Are you thinking about starting a membership site, but unsure where to start or how to get started? Maybe you already have a membership site but membership has stalled out. We’re going to cover some key principles in running a successful membership site.
Membership Sites Take Time
It may take longer than you think to create your membership site. Give yourself some grace as you work through creating the membership site the way you want.
While building the foundation/backend of your membership site you may come up with other ideas and features you want to add to your members area.
If you have a launch plan in place, make sure you give yourself some wiggle room incase you run into setbacks. It is bound to happen, even with the best laid out plans.
Do Your Research
There are so many options available when it comes to creating your membership site. Plan out your must haves and your nice-to-have features. Then do your research to find the best platform for your needs.
I always recommend to create a list of features you’d like to incorporate in the future. You don’t want to build on a platform where you don’t have room to grow. You want to make sure you can grow without having to switch platforms.
Remember you may not always be able to incorporate everything to begin with but you don’t have to be perfect to start. It’s important to launch your program then work on perfecting it.
Tech Issues Will Arise
No matter what a tech issue will arise at some point. It can be little something as little as a lost file or big as your server crashing.
Early on in my career I’ve spent late nights/early mornings rebuilding sites after servers crashing.
If you’re not techie, this is a great area to invest in. Having someone who knows how to set everything up and protect it is important. We offer programs that will handle the tech side of your membership site, so that you don’t have to worry and get hung up on the tech.
Memberships Are Ever Changing
Your membership will be ever changing. What you deliver initially will continue to change over time.
Members will help you grow, build, and shape your membership site of the future. Using client feedback will help you create the best possible experience.
Remember the ideas you had for your membership site when you started? It doesn’t always turn out exactly how you envisioned but it will be better. Just be prepared to adapt to change along the way.
Sales and Cancellations
Most of us envision members coming in, but not the members leaving. No matter what you will have cancellations and even refunds.
Members don’t stay forever, they come and go. Of course you want to work on your member retention rates to keep customers around longer, but it is inevitable they will leave at some point.
Just know that there is a life cycle to memberships, and that clients leaving isn’t personal. There is a percentage of those customers who will be return customers in the future.
This is a great way to think of other options for those customers that may be canceling. Maybe you have a down-sale available to them that will keep them around longer at a lower price point. Something to support their needs. Setup an exit survey to ask your clients where they are at in their journey and what would be beneficial to them.
Deliver What Clients Want
When you create your membership, members are most likely to join because you’re the expert in your niche. It is important to continue to show up and deliver value.
Some believe they can setup a membership and just leave it on autopilot. That is not the case, you need to show up for your clients.
There is a level of expectation that clients will have access to you. You don’t have to give them direct access to you, but it’s important that you show up in the community.
Continue to add value to your customers over time. Our world is changing daily, we must continue to change to meet the needs of our customers. Don’t let your product become stale, continue to innovate and come up with creative ways to keep your product relevant.
Membership Sites Are a Lot of Work
They really are a lot of work when you’re starting out, but once you get the proper framework setup it can be more on autopilot from there. The hard work in the beginning is totally worth it in the end. Growing your membership site over time can be one of the most rewarding things you can do for your business.
Learn From An Expert
Maybe this is something you can do on your own and that is great! Or you’re the type of person who knows they want and need a membership site but is struggling getting started. We’re here to help! With over 10 years of experience in creating and running membership sites that are generating over 6 figures annually, we have the knowledge and expertise to get you where you want to be. Schedule a free consultation now!
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