Membership Geeks Podcast with Mike Morrison

Podcasting is a fantastic way of promoting and growing amembership website. Not only does it help you to establish you as an authority anddemonstrate your expertise - things that are particularly importantif your membership is largely based on your being an expert in yourfield - but it also gives a human voice to your brand andestablished connections that most other mediums simply cannot. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I'm joined byJohn Lee Dumas from Entrepreneur On Fire, who shared some ofhis insight and experiences in not only building a wildlysuccessful business podcast; but also how that fits with his ownmembership communities. In this episode, John and I discuss: The role podcasting has played in developing and growing John'smembership community Tips for turning his podcast listeners into members How John creates extra member-only value from his freepodcast content What activity helps John manage the hectic schedule ofreleasing a daily podcast ...and loads more!

When that burst of inspiration for a membership site starts turning into a fully fledged idea and plan, it's easy to think that you've stumbled onto something truly unique. However as Mark Twain once said - "There is no such thing as a new idea", and this often rings true for membership website concepts. So what do you do when you discover that there's someone else out there with the same idea for a membership site as you? Check out this latest episode of The Membership Guys Podcast for my advice...

One of the biggest benefits of running a membership website is the ability to tap into a truly global audience. However that does present the problem of having to decide which currency to use when it comes to pricing your membership. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I give my opinion on how to decide on which currency to use as well as some other factors you need to consider when setting your pricing for a multi-currency market...

Membership websites come in all shapes and sizes; but the type we primarily deal with here on The Membership Guys consist primarily of content and community. Given that content marketing is, without doubt, one of the best ways to promote your membership site; then it can be a real challenge trying to figure out which content should be free - via blogs, podcasts and the like - and which content should comprise your paid membership. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I tackle this subject and look at some of the things to consider when deciding whether your content should be free or paid...

Facebook groups are a fantastic way of cultivating a community of like-minded people, all interested in a particular topic, product or problem. It's little wonder, then, that running such a group can be a highly effective strategy for membership site owners, for a wide variety of reasons. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I'm joined by Jill Stanton from Screw The Nine to Five, who shares her insight into not only running a popular, highly successful free Facebook group; but also how she leverages this to benefit her paid membership community. (Warning: this one gets a little bit sweary, so those of a sensitive disposition may want to give it a miss!) In this episode, Jill and I discuss: Running a free Facebook group vs using a group for your paid membership Advice on how to get people engaged and active in your group Tips and techniques for attracting new members to your Facebook group The specific strategy that Jill uses to get people from her Facebook group to join her membership website How Jill manages her time keeping on top of a 10,000 person strong free group as well as her paid community ...and loads more!

You’ve got plenty of loyal members who continue to pay for your membership – but are you taking member retention for granted?Some members may be paying for your membership without any delays or issues, but that doesn’t mean that they are happy and satisfied. You can’t assume that just because somebody is continuing to pay, that it means they are 100% pleased with their experience. The truth is that inactive paying members probably don’t even realize they’re still paying for their subscription!So, what’s the best course of action if you think you’ve got paying members who could be getting closer to the exit door? On this episode of the podcast, I reveal exactly what you should do, and I share three main reasons why you shouldn’t take member retention for granted. Essential Learning Points:The real reasons why members who are not engaged with your membership continue to pay for itThree reasons why you should never take member retention for grantedWhy you need to make sure you deliver constant value with your membership siteImportant Links & Mentions:Creative ways to improve your member experience with Andrew & Pete Try these tactics to pre-empt and prevent member cancellationsThe Membership Economy with Robbie Kellman Baxter4 simple but effective ways to deliver massive value to your membersHow to increase engagement within your membership siteKey Quotes:“It's very easy to mistake somebody sticking around on your membership or the fact that someone continues to be a member, as an indicator that they're happy that they're engaged, that they're satisfied with what they're paying for.”“You need to make sure that you're always looking for ways to continuously add value, that you have that ongoing dialog with your members that you're regularly getting feedback.”“Some people will be paying you and will be continuing subscription without even realizing it.”

Cancellations are the one things most membership site owners hate and fear, but are also something we can't avoid - no matter how hard you try to hide the "cancel" button! Your onboarding, engagement and retention strategies are key to prolonging the member lifecycle - however another key thing to consider is that often your members will have common "drop-off points", where you're most at risk of losing them. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I discuss how you can identify your common member drop-off points, and more importantly what you can do to deal with them.

