Essential Do’s and Don’ts for Running a Membership Site
Membership Websites are growing like Ted’s failed relationships, but we do not have 11 seasons to find the one that sustains! Thus, you must remember the basic do’s and don’ts of running a membership site. We’re sorry, Ted, but we need to fast-track to successfully run our membership business.
From running a membership blog to an online coaching membership, these tips would work wonders for all. So, if you are ready to create a membership site or are already running one, start taking notes as it is going to be LEGEN…..wait for it…..DARY. Legendary!
Do these things to make your membership site thrive
1. Keep Learning and Updating Yourself for the Best Content Updates
Even if you have reached the mark of 100, 500 members, learning doesn’t stop. Keep in touch with other membership businesses, business forums, and communities to understand the changes in the market. Observe what works for your competitors and what their members are saying about the membership.
This will keep you on your toes to learn about new tricks and adapt to the updates in the field. This understanding will help you come up with the best content updates to satisfy your customers.
2. Interact with Your Members on their Level
Be a part of your member’s community and have conversations as a member, not a business person. A membership community is where the members discuss their dreams, goals, difficulties, and requirements. If you actively observe or take part in these, the members will feel heard and involved. Their trust in your business will increase.
3. Provide Flexible Membership Plans
If your audience demographics cater to a wider audience, you must provide multiple membership tiers. These varied plans with different levels of pricing will attract audiences with different budgets. If there’s something for everyone, the chances of receiving more members increase.
For a family dinner consisting of everyone from 9 to 90, we would always opt for a multicuisine restaurant, right? Similarly, have a buffet of varied prices so that the visitors can pick and choose based on their requirements and budget, simply.
4. Keep Your Site Updated
You must keep your WordPress core updated at all times. Along with that, if you are using the best membership Plugin -ARMember, then keep it updated as well. All your Plugins and Themes must be up to date to stay away from bugs and keep your site secure.
Enable WordPress Backup Plugins or Security Plugins so that your data is not lost due to any technical errors. Make sure that your Plugins are not bloated or too heavy otherwise, it will make your site slower which in turn reduces visitors.
5. Enhance User Experience and Set Up Mobile-friendly Memberships
Right from the time a visitor looks up your membership plans, to their onboarding, and retention experience, everything must be smooth. The user interface must be simple and easy to navigate. The plans, the payment process, the onboarding requirements, everything should be charted out well. You must also plan a member welcome email series to guide them through your membership site.
Further, make sure your membership is mobile-friendly. Having a responsive site is one of the best practices for membership site success. Many members would want the feasibility of accessing your premium content from their mobile devices during travel or work. Thus, make sure your themes, plugins, and website work well on all mobile devices.
What to AVOID for the Success of Your Memberships
1. Avoid being a Jack of All and Start Simple
We know there are some amazing membership site ideas and you want to try it all. But initially, you must choose one. In being a jack of all, you will lose your potential customers and it will be tough to understand what is drawing you back. Thus, start with one solid idea that inspires you.
Once your idea sets off the ground, introduce related topics and experiment with diversified forms of content. Experimenting with new ideas gradually will help you invest more time in them and understand the ways to make them work with best practices.
2. Don’t Make the Current Member’s Feel Left Out
I know you need to onboard new members and must focus on that. But did you know it is 6 times more costly to gain a new member than to retain the old one? In your quest for searching for Gold, you can’t let go of Diamonds. I know I have twisted it but your current members are your diamonds. If they feel involved, valued, and worthy, they are going to continue being your members. That’s a sure-shot recurring revenue you shouldn’t miss.
Make sure you provide what you promised in your membership plan. If possible, provide premium membership content, member-only events, and discounts to keep them happy and your business thriving.
3. Do not ignore Membership Feedback
Member Feedback is your first stop while thinking about introducing something new. Your audience will tell you what they want. They would express their concerns and issues. You must listen to them. Ensure that you are working on their suggestions and show them.
Once they see you are actually implementing their suggestions, they will feel valued. Their membership bond will get stronger. This will reduce the member churn rate and provide you with a stable income.
4. Overcomplication of the Pricing Structure
Keep your pricing structure clear, simple, and transparent. Avoid confusing people by showing different prices on the front end and checkout. If there are any other additional charges or taxes over the membership price, clearly specify them with your plans.
If you are providing a custom plan, specify any basic costs you charge. This process will increase trust and reliability in your business. If you are changing any prices, communicate it properly without hurting their emotions.
5. Avoid Reliance on a Single Marketing Channel
There are multiple member engagement strategies to implement. Apart from that, you should also dip your feet in various marketing techniques instead of relying on one. Try Digital Marketing, Content Marketing, Email Marketing, FOMO Marketing, and Affiliate Marketing among others. These are proven ways to give you results and skyrocket your membership business.
Best Practices for Membership Site Success
1. Provide High-Quality Content
You have on-boarded members to provide them with valuable content, right? Thus, your major focus should be on creating a thoughtful content calendar and high-quality content. Customer Satisfaction must be foremost when running a membership site. There must be no drop in the quality of your content, instead it should increase.
2. Establish a Robust Customer Support System
You can use a chatbot or employ dedicated personnel to solve member queries. Timely and quick support would be appreciated and lauded by your members. So, ensure that there are enough resources and guides for customers to go through your site seamlessly.
3. Leverage Membership Site Analytics
There are a lot of membership site statistics for you to consider. These will guide you through the membership industry and understand what works best. Further, you must check the reports and analytics of your membership business. The number of members, the highest opted plan, churn rate, resolved issues, outstanding queries, and so on.
Analyzing the performance of your site will help you identify the loopholes and work towards them. You must also keep track of your marketing analytics to see which method works better than the others. Based on that, you can tweak the investment made in each marketing tactic.
4. Introduce Loyalty Programs for Membership Sites
If you have a bunch of members who have been loyal to your business, introduce various loyalty programs. You can also offer renewal discounts to such members. Loyalty Programs are introduced by many large businesses for rewards, points, discounts, special access, and so on. Study how you can design your loyalty program and implement it.
5. Launch Exclusive Member Events
Planning an event and managing it is not a cakewalk. But with the best event calendar Plugins it’s going to be fairly easy. Give members the space to interact online or offline in an informal environment. This will boost their enthusiasm and motivation. Who wouldn’t love to connect with like-minded people, right? So, create your next event and make it a blast!
Wrapping Up the Do’s and Don’ts of Membership Website
It’s not at all tough to sustain a membership website if you keep walking in the right direction. For that, you must consider these Do’s and Don’ts. Once you keep them in mind and work accordingly, you will have a very steady and sustainable membership business. If you reach your target members, you can even reduce your marketing efforts and work towards building a high value membership site.
Have you ever made any mistake while running a membership site? Let our readers know so that they can avoid it and go upward. Want to share any methods you swear by? We are open to suggestions!
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Brian Denim
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