tiers show up?
Your tiers come straight from your publishing platform. If they don't show up, it's usually one of three things.
They're still loading. Give it a moment, then click Reload tiers, or Update if you see "Retrieving data".
"No tiers found". A Bundle Pass needs a paid tier to offer. Create a paid tier in Ghost, a premium tier in Beehiiv or a paid plan in Steady, then click Try again.
"Finish setup" next to your publication. Your publication isn't fully connected yet. Open Account settings → Publications, click Complete Setup and connect your platform.
Which currency does a Bundle Pass use?
A Bundle Pass runs in one currency. It's set by the organizer's tier, and every collaborator needs to offer a tier in that same currency.
If your tier is priced in a different currency when you join, you'll see a note such as "This bundle is in EUR". To fix it:
On your publishing platform, add a paid tier priced in the bundle's currency.
Back on the invitation page, click Reload tiers.
Select the new tier and accept the invitation.
Your Stripe account is a different thing, and it doesn't stop you. If it settles in another currency than the bundle, Stripe converts your payouts for a small FX fee.
Curious about something that isn't covered? We're here for you at support@trustfnd.com.
Still need help? Ask the team