Running an online membership removes the barriers for doing business around the world. Regardless of where you're based, your members will come from far and wide. This represents a huge opportunity for membership website owners to build a global brand. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I'm joined by Chris Ducker - founder of Youpreneur - to talk about his experiences in launching a membership site that is truly global. In this episode, Chris and I discuss: Refining how you position yourself and an authority, and how to escape the "pigeon hole" The important of "serving" your community How launching a membership site has changed Chris' approach to live events and speaking gigs Chris' top tips for building a global brand with your membership site. ...and loads more!

With Valentines Day just passed, love is in the air, and in this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast I'm professing my deepest feelings for my one true love... the membership model. Tune in and find out why we're so enamoured with membership websites, and why they appeal to us far more than any other business model out there.

We've had countless people approach us over the years in need of help in figuring out why their membership site launch hasn't quite gone to plan; and in almost every case it's because they jumped head first into wrestling with membership plugins and creating content - skipping past the crucial task of actually evaluating and validating their idea. I'm joined on this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast by Pat Flynn, founder of the extremely popular Smart Passive Income blog and podcast; and author of the brand new book Will It Fly, which teaches you how to test your next business idea so that you don't waste your time and money. In this episode, Pat and I discuss: Why idea validation is so important for membership site owners Where to start if you have an idea and you're not sure how to figure out if it's worth pursuing What to do when you simply have more ideas than you can handle How to 'course-correct' if you've skipped the idea validation stage and you're now regretting it

Should your membership site always be open, or only open for limited periods throughout the year? It's a question that comes up frequently; and while we tend to fall on the side of having an "evergreen" membership that's always open, it's hard to deny the appeal of using the urgency and scarcity that are only typically effective with a limited-opening approach. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I discuss some ways in which evergreen membership site owners can utilise urgency and scarcity in their marketing strategy without having to close the doors of their site.

Retention is crucial for a successful membership site. It costs more to win a new member than it does to hang on to an existing one; so it stands to reason that you should have a strategy in place for ensuring that your members stick around. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast I discuss 3 specific tips and techniques that you can use to keep your members hooked and subscribed for longer.

As a recognised authority in your field, gaining access to you can be a major reason why people will join your membership website. This introduces a whole host of additional challenges when trying to run and grow your community. In this episode, I'm joined by James Schramko from SuperFastBusiness, who shares his insight and experience from years of running a successful membership site that leverages his own authority as a highly regarded expert in online business and marketing. In this episode, James and I discuss: How James went from managing a Mercedes Benz dealership to running a successful membership community The roadblocks that get in the way of people turning their ideas into reality Handling access to him and managing member expectations across multiple "tiers" of membership Building a larger business with your membership site at its core ...and a lot more!

If a membership site launches with no audience to notice, has it truly launched? In this episode we answer the much asked question of whether it's possible - or advisable - to launch a membership site when you do not have an audience. I also discuss why audience building is particularly important for membership website owners, as well as my top tips for how you can get started on building an audience for your site, fast.

As more and more businesses start focusing on memberships and subscriptions, what can you do to set up your membership website for long term success? In this episode, I'm joined by Robbie Kellman Baxter - author of the bestselling book 'The Membership Economy' and a leading strategist helping big name businesses such as Netflix and SurveyMonkey to perfect the membership model. In this episode, Robbie and I discuss: Common mistakes businesses make when they attempt to transition to the membership model Robbie's top tips for member retention The core differences between transactional businesses and membership businesses The keys to surviving and thriving in The Membership Economy What the future holds for the membership model

We regularly get asked for our recommendations on the top tools for membership website owners. The truth is that there's no such thing as the "perfect" membership site setup that will work for everyone - it all depends on what it is you want to achieve with your membership site, what features and functionality you need it to have, which email and payment software you're using and a whole bunch of other details that determine which tools are the best fit for you. In this episode, we talk about the tools we use for our own membership website - the Member Site Academy - as well as the reasons why we choose those particular options.

Much of what we discuss in terms of membership site strategy and marketing is universal; however when it comes to the technical side of things we tend to focus almost exclusively on WordPress-based membership websites. However there is a growing market in alternative cloud-based membership platforms such as Rainmaker or Kajabi which can solve a number of problems for anyone trying to 'DIY' their membership site. In this episode we discuss why we use WordPress, what is meant by "cloud service" vs "self-hosted", which cloud-based alternatives are out there and what the pros and cons of each approach are. We also discuss alternative 'self-hosted' solutions outside of WordPress, such as forum-only platforms such as Xenforo.

