Mistakes new membership site owners make, and how to avoid them
The mistakes new membership site owners make most often, from overbuilding and underpricing to launching to nobody, and how to avoid each one.
Getting Started
Planning, validating and launching a membership website.
Mapping the member journey from first visit to renewal
Mapping the member journey from first visit to renewal: the stages every member passes through and what each stage needs from you.
Naming your membership and its levels
Naming your membership and its levels so the names explain themselves, and why clever names nobody understands cost you sign-ups and support time.
Setting realistic goals for your first year
Setting realistic goals for your first year of running a membership: honest, trackable targets for members, revenue and your own time.
How much content do you need before you launch?
How much content do you need before you launch? Enough to deliver your promise to the first members, plus a visible plan for what comes next.
Free, freemium or paid only: deciding where to start
Free, freemium or paid only? The trade-offs of offering a free membership level versus charging everyone from day one, and how to decide where to start.
Founding members: how to launch with a small, committed group
Founding members help you launch with a small, committed group. What to offer your founding cohort, what to ask in return, and how to run it well.
The launch checklist: what to have ready before you open the doors
A practical launch checklist for your membership website: the content, payments, emails and testing to have ready before you open the doors.
Writing a membership sales page that answers the real questions
How to write a membership sales page that answers the real questions visitors have, built around their objections and the outcomes they want.
Planning your membership levels before you set them up
Plan your membership levels on paper before touching any settings: what each level gets, who it is for, and how members move between them.