Membership-Driven Business

What would change about how you promote your membership if you knew you'd be selling it for the next 70 years?

That's exactly what brands like Gucci have done... finding fresh, exciting ways to sell the same iconic products for decades. And in this second installment of the Return to Form series, I'm borrowing from their playbook to help you get your creative spark back for marketing an established membership.

If you've been going through the motions with your promotions, focusing on getting everything "right" instead of infusing your marketing with what makes you magnetic, this...

You can be in a rut with your membership marketing and still grow it anyway.

If you've been feeling uninspired about how you talk about and sell your membership, like you've said it all before and you're not sure what fresh thing there is to say, you’re going to love the new series I’m kicking off on the podcast (and newsletter) called Return to Form.

This is Volume #1!

📌 Join the Membership-Driven newsletter (it’s free) for exclusive instalments of the Return to Form series: https://themissingink.co/newsletter

We’re talking...

Growing a membership past 1,000 members requires a radically different playbook than the one that got you there... and most of the advice online simply isn't built for your level of success.

If you've built a membership with a thousand members or more, you've probably noticed that the conversations happening publicly are aimed at beginners chasing their first 50 members.

Meanwhile, you're navigating questions nobody seems to be answering: which opportunities deserve your attention, why growth is slowing despite doing everything "right," and how to break through the plateau you keep bumping against.

In this...

You know the magic is happening inside your membership. You can feel it in every breakthrough, every thank you note, every resource that becomes a member favorite.

But the moment you sit down to write a sales post or explain what your membership is about, you feel at a loss for words.

If your retention is strong but your sales aren't matching, this episode is about the translation problem sitting between your incredible membership and the people who haven't joined yet.

I'm sharing three practical ways to make your membership feel more tangible...

You have an amazing membership. You know it, your members know it, and the results speak for themselves... so why does it feel like your sales don't reflect that?

If you've been putting in the work to promote your membership and people clearly love what you do behind the scenes, but new members just aren't joining at the volume you'd expect, this episode will help you figure out why.

I'm walking you through the three most common reasons your membership might not be converting even though it’s excellent, and what to do about each on...

You're out there creating content, sending emails, showing up on social media, being so generous with your expertise... and wondering why people aren't joining your membership at the rate you'd expect.

Here's what might be happening: you're giving tips when you should be sharing your point of view.

In this episode, I'm making the case that tips are dead as a membership sales strategy in 2026.

The thing that will make people choose you, stay with you, and see your membership as the only option for them is your unique perspective on how to...

Your membership isn't dead... but is it truly alive?

If your membership feels like it's in a state of suspended reality, where things aren't falling apart but they're definitely not thriving, this episode is your diagnostic.

Before you look at sales strategies, repositioning, or messaging fixes, there's a deeper question to answer first... are you actually sold on your own membership? Because it's incredibly hard to grow an offer you're not fully bought into.

In this episode, I'm walking you through the three sneaky things that create resistance to selling your membership, and...

You know that feeling when something's just *off* inside your membership?

Members aren't engaging the way you'd hoped, the energy feels flat, and you're starting to wonder if the whole thing needs an overhaul?

Before you raise the price, restructure the offer, or spiral into second-guessing everything you've built, there are three practical things you can do to bring the vibe back to life.

In this episode, I'm walking you through what's really going on when your membership feels off, why your instincts to "do more" or "back off completely" are both leading...

There's a crucial difference between knowing how to launch and knowing how to grow a membership sustainably, and understanding this distinction will change the way you sell.

If you've been caught in a cycle where each launch catches you by surprise, each promotion feels like starting from scratch, or you're constantly winging it with your membership growth, this episode is for you.

My brilliant client Dr. Michelle Mazur is joining me to share how she grew her annual membership, The Expert Up Club, into a $10K/month revenue stream — and the work we did together to...

Does your membership revenue feel random? You're working hard behind the scenes, your members are happy, but when it comes to growing your income and hitting your goals, things feel unpredictable.