The reasons people have for joining your membership are as varied as the makeup of your membership. Ask 10 members why they joined your membership and you’re likely to get 8, 9, or 10 different answers.But there are some reasons that are more common – eight of them, in fact.In this episode, I break down the eight top reasons people join membership sites, why it’s important to know them, and how you can use this information to create more sustainable growth in your membership.Essential Learning Points:The eight most common reasons people join membershipsWhy some members are going to stick around longer than othersHow you can use data about your members’ motivations to grow your membershipImportant Links & Mentions:Should you use a Forum or Facebook Group for your community?Utilizing Guest Experts for your Membership Content10 ways membership owners can become the 'go to' experts in your industry4 ways to discover what your audience REALLY want from your membershipKey Quotes:“People join membership sites because they want some sort of transformation.”“Not everyone is going to join your membership because they want your material and your expertise.”“It’s important to have an understanding of the spectrum of reasons why someone might want to join your membership site because that can inform the way in which you promote and position your membership.”

Would you like to know how to effectively use video for marketing your membership site? Joining us to talk about video, launch strategies and a lot more is Emmy Wu. Emmy is a phenomenally talented videographer and launch strategist who has helped countless course creators and membership site owners to implement video into their marketing and sales strategy. In this episode, Emmy and I discuss: - Video content vs other mediums - How to make your videos stand out from the competition - Emmy's top tips for using video as part of a launch funnel - The rising popularity of live-streaming apps like Periscope and Blab - The most effective way of using videos for a membership site owner

Without question this is the one thing we're asked about more than anything else. So how do you figure out which membership plugin to use for your website? Find out in this episode...

In this episode I talk to online course creation expert Janelle Allen. Janelle shares her insight and experiences in the field of e-learning, and has some great tips for anyone creating courses as part of their membership website.

It's very easy to fall into bad habits as a membership site owner when it comes to over-working and putting too much pressure on yourself. This often leads to burnout, which in turn adversely affects your membership site. In this episode, I give my tips on how membership site owners can avoid burning out.

In this episode I talk to Blair Williams - creator and founder of MemberPress - about the history of the plugin, essential features membership sites need to get ahead, the state of the WordPress membership plugin market and what the future holds for MemberPress.

In this episode I talk to renowned digital strategist and co-founder of AccessAlly, Nathalie Lussier. As well as discussing her transition from programmer to online marketer, Nathalie shares tips and insight into list building, creating compelling online courses and how to improve your member experience.

In this episode we're talking about churn - what is it and how do we reduce it? PLUS discover our top tips for improving member retention and reducing cancellations.

Discover the 5 questions you NEED to ask yourself in order to determine whether creating a membership site is actually the right move to make...

Find out where we stand on the idea of "passive income" when it comes to membership websites...

One question which comes up regularly is whether you should keep your membership site open all of the time, or whether limited joining periods are better. Find out what we think...

Discover the 7 essential elements every successful membership site has, and how you can make sure your own site is up to scratch

In the third and final part of our "launch diary", we discuss the big day of opening the Academy to the public, the approach we took, what worked, what didn't and what we'd do differently.

In the second part of our launch diary, we discuss the challenges faced and lessons learned in the final week before opening the doors to the Member Site Academy.

We recently opened the doors to the Member Site Academy - our very own membership site. In this series of episodes we're discussing the build up to launch, the challenges we faced, what worked, what didn't and a lot more.

Losing members is just part and parcel of operating a membership site. However there’s plenty that you can do to make sure that you’re not losing members for the wrong reasons...

In this episode we discuss how you can use offline marketing techniques, including business networking, to promote and enhance your membership website.

In this episode I discuss the benefits of offering a trial period for your membership site, and why risk reversal can be the key to increasing your sales

In this episode we discuss the pitfalls of using a private Facebook group for your paid membership community, and why an on-site forum is a better option.

What do you do if you need to get your membership website or online course up and running in just a few days? In this episode we're talking about how you can bootstrap the creation and launch of your membership site.

It's every prospective membership site owners' nightmare - months of toiling over your product, only for it to fall flat when it finally launches. In this episode, we look at what you can do if the worst happens.

With so many options for membership site plugins, asking for advice from others can be a total crap shoot. In this episode, we look at why most advice on plugins is useless, and how you can make sure you're getting the right recommendations.

In the first episode of The Membership Guys podcast we discuss why it's important for membership site owners to build authority and leverage this for their business.