Selling subscriptions is a great way to grow your business. But you don’t need to sell physical products or subscription boxes. You can earn recurring revenue by selling access to digital products. Content subscriptions can take many forms, including:
Downloadable worksheets, guides, or ebooks
Premium video access
Using a content subscription service like Member Sites is an easy way to offer a new service or bring in new customers. Set up membership tiers and pricing, then upload your content. While you run the rest of your business, your subscription business will collect recurring payments.
How to set up subscription selling
To sell subscriptions to your content, you need to:
Set up a paywalled section of your website
Upload exclusive content
Choose membership pricing
Promote your new membership website
Start by repurposing content you already have to set up your new revenue stream faster. For example, a podcaster could paywall old bonus episodes or Q&As. An event planner could paywall budgeting worksheets that they usually provide to their clients.
Once you have that in place, you can consider scheduling regular updates. Or offer member perks like exclusive events, special member sales, or webinars.
How to price a content subscription
Do some research before setting a pricing model for your customers. Start by looking at how your competitors are priced. Your pricing should be comparable to others with similar experience.
Your subscribers should feel like they’re getting value from their subscription fees too. You’ll run into retention issues if your prices are too high or your content falls short of their expectations.
Also, consider whether you want to charge a one-time or monthly subscription price. If you have time to make regular updates, a monthly subscription makes more sense. For someone selling lifetime access to a product or event, a one-time purchase fee is probably best. Or, could you offer different membership tiers with different incentives? Member Sites makes it easy to handle subscription management and has a streamlined ecommerce platform for processing payments.
Subscriptions work well as replacements for—or add-ons to—existing one-on-one client work. Make sure your content is priced affordably for those who may not be able to afford your full services. Building customer loyalty with subscribers can pay dividends in word-of-mouth marketing.
Content subscription examples
The benefit of a digital subscription is that you can sell almost any type of subscription you want through a Member Site. Consider the following examples:
Wellness practitioners could deliver a monthly live workshop, workbook exercise, and audio meditation.
Makers or creators can offer behind-the-scenes videos and live AMA sessions.
Online store owners can share early access to new product launches.
Graphic designers can sell design templates or a design course.
Event planners can sell downloadable checklists or budgeting spreadsheets.
Choosing the right content for your subscription-based business is about sharing content your audience resonates with. Consider what services your current audience or clients respond well to and start there.
How to promote content subscriptions
Once your Member Site is set up and your content is mapped out, it’s time to promote your subscription. Start by promoting where you already have an audience.
Social media accounts: Get your followers involved early in the process if you can. Ask for feedback on what content they’d be interested in or pricing tiers. They’ll feel invested in what you’re building from the start. Once you’re live, share teasers of your content and link to the signup page.
Website copy: Boost your visibility in search by optimizing the SEO on your website. Squarespace websites tell you which search terms are already sending people to your website, so you can work those into your page titles and descriptions.
Offer a trial: Include a one-month free or discounted trial in the sale of any workshop or service you’re already selling. These customers already trust your work. Inviting them to join the Member Site gives them an idea of how it works and makes them more likely to subscribe.
Ready to make recurring revenue, scale your impact, and sell your content subscription?
This post was updated on March 24, 2023.