If you've been frustrated by plateaued growth or can't seem to break out of the "nice little baseline" zone with your membership, let's talk about what you can do differently!

In this episode, I'm walking you through the three critical mindset and operational shifts that separate membership owners who are just maintaining from those who are truly membership-driven.

It's time to stop...

What if building one skill could simultaneously improve how you sell your membership, enhance your member experience, boost retention, AND give you clearer revenue forecasting?

That skill is learning how to position a compelling 12-month membership tier... even if you have no plans to actually offer one.

In this episode, I'm breaking down why thinking through an annual membership offer will make you better at selling and retaining members across every pricing tier, plus open up revenue opportunities you might not be seeing right now.

Whether you currently offer monthly-only, already have an...

If you've ever found yourself stress-cleaning your business during a promotion (or fantasizing about becoming a seaside barista), this episode is your lighthouse.

Running a membership promotion can trigger completely normal anxiety and discomfort. The vulnerability of putting yourself out there, the white-knuckle grip on your sales dashboard, the voice in your head questioning everything... it's a lot.

This episode is designed to be a life raft for anyone actively promoting their membership right now, or preparing for one.

Because in 2026, we can't take a passive approach to selling anymore. You need to...

Jamar Diggs said he'd never start a membership — until he did.

He thought they were a time and energy suck that required endless content drops.

So: he decided to do something different.

He launched his membership, the Low-Lift Club: which doesn't deliver monthly content or require Jamar to be endlessly available in his community, answering questions on demand...

And his members love it.

Fast-forward two years, and the Low-Lift Club is now Jamar's main source of income.

Recently, he celebrated his highest (and most profitable) month of in...

Setting membership goals without first answering these two questions is like trying to win a million hearts instead of actually winning the game. (Yes, that was a Survivor reference.)

If you've ever set a big, inspiring goal for your membership (like: "impact 1 million women" or "help 10,000 people get debt-free") and then struggled to figure out what the hell to actually DO on a weekly basis to make it happen, this episode will change everything.

In this episode, I'm sharing the two questions that will make you more excited about your membership AND more effective at...

Growing your membership is a priority, but it's likely not the only thing you're doing in your business.

You have other offers to sell, things you're creating, and it takes a real plan to make sure your membership growth goals don't fall to the wayside.

This was true for Maggie Patterson: a marketing & communications expert, business consultant, the author of Staying Solo - and the owner of The Staying Solo Squad, a membership for solo service providers.

In 2025, Maggie launched her book, promoted two masterminds, sold a new service, hosted 2 podcasts and *still...

There's a massive difference between solving problems and tolerating dysfunction in your membership. Recognizing which one you're doing will unlock your next level of growth.

If you've been sensing that the effort you put into your membership could be yielding even better results, or you're ready to move from good to exceptional membership performance, you’ll learn exactly where to focus in this episode.

In this second installment of the Staying Power series, I'm sharing the three subtle imbalances that keep successful memberships from reaching their full potential, and how small adjustments can create exponential re...

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about what it means to create a membership with Staying Power.

The truth is that anyone can start a membership. The bar to entry has never been lower…

But the memberships that last, the ones that actually leave a positive impact on the people who join it — and on you, the person running it? Well, those memberships all have something special called Staying Power.

Over the next four episodes, I’ll be exploring the four key elements of membership Staying Power and how you can use them to...

What if the way you've been thinking about "success" in your membership launches is actually undermining your staying power?

In this episode, I'm challenging the all-or-nothing mindset that so many membership owners bring to their sales and growth efforts. Instead of measuring every promotion by whether you "win" or "fail," I'm introducing a new lens that will help you build longevity, more resilience and real staying power in your business.

This is the episode to listen to (or re-listen to) before your next launch or promotion — especially if you've been feeling the pressure of "this ha...

If you’re growing a membership, it can be hard to know what to focus on next—especially when you're getting advice that assumes you’re either just starting out or already operating at scale.

