Membership Geeks Podcast with Mike Morrison

When starting a membership, you have to be in it for the long haul. However despite your best intentions the time may come when you're considering shutting down your membership site. However if that is an option you're considering; it's important to handle it careful to avoid upsetting your members and ruining your reputation. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I discuss the best approach to take to shutting down your membership site without burning your bridges or causing yourself unnecessary problems. In this episode, I discuss: The 2 questions to ask yourself before you finalise your decision about shutting down your membership Possible alternatives to closing the doors on your membership forever The one thing you absolutely should NOT do in this situation How to create an exit plan for shutting down your membership that minimizes the pain for everyone.

Typically the type of membership sites we talk about here involve an expert using their skills, knowledge, experience and expertise to teach other people and help them achieve their goals. But what if you're not an expert in any one thing, can you still start a membership? In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I discuss the 4 different strategies and models you can take to start a membership where you're not the expert authority, as well as the one approach you should absolutely avoid at all costs. In this episode, I discuss: Why it can be tougher to sell a membership where you're not an expert in a particular subject Should you "fake it 'til you make it?" How leveraging other peoples expertise can make for an attractive membership offering Do all memberships need to teach something?

I think it's fair to say that we're pretty big fans of the membership model. You don't call yourselves "The Membership Guys" and dedicate yourself to teaching this stuff if you're not... But for all we love the whole world of running membership sites, as with any type of business there is an ugly side that you'll undoubtedly encounter at some point when running a membership of your own. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I talk about 3 "ugly" issues that we've recently had experience with for our own membership and our advice for dealing with it should those same problems come up for you. In this episode, I discuss: How to deal with "copycats" who take immitation too far and cross the line into plagiarism Why you shouldn't take attempts to prevent piracy too far What to do if your membership content is pirated, and your options to have illegal links removed Disputing false chargeback claims with your payment processor

Creating membership content can be one of the most time consuming parts of running a paid membership website. If you're billing people on a recurring basis, you need to deliver value on a recurring basis; and often delivering that value involves some form of content. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I discuss how to approach content strategy for your membership, and the steps to take in order to ensure your production process is streamlined so you're not constantly grinding to put out new content. In this episode, I discuss: Two key mindset shifts to embrace that will change how you approach your membership content What content you should be creating, and how to deliver more while actually REDUCING your workload The steps you need to take before hiring someone to help you to produce content The one thing that will make a monumental difference to your content production process

Creating a membership website involves a lot more work than most people expect. Memberships have a lot of moving pieces; not just on the technology front, but also when it comes to strategy, marketing and the day to day logistics too. It's not surprise then, that so many people get "stuck" when trying to figure out which software to use, what features their site should have and how to implement them, how often to release content, what content to create and so on, and so on... and so on! In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I discuss the steps you need to take in order to overcome "Paralysis by Analysis" - the situation where you're so bogged down in overthinking every little thing that you get stuck in the mud, not making progress.

Most of the strategies, principles and tactics we cover here and inside the Member Site Academy apply across the board regardless of which niche or market your membership website is in. However when it comes to B2B and B2C memberships there are some key differences that you need to be aware of when it comes to positioning, marketing and pricing your offering. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I dive into what those differences are and ways in which you can adjust your strategy accordingly. In this episode, I discuss: What are the 4 main differences to consider between business-to-business and business-to-consumer memberships? How these 2 distinct member types will each perceive things like value, cost and priorities Why important thing you need to consider when planning your membership content depending on your customer profile Ballpark price ranges for both B2B and B2C memberships, and the one factor that may enable you to increase your prices

It's easy to fall into the trap of playing the "numbers game" when it comes to creating your membership content. Taking pride in having more courses, more tools, more bells and whistles than the next guy. However as I cover in this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, it's a foolish game to play and one which not only leads to you failing your members but also puts your entire membership business at risk. In this episode, I discuss: What you REALLY need to be focusing on when it comes to creating membership content Why putting too much content into your membership site is a bad thing How relying too much on content as your selling point puts your business at risk of being wiped out by your competitors The question you need to ask yourself to re-align your thinking about your membership offering

When it comes to creating membership content, it can be easy to get sucked into the "numbers game", focusing on churning out quantity rather than quality. Your members join because they have a result they want to achieve, a problem that needs solving; so it's important to make sure that the content you create helps them to get to where they want to go. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast I'm joined by Colin Gray from ThePodcastHost.com. Not only does Colin help to teach people how to get the most from podcasting, but he's also got a PhD in Online Education; so I really enjoyed discussing how to make your membership content effective and truly educational.

Every topic and every industry has its fair share of bad advice, outdated information and dubious “best practices”; and there’s certainly a lot of that out there when it comes to the subject of membership sites. As with most subjects it can be a bit of a minefield trying to maneuver around the misinformation – so to help you out we’ve broken down 8 of the most common ‘myths’ about creating and running a membership site.

If you've been selling one-off courses for a while, then deciding to transition to the membership model is a big move with more things to think about than you may realise. We've worked with plenty of people who have successfully made the switch, but there are some definite considerations in terms of cashflow, marketing and how the complexion of your day to day business can change. In this episode of The Membership Guys Podcast, I discuss the main implications of moving from selling courses to running a membership, how to ease the transition and my advice for deciding whether it's the right decision for you. In this episode, I discuss: The main things to consider when deciding whether to switch to the membership model How to deal with past customers who have purchased your courses The biggest thing most people don't think about when moving into memberships Advice on deciding whether this is the right decision for your business.