Haiden Hibbert
Building a successful membership business from scratch isn’t easy, but for Sara and Stu from Little Owls Resources, their decision to give away free content helped them grow their subscriber base to 20,000 members. It all started with a simple strategy: offering valuable free resources to attract new members and build trust.
Their journey to scaling their business involved automating tasks, expanding their content library, and finding the right tool to grow with them. Let’s dive into how they achieved it.
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Table of Contents
Offering Free Content to Attract Subscribers
Sara and Stu knew that in order to grow their membership business, they needed a way to consistently attract new subscribers. Their solution? Offer valuable content for free to bring people in and build a connection before asking them to pay for premium access.
Here’s how they did it:
- Free resources: They created high-quality, useful resources that anyone could access at no cost. This made it easier to get people interested and spread the word about their site.
- Lead magnets: By offering free downloads and guides, they could capture contact information and keep new leads engaged.
- Trust-building: Free content allowed them to build credibility and trust with their audience, making people more likely to upgrade to paid tiers later.
This strategy paid off quickly as their free resources started to gain attention. Their subscriber count grew steadily as word spread through organic search and referrals.
Automating Tasks to Handle Growth
With a flood of new subscribers coming in, managing the membership site manually wasn’t sustainable. That’s when Sara and Stu turned to MemberSpace, which allowed them to automate tasks and focus on growing their content library instead of getting bogged down in day-to-day operations.
With automation, they could:
- Process payments seamlessly for premium members.
- Manage member access without needing to manually update who could see what.
- Handle content updates more efficiently, freeing up their time to create more valuable resources.
By automating these tasks, Sara and Stu were able to scale their membership site much faster without spending all their time on administration.
Using a Free-to-Paid Funnel to Increase Conversions
Their strategy didn’t stop at free content. Sara and Stu also implemented a free-to-paid funnel that encouraged free members to upgrade to paid subscriptions over time.
Here’s what their funnel looked like:
- Start with free resources: They drew people in with valuable free content, which helped establish trust and credibility.
- Introduce premium content: Over time, they introduced premium content tiers with exclusive resources and deeper materials.
- Upsell with targeted offers: For subscribers who engaged with their free content, Sara and Stu used email marketing to offer special discounts and incentives to upgrade to paid plans.
This funnel allowed them to consistently convert free members into paying subscribers, helping them generate more revenue while still providing value to their community.
SEO and Organic Traffic Fueled Their Growth
Sara and Stu’s free content strategy worked hand-in-hand with SEO to drive traffic. By optimizing their free resources for search engines, they were able to attract a steady stream of new visitors without relying on paid advertising.
They focused on:
- SEO-friendly content: They created content that answered questions their target audience was searching for, helping them rank higher in search engine results.
- Consistency: They regularly updated their content library to keep it fresh, ensuring they continued to rank well and attract organic traffic.
- Lead generation: As their traffic grew, so did their list of free members, which in turn fed their free-to-paid funnel.
This approach helped them scale to 20,000 subscribers without needing a huge marketing budget.
Building a Community to Keep Subscribers Engaged
Beyond offering free content and driving traffic, Sara and Stu understood the importance of community. They worked hard to keep their subscribers engaged by regularly updating their content library, sending newsletters, and staying active on social media.
Here’s how they kept their community involved:
- Regular content updates: They made sure to consistently add new resources to keep members engaged and coming back.
- Newsletters: Regular emails helped them maintain a relationship with their subscribers, keeping them informed and offering sneak peeks of upcoming premium content.
- Social media engagement: They shared free resources and community updates across their social media platforms to keep their audience engaged and spread the word about their membership.
By staying active and engaged, Sara and Stu were able to turn their subscribers into a loyal community that continues to grow.
Final Thoughts
Sara and Stu’s journey shows that offering free content can be one of the most effective ways to grow a membership business. By focusing on building trust, automating their workflow, and creating a strategic funnel from free to paid content, they were able to gain 20,000 subscribers and scale their business.
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