growth playbook · Oct 22, 2026

Calm growth playbook

Calm is a category leader (180 million downloads, 4.8 stars from about 2 million ratings, 42 million covered lives through Calm Health) and is hiring a Growth PM and a senior designer to lift trial and paywall conversion, activation, revenue per user and retention through fast experiments.

The site works against that in places: 19 channel discount pages sit in the sitemap and in search, some blog trial links lose their tags, blog posts stack many offers, and there are almost no public pages for the content people search for.

This playbook cleans up offers and tracking first, then tests intent-matched CTAs, quiz-led onboarding, first-week habits, trial summaries, deep links and public content pages, connects consumers to Calm Health coverage, and bets on daily personal sessions, published outcomes and release launches.

Growth Score

Biggest Opportunity

Turn search and the blog into full-price trials that open the exact content people came for, and make the first week a habit.

Biggest Risk

Headspace, Insight Timer's free library and many sleep apps compete for the same searches; leaning on discounts to win them lowers revenue per subscriber and trains users to wait for deals.

Start here

The three moves to make first. Each one is written up in full below.

Take the 19 discount pages out of the sitemap, so organic visitors meet the standard trial and paywall
Export the 19 offer URLs and check which ones search engines show.
High impact First result in 1 month
Fix the blog trial-link templates so every post's signups are counted
Fix the template and click it on three posts.
High impact First result in 2 weeks
Test one intent-matched call to action per blog post against today's many offers
Pick 50 high-traffic posts and map each to one offer.
High impact First result in 1 month

Your idea portfolio

21 ideas, grouped by when to run them. Open any idea for how to run it: the steps, who to approach, copy you can use, and how to measure it.

8 ideas are marked Unexpected: plays you are unlikely to have tried.

This week 6

Quick wins with a clear first action.

