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-   -   Building my first membership website. Taking long = frustration rant (https://www.warriorforum.com/mind-warriors/756924-building-my-first-membership-website-taking-long-frustration-rant.html)

Alpha123 21st February 2013 10:25 AM

Building my first membership website. Taking long = frustration rant
 
Hi guys,

Any tips?
I want to get this off the ground ASAP, there is always something cropping up though,
Improving videos, creating content, editing, member forum, seo, filming content

All this while staying on top of my self employed business which is not going great at the moment

I feel like online is the better way to go although I want to make sure my other business gets better too.

It's just balancing things out.

Maybe outsource?

Money is tight!

Hope I do make this work

Of course I want to provide great value to people who sign upto my website while earning as much as possible

I guess time, patience and get as much done everyday!

Joe Crosbie 21st February 2013 02:50 PM

Re: Building my first membership website. Taking long = frustration rant
 
Hey man!

Too help provide a better answer, could you specify what area your membership is targeting?

Joe Crosbie,

Terry Coombes 21st February 2013 04:32 PM

Re: Building my first membership website. Taking long = frustration rant
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Alpha123 (Post 7768683)
Hi guys,

Any tips?
I want to get this off the ground ASAP, there is always something cropping up though,
Improving videos, creating content, editing, member forum, seo, filming content

All this while staying on top of my self employed business which is not going great at the moment

I feel like online is the better way to go although I want to make sure my other business gets better too.

It's just balancing things out.

Maybe outsource?

Money is tight!

Hope I do make this work

Of course I want to provide great value to people who sign upto my website while earning as much as possible

I guess time, patience and get as much done everyday!

You have to dedicate time to the project and focus. Research and plan... Set your goals from the top down and work from the bottom up. You'll soon start to see it taking shape and that will encourage you.
Goal setting is the key for me in anything I do.

Good Luck

Terry

Alpha123 21st February 2013 05:31 PM

Re: Building my first membership website. Taking long = frustration rant
 
I am creating a fat loss member website.
I still have tons of content to create and then edit.

I would like to have a member forum also, although would like to sell a few copies before I buy vbulletin.

Then there will also be the seo side of things and the marketing etc. (Not at this stage yet though)

I do plan to work with affiliates also. Still will have to setup that side of things too.

I am definitely dedicated, I would say this is the most important thing to get done in my life at the moment.

Alpha123 21st February 2013 06:48 PM

Re: Building my first membership website. Taking long = frustration rant
 
What payments are best to take?
I do have a paypal account but I guess it would be best to also accept usual credit cards directly?

Jack Gordon 21st February 2013 07:31 PM

Re: Building my first membership website. Taking long = frustration rant
 
I have built several membership sites, and it is never as easy as you would think at the outset.

One thing I would advise you to do, if you haven't already, is brainstorm a big list of all of the "things to do" to get the site launched. Be overly broad, and include all of the things you have already done.

This list should include things like developing content, setting up front end of site, setting up back end of site, setting up membership component, getting a merchant account, getting testimonials, getting legal advice (tos, privacy policy at least), setting up LLC, getting affiliates, getting vbulletin, etc.

Once you have that list complete, scratch off all of the things you have done, then prioritize all of the things left to do. There is a psychological component to recognizing all of the tasks you have completed already, then seeing a list of all that is left to do.

The question of whether or not to outsource is complicated. Often, it takes time to find trustworthy and competent outsourced talent, and it is better to find them when you don't desperately need them, as your business decisionmaking will be much better without the stress.

It also depends on your skill level. Are you competent at web development, graphics, light coding, etc? If not, you probably should try to find some help. My advice is to be willing to pay more to find someone local and highly recommended by someone you trust, that you can sit down with and guide to make the site work the way you want it to. It will cost a bit more than outsourcing to the third world, but it will have a better chance of getting done right the first time, and you'll learn more by being more involved.

My final piece of advice is to strive to get something, anything together, posted and working properly. Once you have a shell of the site all together and working, the rest is just improving content. That will be an ongoing process, even a lifetime (of the product) process. Don't stress out too much over the content yet. Focus on the process first. Once you have the process, you can always improve the quality.

