How to Build Massive Membership Sites with John Meese
Mar 28, 2023
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In this engaging discussion, membership site expert John Meese shares his journey in scaling sites to six and seven figures, including the success of Platform University. He emphasizes the importance of community and continuous value for retention. John reveals effective strategies like leveraging urgency during launches and utilizing shorter free trials to boost conversions. He also highlights the critical role of customer lifetime value in membership management and offers insights on creating a thriving, sellable asset distinct from personal branding.
Building a successful membership site requires ongoing community engagement and continuous value delivery to retain members over time.
Emphasizing an infinite promise of transformation rather than finite outcomes can significantly enhance member commitment to subscription models.
Deep dives
The Value of Membership Sites
Membership sites serve as a compelling business model by providing recurring revenue streams that can significantly enhance financial stability for entrepreneurs. By transforming their expertise into an ongoing subscription service, successful membership sites offer consistent value to members who pay monthly or annually for access to exclusive content, resources, and community interactions. This model fosters a deeper engagement than traditional online courses, as members can actively participate, share experiences, and support each other, which can lead to higher completion rates and successful learning outcomes. The dual benefit of generating a steady income while simultaneously helping customers achieve recurring transformation makes membership sites an attractive avenue for anyone looking to monetize their knowledge.
Community Engagement and Retention Strategies
Key to successful membership sites is community engagement, which plays a crucial role in retaining members beyond initial sign-up. While many past membership sites relied heavily on Facebook groups for community interaction, modern practices are shifting towards dedicated platforms like Circle, allowing for better control and integrated features such as live streaming and course delivery. Retention rates can significantly decline around the three to four-month mark if continuous value is not provided, emphasizing the importance of ongoing engagement strategies that keep members active and connected. By establishing a culture of accountability and support, membership sites can foster longer-lasting relationships that result in a loyal and thriving community.
The Promise of Infinite Value
When creating a membership site, it is essential to focus on offering an infinite promise rather than a finite outcome, as this aligns with the ongoing nature of the subscription model. Unlike traditional courses that typically offer a specific result, such as completing a project or gaining a set of skills, membership sites should emphasize continuous transformation that can adapt to members' ongoing journey. By framing the offer in terms of long-term benefits—like achieving overall wellness or a sustainable business growth—prospective members are more likely to see the value and commit to staying in the program. This approach encourages sustained engagement and reduces churn, as members recognize that their journey does not have a definitive endpoint.
Effective Marketing and User Acquisition
Implementing effective marketing strategies is crucial for the success of membership sites, particularly in terms of nurturing potential leads before conversion. Utilizing founding membership launches can create urgency, encouraging users to join at a lower price during a limited-time offering, thus accelerating member acquisition and establishing a strong initial cohort. Moreover, leveraging gateway products, such as low-cost courses or books, can act as a stepping stone for users to transition into the membership, providing an opportunity to demonstrate value prior to committing to a subscription. By understanding customer lifetime value and implementing calculated urgency promotions, membership site owners can sustain growth and profitability over time.
Membership sites are a great way to ensure continuous revenue and build a community. Today we are joined by membership site expert John Meese. John has helped people and brands build six to seven-figure membership sites, one of the most notable being Platform University which he managed to scale to the point of resale. He is also the author of the bestselling book, Survive and Thrive: How to Build a Profitable Business in Any Economy (Including This One), and in this episode, he fills us in on everything we need to know about building a membership site. We discuss ways to facilitate and nurture the community aspect of membership sites and leverage the urgency factor to encourage people to sign up. John shares the keys to membership retention and delivering a high-value membership site. Tune in to discover John’s view on the free trial strategy, the infinite promise, and more! This episode will equip you to build a strong membership base of satisfied customers who continue to come back for more.
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