Calm is hiring a Growth PM to own trial and paywall conversion and revenue per user, through honest A/B tests. But the main sitemap, which tells search engines what to index, lists 19 offer pages built for paid channels and seasons (TikTok, Meta, Instagram, X and Google annual offers, holiday and Black Friday offers, lifetime offers, a "second free trial") and only four content landing pages. Search engines index them: /second-free-trial shows up as "Limited Time Offer". People who search for Calm can land on a channel discount instead of the standard offer, which lowers revenue per subscriber and muddies paywall tests, because visitors arrive at offers the test did not assign.
High impactLow effort First result in 1 month Growth Product Manager
First action
Export the 19 offer URLs and check which ones search engines show.
How to measure it
Organic revenue per new subscriber
Now
–
Target
+10%
By
60 days
Steps
List the pages
Offer, test and account URLs in the sitemap.
SEO lead 1 day
Check the index
Which offer pages search engines show.
SEO lead 1 day
Fix the sitemap
Generate it without offer, test and account paths.
Web engineering 2 days
Add noindex
On every offer page.
Web engineering 1 day
Request removal
Search Console removals for indexed offers.
SEO lead 1 day
Tag offer traffic
Exclude it from paywall tests.
Data Science 3 days
Measure
Organic trial starts and price mix.
Growth Product Manager 30 days
First result
1 month
Cost
Staff time only
Owner
Growth Product Manager
Smallest test
Remove the offer pages from the sitemap and noindex /second-free-trial first.
Why it works
Ready to use
ChecklistOffer page hygiene
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
The Growth PM is asked to keep an experiment log the team can trust. In the blog's scripts, several "Try Calm for Free" templates build links with a second "?" and an unfilled "%%utmCampaign%%" value, so signups from those links can lose their campaign and content tags. The blog is one of Calm's biggest acquisition surfaces.
High impactLow effort First result in 2 weeks Growth Product Manager
First action
Fix the template and click it on three posts.
How to measure it
Tagged blog signups
Now
–
Target
95%
By
30 days
Steps
Find templates
All CTA templates in the blog scripts.
Web engineering 1 day
Fix links
One "?" and a filled campaign.
Web engineering 1 day
Test
Each CTA type.
Web engineering 1 day
Check analytics
Tags arrive in Amplitude.
Data Science 2 days
Report
Trials by post.
Data Science 1 week
Share
With the content team.
Growth Product Manager monthly
First result
2 weeks
Cost
$0
Owner
Growth Product Manager
Smallest test
Fix one template today.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
A typical blog post shows a free trial, a 50%-off pop-up, a Calm Sleep app block, discounted journals and a sleep quiz. Many choices on one page can lower the main conversion, and the 50%-off pop-up trains readers to wait for a discount.
High impactMedium effort First result in 1 month Growth Product Manager
First action
Pick 50 high-traffic posts and map each to one offer.
How to measure it
Paid subscribers per 1,000 visits
Now
–
Target
+15%
By
60 days
Steps
Pick posts
Top 50 by traffic.
Growth Product Manager 2 days
Map intent
Topic to offer.
Content team 3 days
Design the block
One CTA and the quiz.
Senior Product Designer 3 days
Run the test
Holdout on half the posts.
Data Science 3 weeks
Read results
Trials and paid conversion.
Data Science 1 week
Roll out
Winning pattern.
Web engineering 1 week
First result
1 month
Cost
Staff time only
Owner
Growth Product Manager
Smallest test
Run the test on ten posts.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
The blog sends readers to a sleep quiz (falling asleep, staying asleep, waking up). Those answers say exactly what the reader needs, and the Growth PM owns activation.
High impactMedium effort First result in 1 month Growth Product Manager
First action
Map each quiz answer to a first program.
How to measure it
Day-7 active rate
Now
–
Target
+10%
By
60 days
Steps
Map answers
To programs.
Content team 3 days
Pass data
Quiz to signup.
Web engineering 1 week
Design first session
Personal welcome.
Senior Product Designer 1 week
Build three-day plan
From answers.
Growth Product Manager 1 week
Test
Against standard onboarding.
Data Science 3 weeks
Extend
Stress and anxiety quizzes.
Growth Product Manager 1 month
First result
1 month
Cost
Engineering time
Owner
Growth Product Manager
Smallest test
Test it for one quiz answer.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
Our reader and Google's PageSpeed test were both shown a "Press & Hold to confirm you are a human" check on the homepage and offer pages, while blog pages loaded. If the same check reaches link preview bots or AI assistants, shared links and AI answers about Calm lose their content.
Medium impactLow effort First result in 2 weeks Web engineering
First action
Fetch the homepage as each major crawler would and record the result.
How to measure it
Pages passing crawler checks
Now
–
Target
100%
By
30 days
Steps
List crawlers
Search, AI and social preview.
SEO lead 1 day
Test pages
Homepage and top landings.
SEO lead 1 day
Adjust rules
Allow verified crawlers.
Web engineering 2 days
Re-run PageSpeed
Real lab data.
Web engineering 1 day
Monitor
Weekly checks.
SEO lead weekly
Review
Link previews on social.
Social team 1 week
First result
2 weeks
Cost
$0
Owner
Web engineering
Smallest test
Test the homepage with three preview tools.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
The new designer is expected to ship copy and UI polish without waiting for engineering. Paywall, trial reminder and onboarding copy are among the cheapest levers on conversion.
Medium impactLow effort First result in 1 quarter Senior Product Designer
First action
Pick the first screen and two variants.
How to measure it
Copy tests per quarter
Now
–
Target
12
By
1 quarter
Steps
Pick screens
Top five by traffic.
Senior Product Designer 2 days
Write variants
Two per test.
Senior Product Designer weekly
Ship
Behind a flag.
Senior Product Designer weekly
Read
Pre-set metric.
Data Science weekly
Log
Experiment log.
Growth Product Manager weekly
Roll out
Winners.
Senior Product Designer weekly
First result
1 quarter
Cost
Staff time only
Owner
Senior Product Designer
Smallest test
Test the paywall headline this week.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence

This quarter 10

The core plays for the next three months.

