Bob's Home Business Blog

Membership websites have become very popular online as home based business opportunities and for good reason. First of all, for the uninitiated a membership site contains information pertinent to a particular niche that members usually pay a monthly recurring fee, or sometimes a lump sum amount for a year long subscription, to gain access to this information. Here are five reasons why these websites have become all the rage on the web and why they’re continuing to grow in numbers and in stature as business ventures online:

1. Operating a membership business is a tremendous way to create a recurring income on the Internet. Because, in most instances, subscribers pay a monthly fee to gain access to the information contained on these sites you’re establishing a continuous income stream from each of your members. Of course the more people who sign up for your service the higher your remuneration will be from your enterprise.

2. The sky is the limit with regard to the number of these websites you can create online. Once you’ve established your first site you can then replicate your efforts and build as many of these income generating machines as you would like. This helps generate more profit for your online venture because, for example, if you have 20 websites each having 30 members who are paying $20.00 per month for your service your revenue from these multiple income streams each month will be an astounding $12,000.00 which translates into $144,000.00 per year. The beauty of this situation is you can continue to add to your profits by building more membership sites, so the sky really is the limit.

3. Another advantage offered by these web pages is you can target the hottest niche online at the time or, if you’re creating multiple sites, you can focus on the top ten money making opportunities on the web at any given moment. Or you can create 10 sites all dedicated to the same target market thereby multiplying your efforts and when this opportunity wanes you can then move on to the next big revenue generator or hottest seller on the web at the time.

4. Membership websites are also a great way to build your targeted email list very quickly. By creating multiple sites you can build your list from many different sources which are also targeted toward many different niche markets. As we mentioned earlier you can concentrate each site on a different hot market segment or you can focus on one niche with multiple websites and target your list from people interested in this particular offer. By using this strategy and by providing an offer too good to refuse you should be able to build a highly targeted inventory of subscribers very quickly.

5. Entering this type of market allows you to create a different revenue model from each website you establish on the web. For example, one strategy can consist of a simple autoresponder system whereby you deliver content to your members automatically at the end of each month for a regular fee.

While a second revenue approach could involve building a free membership site to help grow your email list while at the same time helping you develop relationships with your members so you can approach them later in the process with a back end offer. Once again which strategy or strategies you wish to employ are only limited by your imagination and your ingenuity which only adds to your enjoyment of running this type of business.

I would highly recommend to anyone who is considering starting a home based business online to investigate the potential of building and growing a membership empire on the web. This opportunity can provide a residual and recurring income for you and your family for many years to come.

Bob Withers

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Membership websites are very popular on the web right now because they provide an excellent opportunity to create a substantial recurring income as a home based business. For the uninitiated a membership site contains information pertinent to a particular niche that members usually pay a monthly recurring fee or sometimes a lump sum amount for a year long subscription to gain access to said information.

The content may take many forms including articles, software downloads, audio and video files or a course or seminar related to your niche. These websites can also be free of charge for access because, in these cases, the owner may be using this free service to help build their email list and also to promote a back end product later in the process.

These websites are attractive to the new Internet entrepreneur for a number of reasons with the most important being it’s a tremendous way to establish a very lucrative recurring income online. However, before you begin to build your membership empire there are several very important questions you must answer in order to ensure that your business is a success.

1. Your first concern should be addressing the issue of which red hot niche you are going to approach to become members of your website. You should select a target which has a high conversion rate and one which is very popular or is starting to become very attractive to people on the Internet. Some of the most fashionable markets at the moment include weight loss, health and fitness, exercise, dog training, home business opportunities, relationships and anti-aging niches.

2. Next you should consider which revenue model you are going to create for your membership site. There are several you can choose from including but not limited to a free subscription to build your list and promote a back end product at a later date, or a low monthly subscription such as $4.99 or $9.97 per month for access to your content, or perhaps you could offer a six month long course for six equal payments of 197.00 per month or a lump sum payment of $1000.00 up front for the entire training. These are only three examples and there are many more available and you’re only limited by your imagination as to which model you choose.

3. You should also consider as to whether or not you’re going to create a back end sales funnel for your website. This means, for example you could begin with a free membership offer or a low monthly subscription rate and when you establish a relationship with your members you could pitch them on a higher priced product on the back end of the sales process.

4. Now you must decide how you’re going to deliver your content to your members. Is it going to be a simple delivery platform such as an autoresponder sending their articles or password to your content on a monthly basis or are you going to develop a multi-tiered membership where different levels of subscribers receive access to or the delivery of different, or varying stages of information? For example, you could establish gold, silver and bonze levels with the gold members receiving the most advanced content.

5. Your website layout should be your next contemplation and this is where the KISS principle should be applied especially if you’re new to creating websites. A wordpress header with one of their done for you templates is the most economical and easiest path to take for getting your site up and running.

If you still aren’t convinced you can handle the technical stuff on your own there’s a great website called fiverr where you can have someone create a wordpress site for you for five dollars.

At this stage you should also come up with a domain name and purchase it from one the many providers online such as Namecheap and Go Daddy. It’s recommended that your name be related to your targeted niche. For example, if your chosen niche is home business opportunities online then you should try to incorporate these words in the domain name.

6. Last but certainly not least you must decide where you’re going to get your content to supply to your membership on a regular basis. For example, are you going to create it yourself or are you going to buy it? There are many private label rights product websites on the web where you can purchase some of the goods you need at very reasonable prices.

