If you like recurring revenue, you'll love this conversation with Mike Morrison. Mike is co-founder of Membership Guys and host of the Membership Guys podcast. He helps membership site owners master their craft and get more recurring revenue on his site and the Membership Mastermind Facebook group. There's one goal to many customer interactions: to make a sale. Mike's here to help us understand the ins-and-outs of doing just that through site sign-ups!

Find Out More About Mike Here:

Membership Mastermind The Membership Guys The Membership Guys podcast Member Site Academy @MikeMIMO on Twitter

In This Episode:

• [01:11] - Mike talks about why someone should have a membership site and what some of the benefits are.
• [02:58] - Is having a membership site beneficial even if you aren't an authority or expert on something, and your business is based on e-commerce instead?
• [06:39] - Mike discusses a subscription-based product based on podcasts and discusses the value that it provides. He and Stephan then dig more deeply into providing value on a membership site in the podcast sphere.
• [08:52] - Stephan talks about Mike Vardy of Productivityist and how they got to know each other.
• [12:29] - Mike isn't a big fan of opening and closing the door to membership sites repeatedly, he explains. He relates this to the New Year's experience of swarms of new people going to the gym every January and driving away the regulars.
• [17:28] - It makes sense to do a launch if, for example, you have a live event that goes with the program that only takes place once a year. Mike then relates this perspective to what he has been saying.
• [20:38] - Mike offers some brilliant words of wisdom: if there's anything in your marketing that would make your audience unhappy if they found it out, don't do it.
• [23:40] - Stephan talks about WP Elevation and Troy Dean, who was on Marketing Speak recently, and touches on why opening and closing membership works in some cases.
• [25:24] - What are Mike's thoughts on third-party hosted membership sites as opposed to hosting your own?
• [27:52] - Other than Memberium, are there other tools that Mike recommends? In his answer, Mike discusses the limitations of these tools as well as offering some great recommendations.
• [32:56] - Mike discusses where people should go to get help building things out once they've settled on their tools and plugins.
• [36:42] - What does Mike think of WishList Member, aMember, and OptimizePress? In his answer, Mike explores a problem with the WordPress world and the issues with licensing.
• [41:14] - Mike offers a free plugin comparison chart. You can find that at this link!
• [42:37] - We hear some of Mike's best practice tips for a membership site. He emphasizes the importance of a retention strategy.
• [45:51] - One of Mike's tips is to implement a Dunning process for handling failed subscription payments.
• [49:48] - What does Mike recommend for cases when emails your aren't getting through to customers and members?
• [52:08] - Mike is using ManyChat for his messenger bot software.
• [52:56] - We hear Mike's thoughts on using text messaging as part of his marketing and communication strategy.
• [55:51] - What are Mike's favorite episodes of the Membership Guys podcast, and why?
• [57:22] - Where can listeners go to work with Mike or join his community?

Links and Resources:

• Membership Mastermind
• The Membership Guys
• The Membership Guys podcast
• Member Site Academy
• @MikeMIMO on Twitter
• AppleCare
• Mark Asquith
• John Lee Dumas
• Podcast Websites
• Patreon
• Mike Vardy on the Optimized Geek
• Productivityist
• Jeff Walker
• WP Elevation
• Troy Dean on Marketing Speak
• Memberium
• LearnDash
• Thinkific
• Infusionsoft
• Active Campaign
• Invision Community
• vBulletin
• XenForo
• MemberPress
• WishList Member
• aMember
• OptimizePress
• Free download: Guide to Choosing a Membership Plugin
• Dunning process
• Stunning
• ManyChat
• The Membership Guys episode: Why I Dislike Closed Door Membership Marketing
• The Membership Guys episode: How to Build a Global Brand with Chris Ducker
• The Membership Guys episode: Using Webinars to Grow Your Membership with Amy Porterfield
• The Membership Guys episode: How to Use Live Video to Market Your Membership with Luria Petrucci
• Intercom
• bbPress
• BuddyPress