In this episode, I’m walking you through the three growth stages I see again and again in my work with membership-driven businesses: Foundation, Framework, and Finesse.

Whether you're testing what makes people join, trying to smooth out recurring revenue, or itching to evolve your offer without breaking what’s working, this episode will help you identify where you are and where...

If you run an always-open membership, you already know the challenge: without a deadline, it’s harder to get people to join now instead of “someday” (which often never comes).

In this episode, I’m sharing three ways to create urgency for your membership without discounting, free trials or fake urgency (like saying the doors are closing when they’re really not).

You’ll learn how to use what’s already happening inside your membership to attract new members, re-engage existing ones, and keep your promotions feeling fresh — so you can sell consistently all year round.

We’...

Over the last 8 years I've worked closely with business owners whose memberships generates the majority of their income, to the tune of multiple 6- or 7-figures per year.

In this episode, I'm sharing how they think about their membership - plus one thing they often forget - and how you can apply these perspectives to grow your recurring revenue in 2025 and beyond.

Links and Resources:

Are you already dreading your next membership promotion because you’re worried you won’t hit your goal?

In 2025, many membership owners are being forced to throw old the old rulebook and find new ways to get members in the door.

It can be incredibly frustrating (and often, downright demoralizing)!

We are all in a moment where we’re being asked to rise to the occasion, and to answer some hard questions about the value our memberships provide in the world.

In this episode, I’ll walk you through the 3 key shifts t...

Feeling like you’re always selling to the same people every time you launch your membership?

In this episode of Membership-Driven Business, we’re talking about how to create a visibility plan that helps you bring fresh leads into your world consistently, so your membership has more chances to grow.

We're talking about:

Think the only way to grow your membership is to plan a big, high-pressure launch every few months… only to burn out and start all over again multiple times a year? Think again.

In this episode of Membership-Driven Business, we’re talking about what’s changing in the world of memberships, and why hanging all of your hopes on your next big launch might not be your best bet.

If you’ve been relying on a handful of big launches each year to grow your recurring revenue, this conversation will show you why that approach is becom...

Relying on motivation & willpower to grow your membership is a risky strategy, but it’s so common among the business owners I work with (even the very successful ones).

In this episode of The Membership-Driven Business Podcast, we’re talking about why your membership growth feels shaky, especially if you’ve been letting your energy or motivation levels dictate how (and how often) you promote it.

I’ll walk you through the three strategies I use with my clients to help them grow their memberships more consistently, without a BIG exhausting launch.

Also, this app...

Does it feel like you’re starting over from scratch every time you promote your membership?

In this episode of Membership-Driven Business, we’re talking about why having just a launch plan isn’t enough to grow your membership sustainably (or keep your sanity intact).

I’ll walk you through the three core pieces of a real growth plan—so you can stop guessing your way through every launch and start selling your membership with more clarity, ease, and confidence.

Here’s what we’ll cover:

🎉🎉 The PLAY TO WIN Quiz is here! Go to playtowinquiz.com to take the 2-minute assessment now.

In this episode of The Membership-Driven Business Podcast, we're diving into a new way to approach membership growth—one that starts with you.

Instead of following someone else’s formula, I’m sharing a free tool to help you find your personal path to growth: the Play to Win Quiz!

We’re talking about:

🔹 Why your growth strategy should reflect how you actually deliver your membership

🔹 Four unique membership growth styles—and how each one shows up...

Running your membership like a course creator is bad for business.

Unfortunately... it's also the default. If you plan your membership content by asking questions like:

❓ What topic should we cover this month?

❓ What's been on my mind lately?

❓ What would members find interesting?

❓ What ideas do I want to share?

Then you're defaulting to something I call "Idea Thinking".

This is one of the most powerful things you can do in your business — but it's terrible strategy if you want to improve your retention and recurring rev...

I don’t know about you, but the idea of intensively planning my year or doing a big review feels completely unappealing to me at the moment.

