Greg Raiten, a former lawyer and a co-founder at The Suite, a curated community-based platform for C-suite executives, joins Erik Torenberg to share the evolution of The Suite, from a side project that grew into a revenue-generating model through membership and sponsorships. They also discuss the process of building and scaling community-based businesses, effectiveness of paid memberships, and exploring future community expansion into other C-suite roles.
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LINKS:
Explore the GC/legal community: https://www.lsuite.co
Explore the CFO/finance community: https://www.fsuite.co
Company website: https://www.thesuite.com
Subscribe to the Media Empires Newsletter: https://media-empires.beehiiv.com/
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X / TWITTER:
@eriktorenberg (Erik)
@gregraiten (Greg)
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TIMESTAMPS:
(00:00) Intro
(00:58) Greg's background and early career
(03:17) Evolution of The Suite
(05:51) Vision and expansion
(11:32) Business model
(13:45) Community engagement and events
(17:46) Online membership experience
(20:22) Sponsor: Metaview
(21:29) Sponsorship and revenue model
(22:55) Challenges of future of events
(28:44) Expanding professional communities
(34:16) Building a network
(35:49) Pricing strategies for community memberships
(42:08) Scaling and fundraising
(45:05) Future of paid vs. free communities
(47:37) Successful community models
(50:22) Wrap
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This show is produced by Turpentine: a network of podcasts, newsletters, and more, covering technology, business, and culture — all from the perspective of industry insiders and experts. We’re launching new shows every week, and we’re looking for industry-leading sponsors — if you think that might be you and your company, email us at erik@turpentine.co.
