You are a published author, or you soon expect to become one. Ask yourself the following questions to determine whether you should consider setting your WordPress website up as a membership site.
1. Does the topic you cover in your book solve a specific problem for your readers?
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2. Does the subject you cover lend itself to gathering a community of like minds?
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3. Does your industry change constantly?
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4. Are you able to create ongoing conversation?
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5. Do you want to monetize your membership site?
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Let me share my own process.
Deciding to turn WritingMyOwnBook.com into a membership site began as a response to a webinar I participated in.
WritingMyOwnBook.com offers a solution to a specific problem—not knowing how to write a book, yet wanting to become an author. It also offers a place where an author may seek independent verification that a manuscript idea is marketable or ready to be published.
Because of my participation in writer’s groups on LinkedIn and AWAI, I knew that writers thrive on helping each other become better at what they love to do—write. It’s something I’ve always enjoyed sharing. I found myself frustrated by not enough time to help the number of clients who approached me.
While I recognize that writing seems pretty static, there are so many aligned areas that I enjoy bringing together. Writing. Publishing. Designing. Marketing. I thought, “Why not bring all these topics together in one place?
I’ve tested my ability to ask provocative questions and write thought inspiring posts by posting within LinkedIn groups on writing and resume writing. In fact, I recommend LinkedIn as good training for developing your engagement skills.
I am actively working to build a resource that provides real value while it also allows me to empower more people than I could using the one-on-one model I’ve used for the past 6 years. I realized in the fall of 2013 that I was sharing the same information with many of my clients. I could deliver a more consistent experience if I standardized that information.
I also realized I could empower more authors if their ability to choose their own path was even more flexible than the model I had been trying to use.
If you are someone who says, “I dream of writing my own book,” then the purpose of this site is to empower you. As we work together, I’ll help you stretch out a trampoline from which you could somersault into the success you’ve only dreamed of.
You just might find yourself with a whole new career when you are through–with a membership site as part of your income stream just one part of your strategy.
