December 01, 2020

157: Running a Successful Membership that is ALL about the COMMUNITY (Featuring Zac Small & Craig James)

1 hour 50 minutes

Today we’re doing a few things differently, so get ready: we have two guests and zero “traditional” online courses involved. But don’t worry, because my discussion with Craig and Zach of Fraternity of Excellence is still super-relevant to many aspects of having a more typical online course business or membership model.

“Don’t let the fear of not being perfect when you launch keep you from launching.”

- Craig James

“Inside a membership community, it’s all about relationships.”

- Zach Small

In This Episode, We Talked About:

(0:40) Dr. K is back: where was he and what do lizards have to do with it?

(6:18) Our Asheville, NC recommendations + David’s ideal Instagrammer

(8:47) Getting recognized “in the wild”

(10:27) An update on my quest for the ultimate course platform

(11:37) Creating course content with other teachers and how I’ve set up compensation

(14:25) Setting the stage for today’s interview

(17:09) Why and how Craig and Zach partnered to create their membership site

(21:06) The 4-Hour Workweek mindset versus the community-based membership model

(21:35) Bootstrapping and their early business models

(24:35) Figuring out pricing with nothing to compare to

(27:38) The challenge of communicating value in exclusivity

(28:56) How Craig and Zach would change their approach to pricing if they were starting over

(30:27) Who their audience is and how they provide value to their niche

(33:18) How Craig and Zach’s offer has evolved

(36:25) A favorite story of how their group impacted one of their members

(39:11) How Zach quit his day job as their membership grew

(42:53) Getting started with their site and figuring out best tools and software

(46:21) Slack, “babies,” and focusing on the end goal

(50:47) Is the paid version of Slack worth it?

(53:00) How Craig and Zach make sure their membership never gets too big for its own good?

(55:32) The pen name dilemma

(1:03:41) Live events: how important are they?

(1:07:19) What Craig and Zach do to prevent member churn and encourage community-building

(1:10:35) Dealing with trolls and naysayers

(1:15:40) Making partnerships work

(1:18:43) Advice for new and aspiring course or membership creators

(1:22:19) David’s questions about the appeal of membership to me

(1:24:08) App development stories (plus an AI interruption)

(1:31:25) A not-so-shocking reveal

(1:34:36) Thinking about the challenges inherent to partnerships

(1:38:26) How I handle trolling plus how David avoided impersonating Michael Scott

(1:48:46) Finding the line between trolling and constructive criticism

(1:50:14) Wrapping up

That’s all for now, folks! See you on the next episode of The Online Course Show.

Links

Offers and Tools:

Bonjoro Free Trial

ClickFunnels Free Trial

Win of the Week

Guest Links:

Fraternity of Excellence

Family Alpha

Masculine by Design

Resources and Recommendations:

Chandler Corbin

Tupelo Honey Cafe

Pizza Mind

Upwork

Fiverr

Paid Memberships Pro

Slack

Zoom

Episode 95

David's video about running

Jacques’ Courses:

The Online Course Accelerator

Next Level Courses

Piano in 21 Days

David’s Courses:

Wellness Program Expert

...more

View all episodes

By Jacques Hopkins

4.9

215215 ratings

December 01, 2020

157: Running a Successful Membership that is ALL about the COMMUNITY (Featuring Zac Small & Craig James)

1 hour 50 minutes

“Don’t let the fear of not being perfect when you launch keep you from launching.”

- Craig James

“Inside a membership community, it’s all about relationships.”

- Zach Small

In This Episode, We Talked About:

(0:40) Dr. K is back: where was he and what do lizards have to do with it?

(6:18) Our Asheville, NC recommendations + David’s ideal Instagrammer

(8:47) Getting recognized “in the wild”

(10:27) An update on my quest for the ultimate course platform

(11:37) Creating course content with other teachers and how I’ve set up compensation

(14:25) Setting the stage for today’s interview

(17:09) Why and how Craig and Zach partnered to create their membership site

(21:06) The 4-Hour Workweek mindset versus the community-based membership model

(21:35) Bootstrapping and their early business models

(24:35) Figuring out pricing with nothing to compare to

(27:38) The challenge of communicating value in exclusivity

(28:56) How Craig and Zach would change their approach to pricing if they were starting over

(30:27) Who their audience is and how they provide value to their niche

(33:18) How Craig and Zach’s offer has evolved

(36:25) A favorite story of how their group impacted one of their members

(39:11) How Zach quit his day job as their membership grew

(42:53) Getting started with their site and figuring out best tools and software

(46:21) Slack, “babies,” and focusing on the end goal

(50:47) Is the paid version of Slack worth it?

(53:00) How Craig and Zach make sure their membership never gets too big for its own good?

(55:32) The pen name dilemma

(1:03:41) Live events: how important are they?

(1:07:19) What Craig and Zach do to prevent member churn and encourage community-building

(1:10:35) Dealing with trolls and naysayers

(1:15:40) Making partnerships work

(1:18:43) Advice for new and aspiring course or membership creators

(1:22:19) David’s questions about the appeal of membership to me

(1:24:08) App development stories (plus an AI interruption)

(1:31:25) A not-so-shocking reveal

(1:34:36) Thinking about the challenges inherent to partnerships

(1:38:26) How I handle trolling plus how David avoided impersonating Michael Scott

(1:48:46) Finding the line between trolling and constructive criticism

(1:50:14) Wrapping up

That’s all for now, folks! See you on the next episode of The Online Course Show.

Links

Offers and Tools:

Bonjoro Free Trial

ClickFunnels Free Trial

Win of the Week

Guest Links:

Fraternity of Excellence

Family Alpha

Masculine by Design

Resources and Recommendations:

Chandler Corbin

Tupelo Honey Cafe

Pizza Mind

Upwork

Fiverr

Paid Memberships Pro

Slack

Zoom

Episode 95

David's video about running

Jacques’ Courses:

The Online Course Accelerator

Next Level Courses

Piano in 21 Days

David’s Courses:

Wellness Program Expert

...more

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157: Running a Successful Membership that is ALL about the COMMUNITY (Featuring Zac Small & Craig James)

157: Running a Successful Membership that is ALL about the COMMUNITY (Featuring Zac Small & Craig James)

More shows like The Online Course Show

The Smart Passive Income Online Business and Blogging Podcast

Entrepreneurs on Fire

The Amy Porterfield Show

The Side Hustle Show

Capitalism.com with Ryan Daniel Moran

YouTube Creators Hub

The Mind Your Business Podcast

The Goal Digger Podcast | Top Business and Marketing Podcast for Creatives, Entrepreneurs, and Women in Business

The Game with Alex Hormozi

The Russell Brunson Show

The Jasmine Star Show

The Think Media Podcast

Creator Science

Course Creators HQ...All About Online Courses

The Art of Selling Online Courses