Building a thriving online membership community is a goal for many creators. It offers a way to connect with and provide value to a dedicated audience while generating recurring revenue.
In a recent episode of the Level Up Creators podcast, Amanda Northcutt interviewed Jen Matichuk, Manager of Strategic Partnerships at Memberful. In this post, we’re diving into some of the insights Jen shared. We’ll explore seven of the most effective strategies for building and growing online membership communities. By implementing these strategies, you can create a vibrant, engaged and loyal community and long-term business success.
1. Engage with Your Audience Consistently
One of the key ingredients for building a successful membership community is consistent engagement with your audience. Take a page from Jen Matichuk’s book and make it a priority to chat and keep in touch with your audience. By actively listening to their needs and desires, you can tailor your membership offerings to provide the value they crave. Regularly interacting with your audience through social media, emails, or live events creates a sense of connection and builds trust.
For example, Comedy Bang World made a platform switch to have more control over their content and communicate directly with their audience. This decision showed their commitment to engaging with their community and understanding their needs.
2. Understand the Psychology of Pricing Pages
Pricing psychology plays a crucial role in attracting and retaining members. When designing your pricing page, consider what you want your audience to see first. According to Jen Matichuk, it is essential to place the plan you want people to join at the top. This ensures that the most appealing option catches their attention immediately. By using this tactic, you can guide potential members towards the plan that best suits their needs.
For instance, Mythical Society learned the importance of pricing page psychology through their experience. They discovered that the placement of their plans on the mobile version of their website was not immediately obvious, leading to confusion and churn. By making adjustments and ensuring the plans were easily visible, they improved their retention rates.
3. Drip Content for Continued Engagement
When launching a membership community, it can be tempting to provide all your content upfront. However, releasing content gradually over time, also known as drip-feeding, can increase member engagement and retention. A few legendary membership communities adopted this strategy after initially launching a series of content all at once, which led to members consuming everything quickly and then churning out.
By spreading out the release of content over several months, they gave members a reason to stay and continue engaging with the community. This ongoing release of valuable content keeps members excited and encourages them to remain active participants in the community.
4. Iterate and Learn from Mistakes
No successful creator or membership community is immune to mistakes or failures. It’s essential to approach these challenges as learning opportunities. Mythical Society, for example, experienced setbacks in their revenue calculations when offering merch items to their members. This mistake taught them the importance of thorough planning and ensuring profitability.
Similarly, Comedy Bang World encountered website design issues that affected their membership sign-ups. They learned the value of testing and optimizing their website to ensure a seamless user experience. Embracing a mindset of iteration and continuously improving your offerings based on member feedback will help you navigate challenges and build a stronger community over time.
5. Establish a Clear Value Proposition
To create a thriving membership community, it’s crucial to have a clear value proposition. Understand what sets your community apart and clearly communicate the benefits and value members will receive. Whether you are an entertainment-based creator like Comedy Bang World or a subject matter expert like Mythical Society, articulate how your community will solve problems and provide unique experiences.
For example, Comedy Bang World’s value proposition lies in consistently delivering laughter and entertainment to their members. They ensure that their content is consistently funny. Members know what to expect and what they’re going to get when they join the community.
6. Create Exclusive and limit-based Offers
When building a membership community, it’s important to create a sense of exclusivity and scarcity. By offering exclusive content, merchandise, or experiences, you can incentivize potential members to join and existing members to stay. This exclusivity makes members feel special and part of an elite group.
Mythical Society successfully integrates their merchandise line with exclusivity plays. By aligning their merchandise releases with membership tiers, they create a sense of excitement and urgency among their members. This strategy enhances the overall membership experience and drives engagement.
7. Leverage Social Proof and Testimonials
Social proof is a powerful tool for attracting and convincing potential members to join your community. Highlight positive testimonials and success stories from existing members to showcase the value and impact of your membership. Testimonials demonstrate that your community delivers on its promises and can help overcome any hesitations potential members may have.
Building a successful online membership community requires a strategic approach. Consistent engagement, understanding pricing psychology, providing drip content, learning from mistakes, establishing a clear value proposition, creating exclusivity, and leveraging social proof. By implementing these strategies and continuously refining your approach based on member feedback, you can cultivate a thriving community that provides value, fosters engagement, and generates recurring revenue.
Remember, building a membership community is a journey, and success comes from continuously adapting, improving, and delivering value to your members. So, go ahead, embark on this exciting adventure, and create an online membership community that will leave a lasting impact on your audience.
Next Steps
Are you ready to take the next step in building your membership community? Subscribe to the Level Up Creators podcast and visit welevelupcreators.com for weekly actionable business tips and expert guidance.
