It’ll probably come as no surprise to you that I am a huge fan of podcasting…
And I mean huge…
That’s why I’ve recorded hundreds of episodes over the years…
In fact, I’d go as far as to say that The Membership Guys and Membership Academy wouldn’t be where it is today without our podcast…
It has genuinely helped us grow our business.
But while we’ve always seen podcasting as a great way of attracting new members, it’s not something we’ve ever really explored as a medium for serving people inside your membership…
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Here’s a question which may terrify you:
Do you know what the revenue ceiling is for your membership business?
It’s entirely possible – even likely – that this is something you’ve never contemplated…
Perhaps you had no idea until now that a revenue ceiling existed, in which case, you’re not alone…
Or maybe you’re aware of the revenue ceiling, but you’re not sure how to calculate it for your membership.
Whatever the case, it’s important to be aware of it, because whether we like it or not, the revenue ceiling exists for every membership…
Yes, even the most successful ones!
So, how can you figure out what your ceiling is and whether or not you’ve already hit it?
We’re going to help you answer that and explain what you can do to raise that ceiling higher.
So let’s dive in…
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Everything’s working well for you running your membership…
It’s growing nicely, is giving you a good income and you enjoy it so much that it hardly feels like “work”…
But the advice you’re constantly hearing from others around you is making you question whether you should be working harder at growing it faster, or exploring additional revenue opportunities alongside your membership.
They’re telling you that you MUST offer private coaching… develop other products… run live events…
And then they tell you: “If you don’t, you’re leaving money on the table”
This is a phrase we’ve heard so many times over the years…
People being told that they’re running their business the wrong way if they’re not exploiting these opportunities…
But the truth is, you’re the only one who can determine that…
So are you leaving money on the table in your membership business?
Let’s find out…
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There’s fine line between encouraging engagement in your membership and simply nagging your members.
The last thing you want to do is get on their nerves…
As membership site owners, we want our members to consume content, interact in the community, and use the membership they pay for…
After all, if they don’t, they won’t be a member for very long…
But once someone becomes disengaged, your constant messages reminding them what they haven’t done won’t make them want to login.
It will most likely have the opposite effect…
So, how can you encourage engagement without alienating your members?
Here are some of our top tips…
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Cancellations suck.
But unfortunately they’re unavoidable.
And while there are a few things you can try to pre-empt and prevent cancellations, they won’t work all of the time.
That’s why every membership site owner should have in place a very useful tool at our disposal to make the best of the situation…
A strong membership exit survey…
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You’re excited to launch your membership and are working through the planning process – validating your idea, researching your audience and the marketplace…
And then you see it.
A huge well-known brand already has a membership – just like yours – and is operating in your target market.
Or maybe you’ve already launched your membership, but are quickly running out of ideas on how to standout from the big names in your space.
Either scenario is a difficult one to manage.
The thought of competing against a major player can be daunting to say the least…
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So we say goodbye to another year – and what a year 2020 was!
It was certainly a busy year for Membership Academy, as world events pushed us to refocus on how best to serve our community – leading to some big changes and additions.
We thought it would be useful to recap all of the new additions and features from Membership Academy during the past 12 months, just in case you missed anything!
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Instagram is by far one of the most popular social media platforms in the world.
Everyone from influencers and small businesses to large corporates are using it daily to promote their brands…
And you can see why with all its nifty features.
But that’s not what Instagram was originally designed for.
Its original purpose as a photo sharing app was for users to post images of food, sunsets and selfies.
That’s why out of all of the social media platforms, Instagram isn’t always the easiest one to use to promote your membership business…
One of the main reasons for this is that it doesn’t allow you to share a link in your posts like you can on other channels such as Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.
So how do you actively promote your membership without the ability to post links?
Use Instagram Stories.
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Just like that, another year is over…
And what a year 2020 has been!
Rather than dwell on what could only be described as an insane 12 months, let’s end the year on a high and think about what we’ve all achieved.
With only a few days of the year left, it’s time for our traditional end of year recap show. Listen for our top 10 most popular episodes of The Membership Guys podcasts in 2020.
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Running a membership business over the holidays can be a challenge.
It should be a time to take a break, sit back and relax.
But, maybe not everyone in your community celebrates the festive season, so you think you should carry on working throughout…
Or maybe this is your first year managing a membership site and you’re not sure how to navigate working over the festive period.
If either of these sound like you, then you should read on…
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Branding is all about your logo, your website colors, a memorable tagline and your company name… right?
Well, yes and no…
They play their part, but your brand is so much more than that.
It’s what all of these things together represent.
When it comes to your membership, it’s important to develop a brand strategy that reflects your business and conveys it to your audience in a positive way.
This will help you attract new members, retain existing ones and create a loyal fan base.
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Does your WordPress membership site have sufficient security measures in place?
Many membership site owners live in fear of their website being attacked, and for good reason …
If someone manages to hack into your Wordpress website, install something nasty or delete or steal your data, it could cripple your membership business.
That’s why it’s so important to be extra vigilant and make sure you take adequate steps to keep your site secure…
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When you first launch a membership it’s quite common to offer your initial members an amazing deal to entice them to join.
But a few years down the line when your membership has evolved, new content and features have been added, and your member base has grown, you might be regret being so generous.
Perhaps you’ve increased the price of your membership for new subscribers and now you’re questioning whether it’s fair your founding members continue to pay so little.
Maybe it’s time to increase the price they’re paying…
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Are you celebrating the milestones in your membership business?
If not, you should be!
Whether it’s an anniversary or hitting an important goal, it’s worth making an effort to mark those significant achievements.
In this episode, I share my top tips for celebrating your membership milestones in style…
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Turning your membership idea into a reality can take a lot of time and, often, a lot of money.
As such you might be trying to find a way to raise funds earlier in the process.
Some membership owners do this with a pre-sale.
A pre-sale works like this: you have a great idea for a membership, so you test its viability by taking it to your audience to see if they are willing to invest in your concept (even though it doesn’t exist yet!).
If they are, then you can generate seed money to help finance the development of your membership.
However, before pre-selling your membership idea, it’s important to know the pros and cons…
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Customer service is at the heart of the member experience.
No matter how great your membership site is, you’re going to have members contacting you for additional support at some point.
Providing your members with good customer service is an easy way to elevate their experience of your site, and similarly a bad customer service experience will quickly turn their opinion of your membership sour…
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