Is it me or has 2021 been a bit of a blur?!
It’s definitely been another strange year as we’ve all tried to navigate life running a membership in the midst of a global pandemic…
That being said, with only a few days left of 2021, it’s time for our traditional end of year recap show.
Listen for our top 10 most popular episodes of The Membership Guys podcast in 2021.
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As we come to the end of the year, this is the time when everyone tends to get a little bit thoughtful and reflective…
Looking back on what’s been achieved over the past 12 months and planning for the coming year.
For more established membership owners the year ahead might be fully mapped out so they know what to expect.
But for those new to the membership world, what lies ahead is largely unknown…
And a little bit scary!
While we don’t have a crystal ball to tell you exactly what’s going to happen over the next 12 months…
We can try our best to prepare you for some of the things you’re likely to discover in your first year of running a membership site.
So if you’ve recently become a membership owner or are about to launch your website, read on…
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Back in October 2021, all Facebook properties went down for five hours…
That meant no Facebook, no Messenger, Instagram, Workplace or WhatsApp…
And the whole internet erupted into a panic.
While for most it was a minor inconvenience…
For those businesses relying on Facebook groups, social media marketing, or website access through Facebook logins, it was a stressful time.
Some membership owners had no access to their communities…
Members weren’t able to login into their subscription sites using their social accounts…
Scheduled live training sessions were cancelled…
It was a little bit chaotic to say the least!
The outage itself may have only lasted a matter of hours…
But what it did for me was serve as a reminder of the risks of relying on a third-party platform for building any element of your business.
Or in other words, building your membership on rented land…
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Are you using email marketing to drive member signups?
If done correctly, a strong email strategy will increase the flow of people into your membership sales funnel, turning complete strangers into paying members.
In simple terms, they’ll come into your world, consume a free piece of content…
Maybe by reading your blog, listening to your podcast or downloading a lead magnet…
And they’re left wanting more, so subscribe to your email list to receive regular updates from you.
And once they’re on your list, that’s when the hard work begins…
Because it’s not enough to have these people simply reading your emails…
You want to inspire them to take action…
To press the ‘join here’ button your sales page and enter your membership community…
But how can you do this?
Here are six ways to level up your email marketing efforts so you can convert more subscribers into paying members…
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How would you like to make more money in your membership today?
It’s a no brainer, right? Of course you do.
As membership owners, we’re naturally always looking at ways to increase revenue.
Most of the time this will include planning long-term sales and marketing strategies, but what about the here and now?
Good news!
There are tactics you can implement today to inject some additional revenue into your business…
And I’m here to share them with you.
Here are four things you can do today to drive membership revenue…
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Every successful membership site owner knows their numbers…
If you don’t know how your business is performing in key areas, then you have no basis for growth and making improvements…
Or any idea of whether or not your membership site is doing well or if it’s in trouble.
Worryingly, our Online Membership Industry Report revealed that 14% of membership site owners aren’t tracking their KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) at all…
And an even greater number only track a few key metrics!
This needs to change…
And we want to help make that happen…
So if you’re currently not tracking metrics on your site…
Or are measuring some, but are not sure if they’re the ones you should be focusing on…
Here are the KPIs that you should be monitoring and measuring to ensure you have the finger on the pulse of your membership business:
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A product launch is both an exhilarating and terrifying time, especially when you’re launching something brand new.
There’s a lot of anxiety that comes with it with constant questions springing to mind…
What if nobody buys?
What if too many people buy and your website goes down?
What you can’t handle them all buying at once?
A membership launch is no different.
But unlike some other products, a membership site doesn’t need to live or die based on a launch alone.
And while this takes some of the pressure off, you do still want your membership launch to be as successful as possible.
After all, the goal of any launch is to get as many people as possible aware of your product and, hopefully, purchasing.
For a membership site that means you want your first influx of members to give you some momentum to move forward with…
To get your community up and running, to get people engaging and consuming your content and giving you feedback that enables you to make your product even better…
Which in turn makes it easier for you to attract new members in the future.
But how do you ensure that your launch is a success?
Let’s explore six of our favorite tactics to create interest and buzz for your membership launch…
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Promoting your membership using social media has it’s challenges.
There’s a lot of noise to cut through…
So many platforms out there that we feel pressured to be active on daily…
Sometimes it’s hard to know what what to say to followers.
Or how to even begin building an audience.
And don’t even get us started on those pesky algorithms!
While there’s no easy solution to conquering social media marketing, there are some steps you can take to build a solid foundation that will generate positive results for your membership business.