Calm's main sitemap lists offers and account pages but almost no pages for what people search for: specific Sleep Stories, celebrity narrators, programs and teachers. Blog posts already link into programs inside the web app.
High impactHigh effort First result in 2 quarters SEO lead
First action
List the 200 most played items with search demand.
How to measure it
Content-page trials
Now
–
Target
5,000 a month
By
2 quarters
Steps
Pick items
Top 200 by plays and demand.
SEO lead 2 weeks
Design template
Preview and trial.
Senior Product Designer 2 weeks
Build
Pages and schema.
Web engineering 1 month
Deep link
Trial opens the item.
Web engineering 2 weeks
Publish
In the sitemap.
SEO lead 1 week
Measure
Trials and paid.
Data Science monthly
First result
2 quarters
Cost
Engineering time
Owner
SEO lead
Smallest test
Publish ten narrator pages and compare trials.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
The Growth PM is hired to ship habit mechanics (streaks, reminders, progress, celebration) that turn a first session into a daily one.
High impactMedium effort First result in 1 quarter Growth Product Manager
First action
Design the seven-day plan for sleep and stress.
How to measure it
Trial-to-paid
Now
–
Target
+8%
By
2 quarters
Steps
Design plans
Sleep and stress.
Content team 2 weeks
Design UI
Progress and celebration.
Senior Product Designer 2 weeks
Build reminders
User-chosen time.
Mobile engineering 1 month
Test
Holdout.
Data Science 1 month
Read
Trial-to-paid and day-30 retention.
Data Science 2 weeks
Iterate
More plans.
Growth Product Manager quarterly
First result
1 quarter
Cost
Engineering time
Owner
Growth Product Manager
Smallest test
Test the plan with one cohort.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
Trial-to-paid is one of the PM's core metrics. Users who see what they got from a trial are more likely to stay.
High impactLow effort First result in 1 quarter Lifecycle marketing
First action
Draft the summary for one cohort.
How to measure it
Trial-to-paid
Now
–
Target
+5%
By
1 quarter
Steps
Define the summary
Three numbers.
Growth Product Manager 1 week
Design
Email and push.
Senior Product Designer 1 week
Build
Triggered send.
Lifecycle marketing 2 weeks
Test
Holdout.
Data Science 1 month
Read
Conversion and refunds.
Data Science 2 weeks
Roll out
All trials.
Lifecycle marketing 1 week
First result
1 quarter
Cost
Staff time only
Owner
Lifecycle marketing
Smallest test
Send it to one week's trials.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
The blog has a web-to-app button for mobile readers and links to programs in the web app. Readers who open the app at the content they were reading are more likely to activate than those who land on a generic home screen.
High impactMedium effort First result in 1 quarter Growth Product Manager
First action
Deep link the top 20 posts.
How to measure it
Day-1 activation
Now
–
Target
+15%
By
1 quarter
Steps
Map content
Post to item.
Content team 1 week
Build deep links
Deferred links.
Mobile engineering 2 weeks
Update CTAs
Mobile blog.
Web engineering 1 week
Test
Against generic.
Data Science 1 month
Read
Activation and trials.
Data Science 1 week
Roll out
All posts.
Web engineering 1 month
First result
1 quarter
Cost
Engineering time
Owner
Growth Product Manager
Smallest test
Deep link one top post.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
Calm promotes a separate Calm Sleep app on the blog. Some Calm users already use the main app mostly for sleep and are natural buyers or the right fit for a sleep-first experience.
Medium impactMedium effort First result in 2 quarters Growth Product Manager
First action
Size the sleep-first user segment.
How to measure it
Segment revenue per user
Now
–
Target
+5%
By
2 quarters
Steps
Size segment
Night listening share.
Data Science 1 week
Design offer
Bundle or upgrade.
Growth Product Manager 2 weeks
Build
In-app placement.
Mobile engineering 1 month
Test
Holdout.
Data Science 1 month
Read
Net revenue.
Data Science 2 weeks
Decide
Scale or stop.
Growth Product Manager 1 week
First result
2 quarters
Cost
Engineering time
Owner
Growth Product Manager
Smallest test
Show the offer to 5% of the segment.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
Calm has family plan pages for inviting dependents. Family members of a subscriber are high-intent and add retention to the account.
Medium impactLow effort First result in 1 quarter CRM and retention
First action
Count subscribers on single plans with family content usage.
How to measure it
Family upgrades
Now
–
Target
+20%
By
2 quarters
Steps
Find moments
Milestones and kids content.
CRM and retention 1 week
Design prompts
In-app and email.
Senior Product Designer 1 week
Build
Triggers.
CRM and retention 2 weeks
Test
Holdout.
Data Science 1 month
Renewal offer
Family upgrade.
CRM and retention 1 month
Measure
Upgrades and retention.
Data Science monthly
First result
1 quarter
Cost
Staff time only
Owner
CRM and retention
Smallest test
Email one milestone cohort.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
Calm Health reaches over 42 million covered lives, and the redeem flow already has an organization search. Many people who pay for Calm, or decide not to, may already be covered and not know it.
High impactMedium effort First result in 1 quarter Calm Health marketing
First action
Measure how many organization searches happen today.
How to measure it
Covered activations
Now
–
Target
+25%
By
2 quarters
Steps
Measure
Organization searches.
Data Science 1 week
Design step
Paywall and cancel flow.
Senior Product Designer 2 weeks
Build
Search in flow.
Web engineering 2 weeks
Promote
Workplace content.
Content team 1 month
Report
Activations by organization.
Calm Health marketing monthly
Share
With account teams.
Calm Health marketing monthly
First result
1 quarter
Cost
Engineering time
Owner
Calm Health marketing
Smallest test
Add the check to the cancel flow.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
Calm Health has a page for organizations under 300, but every path ends in "Request a demo". Small organizations prefer to buy online.
High impactMedium effort First result in 2 quarters Calm Health marketing
First action
Define seat tiers and price.
How to measure it
Small org purchases
Now
–
Target
100 a quarter
By
3 quarters
Steps
Set tiers
Seats and price.
Calm Health marketing 2 weeks
Build checkout
Seats and invites.
Web engineering 1 quarter
Onboarding kit
Launch emails.
Calm Health marketing 1 month
Launch
Under-300 page.
Calm Health marketing 1 month
Measure
Purchases and activation.
Data Science monthly
Upsell
Calm Health clinical programs.
Calm Health marketing quarterly
First result
2 quarters
Cost
Engineering time
Owner
Calm Health marketing
Smallest test
Take card payment by link for ten small organizations.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
Calm has separate pages for Amazon Prime Student, American Express, Samsung, Spotify, O2, TrueMed and others. People who hear they get Calm through a partner search for it and land on scattered pages.
Medium impactLow effort First result in 1 quarter Partnerships
First action
List active partner offers.
How to measure it
Redemptions
Now
–
Target
+20%
By
2 quarters
Steps
List offers
Active partners.
Partnerships 1 week
Write page
Eligibility and steps.
Content team 1 week
Build
Page and links.
Web engineering 1 week
Promote
Help center and search.
SEO lead 2 weeks
Report
Redemptions by partner.
Data Science monthly
Share
With partners.
Partnerships quarterly
First result
1 quarter
Cost
Staff time only
Owner
Partnerships
Smallest test
Publish the page with current offers.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
Real visitors see an LCP of 2.7 s on the homepage and 2.5 s across the site, just over the good line, while responsiveness and layout are fine.
Medium impactMedium effort First result in 1 quarter Web engineering
First action
Identify the LCP element for real users.
How to measure it
LCP (field)
Now
–
Target
under 2.5 s
By
1 quarter
Steps
Measure
LCP element.
Web engineering 1 week
Preload
Hero media.
Web engineering 1 week
Trim scripts
Render-blocking.
Web engineering 2 weeks
Images
Formats and sizes.
Web engineering 1 week
Retest
Field data.
Web engineering 1 month
Budget
Landing pages.
Web engineering ongoing
First result
1 quarter
Cost
Engineering time
Owner
Web engineering
Smallest test
Preload the hero and compare.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence

