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Questions about pricing a membership site

by Canuckystan
17 replies
I'm going to be launching a membership site with my own products I've been developing (video tutorials, ebooks, etc). I'm an expert in my field with a very popular blog and website.

How should I price this thing? There's very little competition with which to compare.

My first thought was $200 per year so I could offer $100 to affiliates.

My second thought was $50 per month hoping that people would remain for at least 4 months or so. But will affiliates still be interested in about $25/mo? Does affiliate software track monthly payments of an initial sale?

My conundrum is that the material is easily worth $200. If people cancel after paying $50 they got a super deal and I didn't.

Any thoughts on this?
#membership #pricing #questions #site
  • Profile picture of the author Sarah Russell
    It's hard to know what kind of pricing your niche will bear without knowing what it is, but I will say that if it's a non-IM niche, $200/year sounds like a heck of a lot more than $50/month - even though that's not the case.

    As for affiliates getting involved, if the material really is top-notch (meaning that members are likely to remain members), then there's a certain appeal to having a recurring monthly commission. So I wouldn't worry about it that too much.

    If you want people to remain members for 4 months, are you planning a content drip system that'll hold out the best info for month four? The basic/premium membership is also a good idea to consider.
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    • Profile picture of the author Canuckystan
      Thanks. The information is for dealing with a specific government agency and a process that takes about 6 months to a year to complete. I'd hope people would stay subscribed for the period they are dealing with the agency. It's tough to drip content as they need all the information up front.

      I could think about premium/basic though.
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  • Profile picture of the author CyberSorcerer
    Hello Canuckystan,

    Well I'm not sure what niche your membership is in but it really does depend on your target market.

    To give you an example. I'm releasing a membership site, toward the end of this year, that teaches how to reverse engineer malware and is directed toward currently employed security personnel. The course is quit expensive, but the market expects that as currently a 5 day mini course in reverse engineering goes for $3,995.

    So if your market expects to pay $200 for something along the lines of what your membership covers then it should fit right it. If you don't end up selling at that price then it's time to reevaluate your pricing and maybe lower it some.

    Eventually the market will decide for you on what it's worth to them.
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  • Profile picture of the author contentment1st
    I would agree with giving options, i.e weekly, monthly, etc. The big question is "DO YOU HAVE AN AFFILIATE PROGRAM BUILT IN?" If not, you may want to look at software that allows your users to share with others for a stake in the monthly membership fee. I use DAP... Digital Access Pass. G
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    • Profile picture of the author magman01
      Why don't you give away a few memberships in exchange for comments, including suggestions for pricing? Your marginal cost is zero, other than whatever it costs to drive a little traffic.
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  • Profile picture of the author ryanleedotcom
    If they need all of the information up front, why sell it as a membership site?

    Why not created a high-priced multi-media kit and offer payment plans.

    You can then offer a lower-priced continuity that will compliment your content and offer updated information.

    Ryan Lee
    Coming March 8 - Make Money with Low-Priced Continuity. nanocontinuity
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    • Profile picture of the author exite2010
      As ryanleedotcom says why sell it as membership if they have instant access to all your content the moment they get in. The one year membership of $200 is equivalent of a onetime purchase of a $200 product in that case, except for you hoping for some folks to forget to cancel memberships... If you do want to go the membership route you should contemplate adding in stuff like a forum for members only, weekly or monthly webinars, answering questions they might have in a twitter-like setting and releasing your product over time as Sarah suggested (I know you said that would be difficult but do think about it still). There are probably a lot of other ways to offer value over time so think up some that are specific to your niche.

      When that is said I would definately rather go for $50 per month than $200 per year in most niches - I know I'd think less about the $50 per month. Probably it would be even better with a $7 one week trial and then $47 monthly if you do find a way to give value over time - this pricing seems to get lots of conversions. If you test it and people unsubscribe after first month then just go ahead and make it a $200 product without the reccuring payment.
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  • Profile picture of the author ryanleedotcom
    For the past 20+ months, it's been more of a challenge for people to commit to higher priced membership sites.

    The model I've been testing is really irresistible front-end offered coupled with lower priced optional continuity. It's been working great as we're getting new customers and people are staying longer.

    Continuity is GREAT - however, and this is a big however, you must look at it from your potential member's perspective (NOT your wallet).

    Rock 'on
    Ryan
    Nano Continuity Coming March 8
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  • Profile picture of the author Tspringer
    I am also working on a membership model. Value will be provided to members through access to a web app that will aid in ongoing management of a specific set of medical problems. The web site will also be a comprehensive authority site with community forums and such.

    Ultimately, I want to have advertising revenue from the main site, membership revenue from premium members and sales revenue from additional products.

    Pricing the membership offer is tough. At this Point, I was thinking of offering a 2 week free trial, to be followed by the option for annual billing at $79 or a quarterly billing at $15.

    But... I do plan to test different pricing strategies.

    It seems to me that pricing it cheaper will lead to more members, a larger community and more renewals.

    Is this nuts? AM I missing something?


    Terry
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  • Profile picture of the author mygold
    The better payment is per month $100. You have continued 4 month but it should 1 year.
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  • Profile picture of the author DogScout
    Drip content, two member levels, regular and 'mastermind'... (sort of like war room, but more interaction with you).
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  • Profile picture of the author MichaelPedzotti
    I like the sound of what exite2010 says "with a $7 one week trial and then $47 monthly if you do find a way to give value over time". Perhaps this will not suit you though, Canuckstan, as you've said that all the content is required upfront by your potential customers. What if, however, you give them a taste of things to come with a $1 trial - the first 10 minutes of the video, the first few chapters of the book, etc. - but not enough to snatch all the value of your content.

    Then, as some other members suggest, offer price points (week, month, 3 monthly) for full membership and full access to the content with a promise of extra content and services such as email support during the 6 month period when your clients are dealing with the gov dept.

    I hope I've understood your question.

    Cheers, Michael
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  • Profile picture of the author Christina Jo
    I'm a member in a membership similar to yours, I thing it's better to offer monthly payment not yearly. I pay $37 each month and I'm convinced that the membership site is worth it and worth more because of the valuable information in it. I also work as an affiliate for %50 . I think give a percentage for affiliates better than a fixed amount ..
    Good luck with your site ..
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