Terry Coombes 22nd February 2013 03:19 AM

Re: Building my first membership website. Taking long = frustration rant
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by rocket2uranus (Post 7770862)
I have built several membership sites, and it is never as easy as you would think at the outset.

My final piece of advice is to strive to get something, anything together, posted and working properly. Once you have a shell of the site all together and working, the rest is just improving content. That will be an ongoing process, even a lifetime (of the product) process. Don't stress out too much over the content yet. Focus on the process first. Once you have the process, you can always improve the quality.

Very helpful post Rocket2Uranus.
Did you ever build one entirely on your own at the start? I'm just wondering if it's feasible to get to the stage where you can get members on board without having to outsource loads of content first.
I'm working on an Academy site (in my sig) and I'm writing courses at the moment. I'd like to be able to sign people up as soon as I get a few courses finished but that would leave the site looking pretty empty to begin with.
I'm pretty confident I'll be able to sort out enrollment and similar issues - the software I'm using is fairly well established.
What would you suggest in general for the gap between an empty membership site and a "fully-furnished" one?

Regards,

Terry

Jack Gordon 22nd February 2013 07:05 AM

Re: Building my first membership website. Taking long = frustration rant
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Terry Coombes (Post 7772008)
Very helpful post Rocket2Uranus.
Did you ever build one entirely on your own at the start? I'm just wondering if it's feasible to get to the stage where you can get members on board without having to outsource loads of content first.
I'm working on an Academy site (in my sig) and I'm writing courses at the moment. I'd like to be able to sign people up as soon as I get a few courses finished but that would leave the site looking pretty empty to begin with.
I'm pretty confident I'll be able to sort out enrollment and similar issues - the software I'm using is fairly well established.
What would you suggest in general for the gap between an empty membership site and a "fully-furnished" one?

Regards,

Terry

The first time I did everything myself as I had no money to outsource. It can be done with a minimum of knowledge about the process. It is not necessarily easy though.

I use Wordpress (free) and aMember Pro (under $200). There is good documentation to make them play nicely together, and with a bit of resolve I think anyone here could make it work.

Where you'll probably want to spend a little more is in a good Wordpress template design. I have mine custom built overseas (usually around $400) but there are a lot of options out there if you look.

As for getting students with a less than full course? I think this is the stage where you should consider giving it away and focus on getting feedback, testimonials, etc. Either that or build the site with a strong focus on just the component(s) you have completed, and sell that as a standalone while you are working on more.

Another way you could approach it, though this would require a strong commitment and planning, is to structure the course as a drip feed. If it takes you one month to complete a module, that is how much time you have to get the next piece in place for your paying students. This is risky as life tends to get in the way of progress sometimes and you don't want to be in a position of apologizing for delays. Obviously you would want to build in some cushion into the schedule and always try to be a bit ahead of it.

Terry Coombes 22nd February 2013 08:03 AM

Re: Building my first membership website. Taking long = frustration rant
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by rocket2uranus (Post 7772583)
As for getting students with a less than full course? I think this is the stage where you should consider giving it away and focus on getting feedback, testimonials, etc. Either that or build the site with a strong focus on just the component(s) you have completed, and sell that as a standalone while you are working on more.

Another way you could approach it, though this would require a strong commitment and planning, is to structure the course as a drip feed. If it takes you one month to complete a module, that is how much time you have to get the next piece in place for your paying students. This is risky as life tends to get in the way of progress sometimes and you don't want to be in a position of apologizing for delays. Obviously you would want to build in some cushion into the schedule and always try to be a bit ahead of it.

More great advice, thank you.
The idea of giving away the first course sounds good and I'll have to think carefully about how to do that for most leverage.
Regards,

Terry

roblawrence 27th February 2013 10:27 AM

Re: Building my first membership website. Taking long = frustration rant
 
The main piece of advice I can offer is to ask yourself "Why would somebody join my site?" and "What can I offer than no one else can?"

If you can't answer these two basic questions, then you're out of business before you even begin.

Have a clear end in mind and you'll start your journey with a compelling advantage.


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