Big bets 3

Larger plays that can change the trajectory.

The PM and designer roles are both AI-native, and Calm has a large library of sessions. Users who get the right session each day are more likely to keep the habit.
High impactHigh effort First result in 4 quarters Growth Product Manager
First action
Prototype the check-in with AI tools.
How to measure it
DAU/MAU among subscribers
Now
–
Target
+5 points
By
4 quarters
Steps
Prototype
AI tools.
Senior Product Designer 1 month
Safety rules
With clinical experts.
Clinical team 1 month
Build
Check-in and selection.
Mobile engineering 2 quarters
Test
Holdout.
Data Science 1 quarter
Read
Retention.
Data Science 1 month
Scale
All users.
Growth Product Manager 1 quarter
First result
4 quarters
Cost
Engineering time
Owner
Growth Product Manager
Smallest test
Test a manual daily pick for 1,000 users.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
Calm Health shows measured engagement (38% in clinical programs, 77% screened). The consumer site leads with ratings (4.8 from about 2 million) but no outcomes such as better sleep.
High impactMedium effort First result in 3 quarters Calm Health marketing
First action
Design an opt-in four-week survey.
How to measure it
Paywall conversion
Now
–
Target
+5%
By
3 quarters
Steps
Design study
With researchers.
Research 1 month
Ethics and privacy
Review.
Legal 1 month
Run
Four weeks.
Research 1 quarter
Analyze
Change in sleep and stress.
Data Science 1 month
Publish
Results and method.
Content team 1 month
Use
Paywall and ads.
User Acquisition ongoing
First result
3 quarters
Cost
Research costs
Owner
Calm Health marketing
Smallest test
Run the survey with one cohort.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
Calm's content comes from experts and celebrity voices. A new narrator is news for their fans, but without a public page there is nowhere for that interest to land.
High impactHigh effort First result in 3 quarters User Acquisition
First action
Plan the next release with a page and trailer.
How to measure it
Trials per release
Now
–
Target
20,000
By
3 quarters
Steps
Pick releases
Next four.
Content team 2 weeks
Build page
Template from idea 7.
Web engineering 1 month
Trailer and clips
Social.
Social team per release
Narrator share
Agreed posts.
Partnerships per release
Paid support
Lookalike audiences.
User Acquisition per release
Measure
Trials and paid.
Data Science per release
First result
3 quarters
Cost
Media budget
Owner
User Acquisition
Smallest test
Run the next release with a page and trailer.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence

Wildcards 2

Unexpected experiments, each with a cheap way to test it.

