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 say things like:
“You must offer private coaching”
“You must start developing products”
“You must start running events”
Which more often than not results in them saying…
“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?
Maybe this article will help you decide…
Don't let others pressure you into making decisions
It can be so tempting to follow the advice from others when several people are saying the same thing to you…
Especially when they tell you you're leaving money on the table by not exploring these other revenue opportunities.
And to an extent we understand this notion because memberships can work very well as part of a larger ecosystem of products and services.
And a lot of entrepreneurs will feel driven by the need to jump on every opportunity available to them…
It's in their nature…
But that doesn't mean you have to do the same, especially if you don't want to.
If you don't want to run live events or offer high level coaching or launch a new program, then you don't have to.
You may be completely content with how your membership business is running right now…
Or you may feel driven to explore other revenue opportunities…
That's up to you.
Remember that your membership is your business, and the way you run it isn't wrong just because it doesn't align with someone else's perception of what's right.
Don't get us wrong, we're not against adding multiple revenue streams to your membership…
We've actually explored some within our own business over the years…
But if you decide to go in that direction, it needs to feel like the right fit for you, your membership and your audience…
Not a reaction to advice from several people who've told you that you ‘must' do it.
Why it's okay to “leave money on the table”
There is no ‘must' when it comes to business – just what's right for you.
And when it comes to considering new revenue opportunities, if there's one thing we'd like you to remember, it's this…
It's perfectly fine to leave money on the table if it's not a table you want to be at.
This is your membership site, and it's up to you what you do with it.
When someone tells you that you ‘must' do something, it's usually because it's worked for them or someone they look up to…
Or quite often it's the business model that they teach.
And as the saying goes, “When all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail”…
In other words, if all you know how to do is market high end coaching programs, and that's worked well for you, you're more inclined to tell everyone else they need to do the same.
But when you think about it, if everyone did that, it wouldn't be an effective revenue stream. It'd be way too oversaturated!
Just because it worked for them doesn't guarantee that you'll generate the same results by replicating what they did.
Your membership can be the core of your business
There is no one-size-fits-all business model we can all turn to when it comes to memberships.
We have to create our own paths and do what we believe is right for our members.
When people say you're leaving money on the table by not seizing specific opportunities, it's usually coming from a scarcity mindset.
Their concern is if you don't grasp the opportunities now, they'll dry up, or you'll run out of steam with your membership and you'll be left with nothing.
The truth is, it takes much more confidence to say no and focus on your membership as the core of your business.
You might have some other revenue streams, but your membership is the beating heart of what you do, and that's fine.
You don't need to explain yourself.
Choose opportunities carefully
Knowing which opportunities to grasp and which ones to let go of is so important.
It's worth taking the time to really think about what you want to pursue within your business to avoid wasting time on pointless endeavours.
Before you invest in a new opportunity for revenue and growth, make sure that it's something your customer base wants…
If nobody is interested in what you're selling, there's no point going through the trouble of trying to sell it.
If you decide to launch a new product or coaching programme, etc., and it's successful – that's great!
Hopefully, your efforts will pay off, and you can gain more revenue and customers as a result.
You might find though that there are so many growth opportunities available that you don't know where to begin…
Or you take on a bit too much…
Let's say you add coaching into the mix or host live events on top of your membership or maybe you add a premium tier or you partner with a company to create merchandise for your members…
That's a lot of things to juggle.
Don't let this be you!
But more than that…
Where will it end?
How much opportunity is too much?
Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should.
What does success look like for you?
The thought process is that tapping into these additional income streams will ultimately lead to greater levels of success because you'll have more money…
But success is not all about how much money you have…
Success to us is about living a life of your own design.
After all, being able to determine your own path, including how you work and when you work, is one of the main reasons people pursue entrepreneurship.
We all want to be in control of our lives, our freedom and our income…
And the membership business model offers us the opportunity to do that.
So if you want to do one-on-one coaching or start hosting events, go for it.
At the same time, don't feel like you have to try something out of fear of leaving money on the table.
And don't think for one second that deciding to focus 100% of your time, your energy and your resources on running your business your way means that you're doing something wrong…
You're not.
You know your membership site better than anyone and there's nothing wrong in focusing what you're good at and enjoy.
So are you leaving money on the table when it comes to your membership business?
Hopefully now you feel confident to answer that question in the right way for you.
