Membership Geeks Podcast with Mike Morrison

The launch of a new membership site can be a nerve-wracking time, and adding to that anxiety is the question of whether you have enough content to open your doors. Is there a set amount of content that a membership site needs to have before you release it to the public? What content should you be creating and how do you know when to say “when”? In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast I tackle this question, and provide my top tips for approaching content creation as you gear up for launch. As well as looking at the key things to consider when thinking about your membership launch content, I also discuss specific examples from our own membership – the Member Site Academy; and provide insight into our specific approach to content creation as we were preparing to open our doors. It’s easy to get sucked into the trap of grinding out high levels of content just so we can say that we offer the most course, tools, resources or whatever other widgets we have on the market – but as membership site owners, especially ones who are getting ready to launch – this is absolutely the wrong approach and the wrong mindset.

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 membership, fast. Episode Summary Why "build it and they will come" is a terrible business strategy The main benefits of building your audience before building your product Why piggybacking on other people's audience is a limiting approach How to get started on building an audience for your membership

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 of The Membership Guys Podcast, I give my tips on how you can avoid burning out when running a membership site. Episode Summary Why over-burdening yourself is not only bad for you, but for your members too The importance of context, and understanding where your membership fits in the grand scheme of things How to set and manage member expectations What areas of your business you should develop in order to avoid burning yourself out

Conference season is upon us! For some that means cramming into a drab hall in a hotel out in the middle of nowhere, listening to long-in-the-tooth experts drone on for hours on end. For others, it's a chance to take time away, fly to somewhere sunny and fill your brain in between running up a huge bar bill on company expenses. Whichever end of the scale you land on; conferences represent plenty of opportunities for anyone running a membership website. Check out the 10 ways that membership owners can really get the most from industry conferences.

When it comes to membership sites, you’ll often find that people will come for the content, but they’ll stay for the community. An active community is the glue which holds a successful membership together. It’s where your members will form relationships, where they’ll receive and give support, where they’ll build connections and even make friends. It’s things like that which will keep people subscribed to your membership for months and years to come. However starting a community from scratch can be daunting. Which platform should you use? How do you get your members to participate? How do I avoid my community becoming a ghost town? Getting that initial momentum for your community is key to it becoming successful long-term; so here are my top tips for getting started with your membership community.

Have you ever thought about writing a book? Perhaps you already have? Being a published author can be a huge feather in the cap for anyone running a membership site - particularly one which is based around a personal brand, where you're the expert or thought leader. Chris Ducker knows just how powerful writing a book can be for membership owners. His first best-selling book Virtual Freedom played a huge part in laying the foundations for what has now become his Youpreneur community. And it's that very community that has since fuelled his brand new book 'Rise Of The Youpreneur.' To celebrate its release, I invited Chris back on the show to discuss how the book factors into the growth of his membership site, and the how being a membership owner has affected the process of writing a book. Episode Summary: How having a membership is beneficial to the process of writing a book. Where your book fits into your membership business. Tapping into your member-base for case studies and testimonials. Which should come first: writing a book, or launching your membership.

Your membership content comprises a large part of the ongoing value your site offers. But how do you keep momentum going once the ideas and inspiration for what content to create start to run dry? In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I discuss a few effective ways to generate a continuous stream of awesome ideas for fresh membership content. Episode Summary: Ways to "crowdsource" content ideas for your membership How to identify and take advantage of knowledge gaps in your industry Methods we use ourselves inside Member Site Academy to solicit content ideas from our members What to do with the ideas that you generate

The most successful memberships are those that cater to a specific niche. Having a niche makes your offering more targeted, which increases the likelihood of someone identifying with the problem your membership solves. If you want to stand out from the crowd, you can’t just blend in with the crowd. You need to have a specialty. But how do you figure out your niche? And what happens once you’ve become successful in a specific area? Should you stay put, or expand your reach? I answer all of these questions and more on this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast. Episode Summary: Why being a specialist beats being a “jack of all trades” The biggest mistake people make once they become successful in a niche The 3 different ways to pick a niche and differentiate your offering Why “For X” is the most powerful phrase for positioning your membership

If you're trying to make more money from your membership business there are two ways you can go. One is to try to increase revenue from your existing membership site - and the other is to look at opportunities for offering additional products and services to your customers. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I explore the 7 main options worth exploring - along with the 3 avenues you absolutely should NOT go down... Episode Summary: The no-brainer areas you should focus on first to increase membership revenue How putting your price up can actually attract (and keep) more members What complementary products and services make sense for membership owners The 3 revenue streams you should stay clear of

Far too often, creating content gets confused with delivering value. Membership owners find themselves on a treadmill of grinding out epic course after epic course because they're convinced it's the only way to keep their members happy and - ultimately - keep them subscribed. It's not as simple as that. Memberships aren't a competition to see who can give members the most "stuff" - it goes deeper than that, and often you can deliver a lot of member value for a relatively small amount of effort. In this episode, I look at 4 no-brainer ways that you could be ramping up the value proposition of your membership. Episode Summary: Why providing value doesn't mean just grinding out epic content How to use your podcast and blog to make your membership more valuable The benefits of giving members priority access and preferential treatment A key part of your role as community leader that's also a major value-add