Calm's recent posts cover holidays, dating and New Year gifts, and the site has gift and lifetime gift cards. Seasonal readers are often shopping for someone else.
Medium impactLow effort First result in 1 quarter Lifecycle marketing
First action
List seasonal posts with high traffic.
How to measure it
Blog gift sales
Now
–
Target
+30%
By
1 quarter
Steps
List posts
Seasonal and gift.
Content team 1 week
Design block
Gift card.
Senior Product Designer 1 week
Swap
On seasonal posts.
Web engineering 1 week
Measure
Gift sales.
Data Science monthly
Follow recipients
Renewal rate.
Data Science 1 quarter
Repeat
Each season.
Lifecycle marketing quarterly
First result
1 quarter
Cost
$0
Owner
Lifecycle marketing
Smallest test
Swap the block on the gift post.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence
A 40%-off extension page for continuing subscribers is indexed in search. Public retention discounts invite subscribers who would have renewed anyway to look for the deal.
Medium impactLow effort First result in 1 quarter CRM and retention
First action
Noindex the extension page.
How to measure it
Net renewal revenue
Now
–
Target
+3%
By
2 quarters
Steps
Noindex
Extension page.
SEO lead 1 day
Build churn score
Risk model.
Data Science 1 month
Signed links
Offer access.
Web engineering 2 weeks
Target
At-risk subscribers.
CRM and retention ongoing
Test
Holdout.
Data Science 1 quarter
Read
Net revenue.
Data Science 1 month
First result
1 quarter
Cost
Staff time only
Owner
CRM and retention
Smallest test
Noindex the page this week.
Why it works
Risks and how to handle them
Evidence

Other companies we have researched, each read from what they are hiring for.

See every playbook and website review

30/60/90 roadmap

What to focus on in each month, and the ideas that carry it.

Days 1 to 307 ideas
Offer pages out of search, blog link fixes, the one-CTA test, quiz-led onboarding, crawler access and weekly copy tests; noindex the extension offer.
Days 31 to 6011 ideas
Content pages, first-week plan, trial summary, deep links, Calm Sleep offer, family plan, coverage check, small-organization checkout, partner offers page and homepage speed; seasonal gift blocks.
Days 61 to 903 ideas
Commit to personal daily sessions, consumer outcome data and release launches.

Calm growth playbook

Diagnosis

Take the 19 discount pages out of the sitemap, so organic visitors meet the standard trial and paywall

Fix the blog trial-link templates so every post's signups are counted

Test one intent-matched call to action per blog post against today's many offers

This week 6

How to run it: Take the 19 discount pages out of the sitemap, so organic visitors meet the standard trial and paywall

Steps

Why it works

Why it works

Ready to use

Risks and how to handle them

Risks and how to handle them

Evidence

Evidence

How to run it: Fix the blog trial-link templates so every post's signups are counted

Steps

Why it works

Why it works

Risks and how to handle them

Risks and how to handle them

Evidence

Evidence

How to run it: Test one intent-matched call to action per blog post against today's many offers

Steps

Why it works

Why it works

Risks and how to handle them

Risks and how to handle them

Evidence

Evidence

How to run it: Carry the sleep quiz answers into the signup flow and the first session

Steps

Why it works

Why it works

Risks and how to handle them

Risks and how to handle them

Evidence

Evidence

How to run it: Check that search engines, AI assistants and link previews can read calm.com

Steps

Why it works

Why it works

Risks and how to handle them

Risks and how to handle them

Evidence

Evidence

How to run it: A weekly copy test the designer ships directly

Steps

Why it works

Why it works

Risks and how to handle them

Risks and how to handle them

Evidence

Evidence

This quarter 10

How to run it: Public pages for Sleep Stories, narrators and programs, as the new top of the funnel

Steps

Why it works

Why it works

Risks and how to handle them

Risks and how to handle them

Evidence

Evidence

How to run it: A first-week plan with reminders, progress and one celebration

Steps

Why it works

Why it works

Risks and how to handle them

Risks and how to handle them

Evidence

Evidence

How to run it: A "your first week" summary before the trial ends

Steps

Why it works

Why it works

Risks and how to handle them

Risks and how to handle them

Evidence

Evidence