Membership Geeks Podcast with Mike Morrison

Build it and they will come.

While that approach may have worked for Kevin Costner in Field of Dreams; it most certainly does not apply to launching a successful membership website.

Time and time again we see cases where people are so entrenched in the process of building their membership site that they haven’t even begun to think about how to get it off the ground.

In this episode I share 5 launch strategies that are straightforward but effective, and can easily be combined with your existing launch plans to make sure your membership site gets off to a good start.

Launching a membership site is an exciting but nerve wracking time.

You've probably put your blood, sweat and tears into creating this site, no doubt losing some sleep along the way.

But when the time comes to actually open the doors, we can often find ourselves hesitating.

What if it all goes wrong?

Running a beta test can be a great way of assuaging this fear, as well as ensuring that you launch the best possible version of your membership.

In this episode, I share my top tips on running an effective beta test for your membership site.

We can all be overprotective of our content, especially when it comes to being open and allowing our competitors into our safe and secure membership site. I choose to have an open-minded attitude and assume the best in people. There are ways to make it work and even benefit from opening your doors and letting them in, while staying vigilant.

Essential Learning Points:

• Learn what it is that makes you different from your competitors
• Find out what to do if there’s a competitor in your community
• Learn about the red flags that indicate suspicious behaviour
• Listen to our crazy content theft story

Important Links & Mentions: 

Episode 198 = What to do when someone steals your membership content: https://www.themembershipguys.com/membership-content-theft/

Key Quotes:

“It’s natural to be over-protective, but don’t get paranoid.” 

 “Always see the best in people! Don’t assume that people are joining with negative intentions.” 

“We know our real competitors won’t steal our content. They don’t need to because they’ve got their own experience, knowledge and expertise to draw on.”

“We may be directly competitive, but there’s always a level of respect and professionalism where you would never dream of ripping each other off.” 

“Ultimately, if you have others in your industry doing good work, and if you can collaborate to do great things, then everyone wins.”

Do you know what people in your audience actually want from your membership?

When planning your membership site, it’s easy to fall into the trap of building something that we think would be good, rather than something that’s based on research into what your audience really want (and need).

In doing so, you risk spending hours creating content and investing in features, only to be left scratching your head when people simply don’t engage in the way you hope they will.

Whether it’s your membership offering; your blog, podcast or video channel; or even just the updates you post on social media – discovering what people actually want and need is critical to connecting with your audience and driving them to action.

In this episode, I discuss 4 ways to discover what your audience really want.

Your membership might be the best thing since sliced bread, but if you aren’t marketing it correctly, you aren’t going to be getting the sales you deserve.

There are some simple steps you can take to get the most out of marketing, reach more people, and turn those on-the-fencers into fully-fledged members.

In this episode, we run through 9 marketing tips that will help you go back to basics - and earn some serious growth in your memberships as a result.

Essential Learning Points:

• You can make small, simple changes at each stage in your funnel that will produce more sales, more consistently
• If 9 tips sound like too many, take just 2: you need a strategy for cart abandonments and a strategy for thank you pages
• Show people what you’re selling and keep your email list engaged
• Go behind the scenes and use your content to give a real insight into your membership
• Use your content to shout out and speak to your members
• Use rewards and splinter products to get slow movers further along the funnel

So, 2019 is done and dusted. Hopefully it was a successful one for you and your membership.

It was certainly a big one for us, with more highlights than you can shake a stick at - many of which you've heard us 'document' right here on The Membership Guys Podcast.

And I know this is so cliche... but I swear the older I get, the faster each year seems to pass. I can't quite come to terms with the fact that tomorrow it'll be 2020.

Instead of freaking out about that, we're wrapping up the year with what has become a bit of a tradition here at The Membership Guys - our end of year recap show where we look back at the top 10 most popular episodes of the podcast throughout the past 12 months.

Although every membership site is unique, you’ll usually discover that seven types of members keep showing up in every single one of them. While some of these will mimic your ‘ideal member,’ others will test your patience and frustrate you beyond belief.

Whatever the case, you’re sure to recognize some (if not all) of these ‘member profiles’ within your membership site! Listen in to discover the seven types of members you will see in every membership site.

Essential Learning Points:

• The seven member types you’ll find in every membership site
• Key traits of members who engage and contribute more than others
• Why some members seem to just disappear from your membership
• A few unfortunate characteristics of members who are most likely to frustrate you

Key Quotes:

“The ‘Average Joes’ are the people who make up the majority of your member base. They're awesome. We love them. They are the lifeblood of our membership.”

