Membership Website Benefits: Launch Your Own

So, you’re considering starting a membership website! Well, before you go any further consider this: there’s a lot more to starting your own membership website than just inserting a membership plugin into your existing site or even throwing up a new site and then charging for access.

In this article I’m going to do my best to show you the many membership website benefits and the decisions you will need to make if you are going to create a successful membership website.

Membership Website Benefits

Here are a few membership website benefits which I think make membership sites hugely successful for online businesses and clubs (no particular order):

Residual revenue generated through monthly and/or annual subscriptions.
Membership websites create a steady, dependable income stream. Consider: 100 members paying you membership fees of £30 a month. That’s an income of £36,000 per year.
Your cash flow is more consistent.
Reliable income lets you invest more time and energy in your membership.
Membership websites allow you to reach out to virtually anyone in the world. With the introduction of the Internet the traditional concept of distance no longer exists.
Distance learning is here to stay. Today, sharing information is just a mouse click away for most people.
Reflection of your uniqueness. Your membership website is your baby, it is a reflection of your uniqueness and personality. A membership website allows you to demonstrate you knowledge and expertise.
Rewarded, both financially and spiritually, on an ongoing basis when helping your membership.
Competition is not based on price but on the quality of your product. You don’t want to compete in a market where the lowest price wins.
A membership website gives you stability, the sense of running a real business and the pleasure of constant interaction with your clients.
You own the community/product/service.
No Physical Product. As most membership websites provide information, the product or service once produced does not cost anything to supply (other than web hosting fees). There is no manufacturing costs, no stock to purchase and no shipping fees.
You get to keep almost 99% of the profits. (Oops, forgot about the tax man).
Enables you to build and capitalise on, your brand image.
A successful membership website is a constantly growing community of new members.
Membership loyalty. Selling one off products doesn’t build long term relationships with your customers. Members, on the other hand, interact with you and other members of your community.
Building a community. Having a community makes it much easier to promote new services and new products for many years, even to members who have finished their current membership.
Successful membership communities can be replicated and improved upon.

The above a just a few reasons a membership website might be a great investment for your business or club. If you can think of more then let us know in the comment box below.

Important Factors for Membership Website Success

A most important fact about creating an online membership website: it’s a lot easier than you might think. This is especially so if you use a content management system such as WordPress combined with a good membership plugin.

Create a Killer Product

First, forget the technical issues of creating a membership site. Selecting a good membership plugin will solve all those problems in one simple step.

Concentrate on providing something of value to your members, this is what matters most.

Which do you prefer? Great looking websites with lots of bells and whistles but no real substance or simple, to the point websites that give you the information you need?

Keep things simple and concentrate on the end user, your members. What type of experience are your providing? Are you giving them what they need? Research your membership demographic, discover their wants and over deliver.

Who are you selling too?
What are you promoting/selling? Does your product match those you are marketing to (your selected demographic)?
Where does your target demographic spend their time online?
When will your selected demographic purchase. Are they impulse buyers or do they take their time?
How will you wow your membership and keep them long term?
Why will they join your community? People buy for emotional reasons. It is important to research and understand the emotional triggers that elicit a purchase.

Growing Your Community and Brand

If you already have an established social following, brand or blog then you are already on the ladder to success as it will be much easier to introduce an established following to your membership site. There is also a much greater chance they will consider your premium services favourably and subscribe.

The Right Product at the Right Price

A major consideration for your membership website is subscription charges. How much are you going to charge for access to your membership website?

Many membership websites offer tiered pricing options such as free, monthly, annual and lifetime. Some grade members, i.e., Silver, Bronze and Gold with content being delivered according to a members grade. These type of options will suit almost any membership site.

Unfortunately, deciding what to charge for each of these options is where things get tricky.

The simplest solution to determining your pricing structure is to look at your competition. What are they charging? Whatever you do, don’t simply undercut their prices. Starting a pricing war doesn’t work and devalues your product.

Recently, a famous brand of handbags increased the price of their product significantly because they were selling too many to the wrong demographic. They wanted to be perceived as only being affordable by the very rich. The product hadn’t changed, just the perception.

Those with an existing following could try a survey. Ask your followers what they would be willing to pay for the product/service you offer.

Think Long Term Not Short Term

Unlike a standard website which can be thrown up and discarded at will, a membership website must be considered a long term investment. This is especially so if the membership website is running education courses.

So, concentrate on the long term viability of the site and the retention of your membership not on the short term goal of getting users signed up. The long term relationship with your members will bring you customers. Word-of-mouth is the best type of advertising you can get.

Membership Website Content

Here’s that phrase again: Content is king. Continued membership retention depends upon fresh, up to date content. If your membership website content is out of date you will lose your members very quickly. This is especially the case with educational and finance courses.

To retain members and improve subscriptions, continually add new content and improve on the current content each month. Make your members want to stick around.

Help Others

In our heart of hearts we are all good people and want to do our best for our families, friends and humanity. Yet this simple fact is often overlooked when we start a membership site. Membership is about community, don’t forget it. You can be instrumental in generating support for others using your membership site and it costs you nothing but a little time and effort.

Is there an organization, group or a cause you support? Use you’re membership site to assist in fund raising and other support activities. A simple link to the organization, i.e., Zooniverse, can be placed on your website to bring your members directly to the website of your supported cause.

Membership Website Benefits Conclusion

There are many ways to make money online, but when you jump from niche to niche you are starting back at zero again. Through the use of a membership site you can invest in your members, yourself and your business, while also seeing new subscribers and increase revenue month after month.

If you really want to create a steady recurring income from your hobby, specialised knowledge, or profession, learn how to create a membership website and implement it as soon as possible.

You can find more information on membership software in my article, Top Membership Management Software.

Finally, if you have any thoughts or suggestions relating to membership website benefits don’t forget to let me have them in the comment box below. Thanks for dropping by.