For those who want to embody creativity, not silo themselves, and build long-term growth with less reliance on algorithms, ads, Google & social media. 2026 newsletter format: 🌕 full moon newsletters (from Kit) and 🌑 new moon newsletters (from Substack). Unsubscribe at any time.
Less Exclusion. More Equity.
Published 13 days ago • 5 min read
FULL MOON NEWSLETTER
🌕 MAY 1, 2026
Less Exclusion. More Equity.
In this issue
Equitable Pricing for Web Design
Iterate & Grow
Digital Strategy Live Workshops
Hey Reader!
For some, the psychology of money is about pricing at a "premium" to create a sense of scarcity: desire based on exclusivity and luxury. And yet—the reality is I honor accessible web design for a variety of reasons.
Here's what inspired my new equitable pricing.
I have directly benefited from premium web design myself, at price points I could afford. I am grateful to those providers who've honored access, payment plans, and needs-based pricing. This is my way of paying it forward.
My pricing is based on my actual needs, not comparing my offer to others. Not simply "the market rate" among interdependent markets worldwide.
Granted, I have the privilege of living in Spain, one of the highest life expectancy countries in the world. Quality of life and cost of living here shape this pricing, even as I live in Spain's lowest life expectancy municipality.
I believe everyone deserves good marketing. Putting money into your pocket is a healing service that marketing allows.
The tiered pricing model allows clients with capacity and extra resources to share abundance by sponsoring access for those who need it most.
The equitable pricing structure is transparent and straightforward. A simple flat-rate structure allows you to self-select your level of resourcing and commitment.
Payment plans are fully acknowledged and encouraged as needed. No guilt, no interest, and no shame.
This equitable pricing structure is something I've developed after sitting with it for a long time: after working with mentors · experts · coaches, reflecting, and consulting other pricing models. Heck, I even ran this by my therapist (who doubles as a business coach when I ask her)! I'm still constantly learning from great people.
Best for last: fully aligned with values of accessibility, inclusion, and Global South solidarity.
So, grab your favorite device, find a comfy spot, and get ready to check out doing things differently. While toxic tariffs, war and capitalism are real AF, let's prepare to build the "post-capitalist" world together, across borders. And let's get your core marketing rock steady, starting with—you guessed it—your website and email list.
Happy Building, Shayna
pricing reaction from a friend
less exclusion. more equity.
It's Time for a Website That Iterates & Grows With You...
I've quoted Bear Herbert so much in the last couple of weeks, after binging her resource, Freely: An Anti-Capitalist Freelance Pricing Guide. While I'm in no way affiliated with Bear, I definitely shamelessly plug this resource for anyone on the fence about pricing and especially interested in anti-oppressive / liberation values.
“
It is a deeply held value of mine to just experiment and just iterate. Just try it and see what works, and be transparent about it. Tell your clients and your students why you're doing things the way you're doing them and see what works. If it doesn't work, pivot, try something else, and be transparent. Say, "I tried this thing and it didn't work, and now I'm trying this other thing. Let's see if that works."
Let people see behind the curtain a little bit more. That idea of professionalism is so rooted in patriarchy and white supremacy and this idea that we have to be perfect all the time. We have to always be showing up in this sort of flawless, "we figured it all out" kind of way, but in reality we can consider everything an experiment.
— Bear Herbert in Freely: An Anti-Capitalist Guide to Pricing Your Work
Something I wish more people knew before working with developers or managing their websites is this. You should always be empowered to iterate and grow! And by this I mean, take ownership into your own hands. Knock down any walls. Take out sections of your website, or take down whole pages. Edit your website as much and as often as you wish (it can even be daily), and rebuild your website as if it were literally your home.
In that analogy, whether you hire an architect to custom design a home from the foundation up—or you're someone renting and find out you have only so much control over what colors to paint the walls or what light fixtures to install, from what suppliers—don't be afraid to make this space fully your own. To the extent you can ;)
Ariel Herrera-Molina
My client Ariel Herrera-Molina proves this concept in the latest iteration of her site.
Ariel and I had worked together last year to build out the Guava Spa website for her spa's relaunch: a new spa location, branding and name, after four years under a different business name (with 300+ five-star reviews and four practitioners). During the spa's fifth year in business, the site grew and evolved alongside the spa. Eventually, at 15 pages, it had multiple drop-down menus; service pages for skin care, Reiki, waxing, and The Sanctuary; an events calendar; blog; earned media hub; email list integration with updated lead magnets; and mobile-responsive menu redesign.
testimonial screenshot after a major website refresh
Then one day in March, Ariel wrote me saying she wanted to pare down to a one-page website. "I'm just changing, my vision is changing, and I want to honor that," she wrote.
No problem! Sometimes, in the metaphor, we want to move ourselves across the country or the world. And we can start over from a studio apartment instead of a palace.
It can even be considered ethical for website visitors to have fewer calls to action. This parallels Ariel's shift in her business to work with overwhelmed clients who desire simplicity and serenity in their services, without fuss or decision fatigue.
All of the former pages are now archived, even if they're not what people see when they visit her site. While I'm proud of the beautiful website we had built together—I'm just as proud of her current site.
(And it's a fun one to check out on mobile as well.)
You, like Ariel, can follow intuition. I trust the source and trust where it leads.
Are you ready to refine your digital strategy skills while meeting with community? Join us for the Maple Creative workshop series. This experience is designed for website owners and planners like you! Get instant clarity and next steps for how to build connection and turn readers into action takers during these rapidly changing times.
Date
Thursdays, 2026
TIME
12 PM - 1 PM Eastern (NY)
Location
Online (Zoom)
free
All Welcome!
While these events are open to the public, only Maple clients are eligible to request the "hot seat" coaching.
For those who want to embody creativity, not silo themselves, and build long-term growth with less reliance on algorithms, ads, Google & social media. 2026 newsletter format: 🌕 full moon newsletters (from Kit) and 🌑 new moon newsletters (from Substack). Unsubscribe at any time.