“The Power User are the one percent. These types of members are awesome because they contribute so much inside the community. They instigate discussions, they proactively help other members and they seek out opportunities to be of service in your membership.”

We really appreciate you choosing to listen to us and for supporting the podcast. If you enjoyed today's show, please share it using the social media buttons on this page.

We would also be eternally grateful if you would consider taking a minute or two to leave an honest review and rating for the show in Apple Podcasts. They're extremely helpful when it comes to reaching our audience and we read each and every one personally!

Finally, don't forget to subscribe to the podcast in Apple Podcasts to make sure that you never miss an episode.

Are you thinking about charging a joining fee for your membership?

A joining fee is an arbitrary fee that new members pay on top of their first monthly payment. If you ask me, I think that joining fees are unnecessary and there’s often no real justification for it. However, there are situations when a joining fee may be necessary.

If you’re considering having a joining fee for your membership, make sure you listen to this episode of the podcast or read the blog post, where I dive into the topic of joining fees and explain everything you need to know about them.

Essential Learning Points:

• Why joining fees are usually nothing more than unjustified arbitrary fees
• The hard truth that if someone is charging joining fees, they may not have their member’s best interests at heart
• How to control your members access to your back catalog of content
• Legitimate reasons when a joining fee may be appropriate

Key Quotes:

“They've realized that no one is staying in the membership for more than two or three months. Instead of addressing the real problem…they just charge a joining fee instead to make more money from you.”

“It's very rare that you get an incredible membership that is very ethically run where the content is amazing, the customer service is phenomenal and that also has a joining fee.”

We really appreciate you choosing to listen to us and for supporting the podcast. If you enjoyed today's show, please share it using the social media buttons on this page.

We would also be eternally grateful if you would consider taking a minute or two to leave an honest review and rating for the show in Apple Podcasts. They're extremely helpful when it comes to reaching our audience and we read each and every one personally!

Finally, don't forget to subscribe to the podcast in Apple Podcasts to make sure that you never miss an episode.

You know your membership is going through a downturn when you notice a reduction in sales, fewer member signups and a potential slowdown to your overall growth rate.

When your membership experiences a downturn, it can be pretty nerve-wrecking as thoughts of its impending doom race through your mind. But, before you jump to conclusions, you need to take some time to analyse the situation and come up with ways to turn things around.

In this episode of the podcast, I talk about how you can deal with a downturn in your membership so that it’ll survive for many more years to come.

Episode Summary:

• How to assess the severity of your membership’s downturn
• Why it’s so important to have context and account for every possible factor as to why your membership is experiencing a downturn
• How changes you made to your membership months ago can impact it today
• How to find the root cause of the current downturn in your membership

Key Quotes:

“If you think your membership should be going up by 1000 new people every single month, you're just getting started and you have quite a small audience, those expectations might not be aligned with reality.”

“You've got to be more analytical. You've got to back-up your interpretation of performance with some data and with some feedback.”

Is now a good time to have a membership site?

On this special episode of the podcast, you’ll get to listen in to the opening keynote from our very first conference ‘Retain Live 2019.’ It was an incredible event with some phenomenal speakers gracing the stage eager to share their expertise and insights with the audience.

The first keynote was delivered by myself (Mike Morrison) and Callie Willows, the other half of The Membership Guys. Our keynote explored the bigger picture of what is going on in the membership industry, what the future of the industry looks like and what people need to do to prepare for the months and years to come.

So, if you missed the keynote the first time around, you’re in luck!

Episode Summary:

• Positive and negative implications from the way the membership industry is going
• How to handle the increased competition for your members’ time and attention
• How to make sure your members don’t cut you from their monthly expenses as a result of subscription fatigue
• Why regulation is so important in the membership site industry
• The death of SEO and how this will impact memberships
• How to build your members trust in you and your membership

Key Quotes:

“Memberships, at the core of their essence, are simply value exchanges. You want people to pay you on an ongoing basis, you need to deliver value on an ongoing basis.”

“Third Party links to other websites are being squeezed out. Google is no longer somewhere that gives you a recommendation of the best websites to get your answer. It’s now the place that wants to give you the answer themselves.”

“Even the smallest personal touch that you can make, makes a big impression…there's lots of different ways you can do this from personal videos to welcome packs to handwritten cards, are all different ways you can add a personal touch to your membership without actually needing to kind of take a lot of extra time or money to do so.”