Building Membership Communities: Key Insights and Strategies

Introduction

• Importance of being a facilitator in community building.
• Warning against offering lifetime memberships.
• Focus on delivering value to new members on their first day.
• Membership communities are growing and can be applicable across various niches.

Why Membership Communities Matter

• Serve people at scale and create a positive impact.
• Recurring revenue model provides financial stability.
• Applicable to any niche, no matter how small or unique.
• Can be a full-time business or a side hustle.
• Members helping each other is a key aspect.

Challenges of Community Building

• Requires significant work and personal interaction.
• Not suitable for a hands-off approach.
• Community activities continue even in the absence of the leader.
• Members may not engage as expected.
• Despite challenges, building communities is rewarding and impactful.

Steps to Building a Community

Step 1: Choose Your Topic

• Consider passion, experience, and market opportunity.
• Align with concepts like Ikigai.

Step 2: Craft Your Value Proposition

• Simple format: "[Community Name] helps [Target Audience] achieve [Desired Outcome]."
• Ensure it's clear, concise, and repeatable.

Step 3: Plan Your Finances

• Calculate how much you need to earn and what you can realistically earn.
• Consider the price experience you want to create.
• Understand ROI for members and pricing models.

Step 4: Choose a Platform

• Conduct R&D for platform requirements.
• Compare features to choose the best fit.

Step 5: Validate Demand

• Use an application and waitlist to gauge interest before launching.
• Collect data to shape the community effectively.

Step 6: Build the Community

• Avoid common mistakes like too many sections and poor navigation.
• Balance content and community interactions.

Step 7: Create Community Culture

• Define clear cultural traits and the antithesis of desired traits.
• Lead by example and encourage positive behavior.

Step 8: Plan Community Events

• Offer diverse events like AMAs, workshops, social events, and more.
• Beware of burnout; start minimal and involve members in content creation.

Step 9: Launch the Community

• Use urgency and scarcity in launch offers.
• Lock members at current rates to encourage retention.

Step 10: Create a Community Landing Page

• Ensure it qualifies, explains value, and facilitates sign-ups.
• Structure it with a clear CTA and include testimonials.

Step 11: Ongoing Marketing and Growth

• Focus on value, market size, and marketing skills.
• Utilize audience, network, distribution, and referrals.

Step 12: Community Onboarding

• Answer new members’ questions and activate them quickly.
• Aim to wow members in the first 24 hours.

Step 13: Gather Member Data

• Use insights to understand and serve members better.
• Track data systematically to improve community management.

Step 14: Drive Member Engagement

• Facilitate rather than wait for engagement.
• Use private prompting to encourage public participation.

Conclusion

• Address common objections and reassess assumptions.
• Ongoing adjustments and marketing efforts are crucial for growth.
• Resources available for further learning and guidance in community building.

Additional Resources

• Check out "Learn Community" for comprehensive courses and community support.
• Free book: Community Manual available at communitymanual.com for more strategies.

Remember: Building a community takes dedication and consistent effort but can be incredibly rewarding when done right.