This may be the best road to take as far as delivering fresh information to your subscribers on a regular basis is concerned because depending on how many websites you create developing new products yourself on a monthly basis could become a real challenge for someone new to creating and promoting membership websites online.

Once you have launched your first website your only remaining chore is driving traffic to your site and signing up new members. Of course traffic generation is a whole new topic in and of itself and is a subject for another day.

Creating membership websites provide an exceptional opportunity for establishing a successful and profitable home based business online from the comfort of your own home and is an idea that should be considered very seriously.    

Bob Withers

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When you decide to create a home based business online there are many different blue prints available on the web you can follow with regard to selecting which product or service you’re going to promote and how you’re going to promote it. One of the most lucrative opportunities for making money on the Internet on a consistent basis is by creating a membership website. What I mean by consistent income is knowing each and every month how much your site is going to contribute to your coffers.

First of all, for the uninitiated, a membership website is established when you charge your subscribers a monthly fee to access the content on your home page. This information, of course, should be related to your overall home business theme.

For example, your topic could be “How to start a home based business online”. If this was your subject matter then you would collect and organize all the information you possibly could find about this particular issue and charge a monthly membership fee for ongoing access to it.

When you’re creating a membership website there are several factors you must take into consideration throughout the process including these 5 issues:

1. During the development phase of your membership program you should continually remind yourself to make the user interface for accessing your information as easy to use as possible while making it pleasing to the eye.

To accomplish this you must dedicate yourself to putting in the time necessary to make your membership site more convenient to use and more attractive than that of the competition online, some of which charge nothing for access to their content. Without due diligence during this stage you may be doomed to failure even before you launch your website.

2. Upon completion of your site you should ask yourself if you would pay a monthly fee for regular admission to your content. To avoid any bias you could ask other independent webmasters to view your finished product and give their opinion or their critique of your site. In order to justify being able to charge a monthly fee your membership site must be unique when compared with other similar sites online.

Is your content different than other similar programs on the web? Is your approach to the topic different than that of your competitors? If you can answer yes to these questions you should have no problem attracting paid subscribers to your membership program.

3. Even though the information you’re presenting may be readily available online people may want to pay you to access it because you have it organized in a logical sequence and in an easy to find manner. Therefore always keep in mind that organization and presentation may rule the day when trying to convince your potential customers to become paying clients. Therefore ease of use, navigation and convenience should be your top three goals during the development of your home page.

4. Always keep in mind how you’re going to market your membership site when you’re creating it. If, upon completion, you determine that your content doesn’t really differ significantly from that of your competition then how you market your program will be the key to your success.

You must focus on all the positive aspects of your site in your advertising, as discussed earlier, such as ease of use, navigation and convenience. This may give you the edge over competing sites irregardless of your similar information. Because your content isn’t unique you must be able to market it in such a way as to attract paying members.

5. Always remember to update your content on a regular basis. Failure to do so will result in your members becoming bored with your website and as a result canceling their subscriptions. When collecting the content for your program you must remind yourself that it must be capable of being updated.

When you complete changes or updates to your site send a mass email to your members advising them of the changes and invite them to drop by to take a look. This should reinforce their belief that you’re paying careful attention to providing quality information on a regular basis. People will stop paying for the same old same old every month.         

By keeping these five factors in mind throughout the development and creation stage of your membership site you will increase your odds of success greatly and you should soon have a consistent monthly income stream to your home based business online.

Bob Withers 

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Membership websites are very popular online these days and if you’re looking for a home based business opportunity on the web you should consider establishing a member’s only site for your enterprise. First of all, for the uninitiated a membership website is as the name suggests a site you create which has content and information people are looking for and who are willing to pay for the privilege of being able gain access to it whenever they want.

These people subscribe and agree to pay a monthly membership fee. The popularity of these websites is growing for a variety of reasons including the fact that it offers 4 major advantages over more traditional sites.

1. The setup cost for one of these pages is very low therefore it’s very attractive to people just starting out online who have very little financing available to delve into one of the more expensive home business ventures available on the web.

If you’re into web design you can create your own site and add a payment section to handle credit card transactions or you can obtain one of the many free website templates available on the Internet or hire someone to design it for you. There are also membership site software packages available for purchase which supplies everything you need except your content.

You should give careful consideration to the theme or topic of your content. It should be something you’re very knowledgeable of and passionate about because you will need to create your own information products to add to your member’s area to attract new subscribers. You will also find it necessary to update and add to your content on a regular basis to keep your members interested and to retain them as paying customers.

2. You have no inventory to worry about as you would with a traditional business because your content is digital in nature and is available for easy access to your subscribers in the member’s area. This information will always be available because even when it’s downloaded by your customers it’s still available for the next member because of its duplicity. You will be creating your own products to add to your member’s area which will also cut down on your costs.

3. Once you have a substantial membership list established you will have a steady stream of income on a continuous basis because you will be adding new subscribers on a consistent basis to replace people who move on at the end of their subscription. As long as you update your information at regular intervals and create new content you should have a high retention rate and very little turnover with regard to members.

4. Membership websites also provide the opportunity for a high profit margin for your home based business online. Because of the low start up costs and the fact you will be creating your own content for your member’s area your monthly subscription minus your web hosting fees, any paid advertising you may have in place and your monthly payment for your membership site software if you have it, will be your profit. Another plus is your earning potential is only limited by the number of members you sign up. The more subscribers you have the higher your profit margin and the higher your monthly income.

As you can see membership websites are a very attractive alternative for a home based business opportunity online because of the advantages mentioned above and because of the consistent income provided on a monthly basis once you’re established on the web.

Bob Withers

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