Written by Michael Gillespie
In this Issue:
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Adding more access to our membership ultimately hurt our revenue. Since changing our strategy, we’re extracting twice as much value - for half the cost.”
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Happy Tuesday fellow operator.
Last week I had a call with a Memberful client who told me they’ve spent the last year reducing their benefits, slashing their ad spend and closing their membership for months at a time.
All with the aim of growing the business.
And guess what? They’re not only growing - they’re thriving.
If achieving a 126% increase in revenue and 32% reduction in churn over six months sounds interesting, then read below and I’ll explain why such results are not only within reach, but a true reflection of what the membership market is telling us.
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Why more access is working against you. PLUS: The playbook (linked below) for implementing scarcity into your membership program.
As a membership operator, there’s a target you must hit: Making your members feel like they’re part of something special.
Often, I speak to operators who become entangled with the task of injecting more into their product as they look to grow and scale .
More content. More benefits. More access.
However, access to more comes with a major cost: Exclusivity.
Across the digital membership and subscription industry, there are few products that are actually scarce. And as an operator, that gives you an edge.
You see, people place higher value on things that are difficult to obtain. But when something is always available to everyone it feels less special.
For example:
If your membership is always available for purchase, it’s not difficult to obtain.
If you’re running promotions every Tuesday, those promotions aren’t difficult to obtain.
If an unlimited number of people can purchase a given membership plan on your website, it’s not difficult to obtain.
See where I’m going with this?
Now, am I asking you to close your virtual doors for months at a time? Of course not. (But you should consider it. More on that at the link below.)
But I am asking you to take a moment and consider just how available your membership product might be today. Consider what element(s), if any, make your product (or the access to it) difficult to obtain.
I can guarantee you there’s room to introduce at least one element of scarcity into your offering right now.
The playbook below is the same one I’m using with some of the most exclusive (and successful) memberships programs that harness the power of scarcity to unlock significant value. You can use it right now to help create a membership product that feels so exclusive that it cannot be ignored.
📎 Resource: The Scarcity Playbook→
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