And we’re here to share them with you!
Here’s our 12 step plan for promoting your membership using social media.
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As membership owners, we put so much time, energy and resources into creating awesome content…
But how do we make sure members actually consume it?
Ideally, you want members to complete your courses, watch video tutorials, download materials and progress towards achieving their goals.
But sometimes, they need a little dose of inspiration or a reminder of the fantastic content you have to offer.
So how can you give members a little nudge in the right direction to consume your content?
Here are four simple tips and techniques you can adopt…
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Ever heard the phrase “You only get one chance to create a good first impression?”
This is something you need to remember when welcoming new members into your site.
Because what happens in the initial days and weeks of someone becoming a member is crucial.
A great experience will encourage new members to engage in your community and consume your content…
But more than that it’ll also create a sense of belonging which will make them more likely to stick around for months and years to come.
You may already have an onboarding process that covers the necessary first steps of a member’s journey…
But how can you elevate that experience even more?
Here are five simple but effective ways to level up your new member experience…
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Does every piece of content you create need to go inside your membership?
You might be thinking “well yes of course it does, my business is all about my membership”…
But what if you want to sell it as a standalone product?
This is something that’s come up a few times in Membership Academy and in our Facebook community…
And it’s a strange one…
Because for some the answer is obvious…
Just to go ahead and create a standalone product…
But for others it’s a bit more complicated…
As creating separate products and content from your membership can sometimes cause a lot of confusion in your community…
And even result in some very disgruntled members…
So how can you navigate this?
Let’s take a look…
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Choosing the right topic for your membership is really important…
In fact, it’s fundamental to everything else you do thereafter.
And a decision that shouldn’t be taken lightly…
Because if you get it wrong, then you’re starting your membership with a pretty unstable foundation.
So how do you go about choosing the right topic?
Well, there are four key components to consider when deciding whether or not your idea is the right fit for an online membership…
And this is something we recently explored when creating our brand-new Membership Roadmap course that we’ve just rolled out inside Membership Academy…
Something we’re so excited about that we’ve decided to share a little sneak peak with you…
This blog post is based on content taken from one of the lessons…
So keep reading for a special preview…
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Considering increasing the price of your membership?
Perhaps this is something you’ve been thinking about for a while, but are reticent to start the process.
Or maybe other people are telling you that you should do it, but you’re not sure that now is the right time.
In either case, we understand your reluctance.
Because pricing your membership may sound like a straightforward thing to do…
But in reality it’s often not!
You don’t want to under price it as it will be seen as cheap…
But you also don’t want the subscription fee to be so high that no one signs up.
And then of course there’s the timing of the increase…
It needs to be right.
And there are some clear indicators to help you decide if now that is that time…
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Ever heard the saying “members come for the content but stay for the community?”
Never has a truer word been spoken when it comes to online memberships…
Because if the community they find isn’t supportive or welcoming, your members won’t stick around for long.
After all, no one wants to actively participate in a community that’s stressful to be a part of…
Where it’s a toxic environment…
And there’s the constant worry of saying something and getting jumped on or trolled …
That’s not what your members sign up for…
And as a community leader, you have a duty to take action and keep the peace between your members…
So you create a positive, friendly hub for your members to hang out, have conversations and achieve what they set out to when they joined…
But how do you do it?
Follow these six simple tips to keep the harmony inside your membership community…
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Should you charge monthly or annually for your membership site?
This may sound like a straightforward question…
But if there’s one thing that’s not always simple when it comes to memberships…
Its pricing.
Deciding on what to charge, whether or not to have multiple tiers and a joining fee…
These are just a few things to take into consideration.
Then of course there’s billing frequency.
How regularly you charge your members can impact your sales, member engagement and retention.
Not to mention the implications on your wider business in terms of stability and cashflow.
With all of this to keep in mind, it’s not surprising that the whole process can become overwhelming for some.
But if you’re planning to launch a membership site, pricing is something you need to nail pretty early on in your journey…
And deciding the frequency of payments is a good place to start.
So should you charge monthly or annually?
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New member signups have dwindled….
Engagement is at a low point…
And your membership has become what can only be described as a ghost town…
This is every membership owner’s worst nightmare…
But a challenge many face from time to time…
When it comes to growing your membership, momentum plays a huge role in helping you achieve success…
And when it slows down and starts to stagnate, while it may be a worry, there are some things you can do to get it back on track…
If this is something you’re struggling with right now…
We’re here to help!
Here’s how to inject new life into a stale membership…
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