Are Membership Sites Easy?

With the amount of out-of-box membership softwares on the market these days, Phil, it's pretty much a point-and-click install. Just upload the files, create the MySQL database (if required), input your administrator details and voila - your site is ready.

~ Sirius

Hmmmm.

What you guys are talking about is not a membership site. I mean to run it through paypal and use the AR requires no site no setup and no know how.

If your going to put an actual site together then there is a ton of work involved and that needs to be considered.

Of course we do have now have a thread all about membership sites but here is what I instruct before beginning any membersite

The first thing to consider when wanting to start a membership site is -what is my site going to do for people?

The second thing is how is it going to deliver to them.monthly,1 time,yearly.

The third thing is what do you expect your members to achieve by joining your site.are you offering training in a specific area that will help them. are you offering plr/mrr content for them to download, or are you having an article creation course product creation etc..

The fourth thing is who does it target .experienced marketers.newbies. advanced users.

The fifth where does it fit with competitiveness.do you have the ability to stand alone or would you profit from recirpocal promotions with other membersites offering content that compliments your own. are you able to drive enough traffic to get the site seen for the other person if you chose to go that way?

The 6th thing what are you going to do for your members they already know what they are doing for you -making you cash. what can you give them that they can't get elsewhere or that they would have to pay big for?

The 7th thing How are you going to provide new content for your members next year.are you going to create your own products and release them only to members. are you going to write your own content or are you hoping others will have freebies you can add via giveaways other membersites etc. very important if offering a recurring bill .


The average stay time is 3-6 months depending on the quality and pricing of the site what are you going to do to continually get members added are you going to offer an affiliate program .are you going to advertise in mainstream venues i e newspapers commercial whatever. or are you going to post and baclink your site in various venues such as forums article directories etc.

The 8th thing you need to consider is how will i handle customer service. will i .put up a support desk. use direct email. use a contact form. use a blog. customer service is utmost importance in any membersite you consider starting you have to be willing to listen and implement things for them to keep them happy or your site will not last.

The 9th thing are you going to be splitting the membership up. are you going to offer different levels for instance or are you going to use just one membership level. this has to be considered from both ends

pro: split memberships can bring in more cash quicker.
con if you offer a content based site some will upgrade download and cancel

pro split membership at a fixed member level creates urgency and scarcity therefor making the customer understand they are missing something huge by not upgrading or purchasing immediately. i limit my elite members to 100 only that creates a sense of status. urgency and makes them consider if i don't do it now i may not be able to until next year . this is very very powerful when offering content based sites because the higher level recieves more content then the lower the higher receive bonuses higher commission or whatever you offer where as the lower does not receive said things.

The other part of this is are you going to use this site to build your list to then market to if so how will you seperate them from the sign up form for paid members. i do not offer this many do i do not however if your list needs to be built for a different purpose then i would suggest using the free option that is a very quick way and if you offer a little bit of content each month will make it sticky.

finally the tenth thing is simple. how are you going to market this site where are you going to advertise to get it in front of as many people as you can if partnering what can you offer them they can't get elsewhere if articles what are you going to write about that pertains to your own site that would cause them to check it out. and what makes you different from me or any other site. i offer something NO ONE does so i set myself apart. membersites are a dime a dozen now people are catching on. you need to have a site that kicks but and overdeliver on your promises to the members. i advise installing a forum not a third party system one where you have full access . maybe a chat room people by nature are social creatures so give them something they naturally are attracted to for proof your reading this in a public forum.

these are things i had to go through before developing any membersite and i believe it is solid advice i will be teaching this as part of my elite course to help my members get set up with their own membersite.

i don't use complicated software for wp i use memberwing it is enough for html site i used memberease very simple to use and handles cb and pp as well as provides a free option

The best way to make a living online is with a membersite once you have proven your site you will then have member evangelists who will spread the word because they are so impressed or unimpressed the reality is people talk this site and every other forum proves that. some more then others.

this concludes my lesson on how to begin with a membership site and the things needed to consider before creating it. make a list
systemize strategize then monetize

-wd
p.s. don't follow my method of writing your own sales letter unless your good at it i am not but am determined to be so i can then show others how to do it . just the way i am . pays off in the long run but the process sucks.

HTH
_WD