Right next to the question “Should I Create My Own Product” or “Should I Write An Ebook” comes “Should I Start A Membership Site”
What typically leads you to ask this question is the opportunity to earn recurring income…that is, you sign someone up to a monthly, quarterly or annual billing plan through which they are charged a “membership” or subscription until they cancel.
It’s very easy to get carried away doing the math on a subscription model…after all, each month you sign new customers and the existing subscribers keep paying you. After a few months things start to look pretty good in terms of profit, right?
Sure, that is the way it CAN work, but there are some things you need to keep in mind before you jump into starting your own membership site.
We have two niches with membership sites off of the back-end, both have really come about by necessity after our initial products were selling and the number of back-end questions became so great it was either a matter of offering coaching or a membership site to fulfill that demand (and frankly keep me sane from answering dozens of the same email questions that came in week after week).
Want To Start Your Own Subscription Membership Site?
Here are a few considerations as you weigh the potential of your own subscription-based membership site:
1. Is there an obvious demand for additional information that would add value to my product offerings on an ongoing basis? This doesn’t have to be rocket science, in some cases it could be a couple of weekly case studies, additional tips, your own private tests or use cases, a community where they can get private answers to their questions or interact with other members, etc… Or perhaps there is a more detailed tutorial you want to deliver by video that you can load that will take your customer through a 4-6 week video, audio or webinar course and decide to deliver this inside a private members site.  Give this some thought first and perhaps even start developing the content before so you can launch with a bang. We have found that businesses tend to evolve in this direction anyway, so if the opportunity is not obvious today, then continue to build your business in your market and soon possibilities for providing valuable content and/or services through a subscription membership will develop
2. Commit to adding new content weekly…I have found a big difference in retention with a publishing plan that involves weekly updates to one that provides updates on a less frequent basis. Again, it doesn’t have to be mind-blowing each week, but relevant and useful content at least once each week should keep them with you. If you are not ready to commit to this or you are not sure what information you would share each week, then it may be too soon.
3. Make the membership fee high enough that it is attractive to promote on its own. I have members that join my membership sites that never buy my other products – they prefer that sort of information delivery. Too many people we help through InfoMarketer’sZone assume that their membership site will be a back-end only and so consider low price points like a few dollars each month. That could be a mistake, don’t assume it will only be back-end. Have affiliates promote as a front-end as well
4. Look to bring in outside content like interviews, guest posts and videos with quality. Either trade content with others, pay for content or leverage your relationships in the industry to get additional content, this will really boost the value. You can start to setup those relationships now, even if you are weeks or months away from launching your subscription membership site.
YOUR TURN…LEAVE A COMMENT
Offering content that is monetized through a subscription membership model with recurring income is a powerful technique for both adding value to your marketplace and creating steady, growing income for your online business. Consider each of these points and you will know when the right time presents itself to you. Where are you with your thinking on your own recurring membership site?