I say this as a person who LOVES to dream big and envision what’s possible — thinking about the future comes really naturally to me — but I also know that not every year is going to be my Best Year Ever, and I’m OK with that. 

... You too?

If you want intentional about your year ahead, but you know the answers aren’t waiting for you in a work...

Many membership owners find themselves stuck with shrinking launches and declining engagement, wondering what's gone wrong.

In this episode of The Membership-Driven Business Podcast, we're exploring 7 critical mistakes that could be holding your membership back — and more importantly, how to fix them.

We're talking about:

🔹 Why the "Netflix model" of membership is becoming less effective and what to offer instead

🔹 How to design your membership around practice rather than information to boost engagement and retention

🔹 Why your starter course might be overwhelming new members (and how to fix it in 60 minut...

Many membership owners dream of setting up an evergreen funnel to solve their sales challenges, but the reality is more nuanced.

In this episode of The Membership-Driven Business Podcast, we're exploring why having a robust, multi-faceted sales system is crucial — and why evergreen alone won't save you.

We're talking about:

🔹 The three essential pillars of a sustainable membership sales system and why skipping straight to evergreen could be setting you up for frustration

🔹 How to approach live launching in a way that energizes (rather than exhausts) you and aligns with your natural...

Does promoting your membership feel like a chore lately — like you're just going through the motions with the same old marketing playbook?

Many membership owners find themselves stuck in a cycle of repetitive promotions that have lost their spark.

In this episode of The Membership-Driven Business Podcast, we're exploring how to bring creativity and excitement back to your membership marketing — both for you and your ideal members.

We're talking about:

🔹 How to unearth fresh messaging angles that spark genuine excitement and start new conversations with your audience (including a fascinating example from To...

Let's talk about your membership sales page. If you're like most membership owners I work with, you probably let out an internal groan. Your sales page feels outdated, cluttered, and doesn't reflect all the amazing value you're delivering inside your membership.

In this episode, we're diving into what makes membership sales pages different, and how to make yours work harder for you.

We'll cover:

🔹 Why the "less is more" approach to selling memberships is a myth, and what you should be doing instead to effectively communicate your membership's value

🔹 How to showca...

I know, I know. There are so many conversations about how selling feels so much harder in business right now.

I’ve spoken with many membership owners behind the scenes who feel like their sales are slower or they have to work twice as hard — just to achieve the same result.

There’s a lot of chatter about selling in 2024, but I don’t feel membership owners are being well-served by most of the perspectives that are being shared. (If anything, the more you search for answers, the more overwhelmed you feel.)

That’s why, in...

Designing a membership with broad appeal doesn’t mean you have to serve anyone and everyone. In fact, this is one of the biggest reasons people get tired of their membership and decide to close it down.

If the people you’re attracting into your membership aren’t the people you truly love to work with, then it’s time to look at the difference between an ideal customer and what I refer to as a “high-caliber customer”.

Your marketing for your membership should speak to your high-caliber customers above everyone else. Better yet, you can create m...

One of the biggest fears and frustrations of the membership owners I talk to is over-delivering: the feeling that you’re giving too much, for too little in return.

The problem? We’re thinking about over-delivering in the wrong way. It doesn’t mean what most of us think it means.

We’ll explore:

Do you feel like your membership content is smart, brilliant and original — but members aren’t using it?

If your churn is higher than you’d like, or your engagement feels low, this episode is for you.

We’ll explore:

Have you been thinking about making a change to your membership, but you’re afraid of the potential blowback?

In this episode, Natalie takes you behind the scenes of:

Links and Resources:

NEW! 💘 COMMITTED WORKSHOP: Grow your membership income by 10-15% or more with an irresistible annual plan. Grab your spot or catch...

You know you have a great membership, but translating that into a strong message isn’t so easy.

In this episode, Natalie shares the four layers of how to communicate what really makes your membership irresistible in 2024 — and what modern buyers are looking for when they land on your sales page and start weighing up whether your membership has a place in their lives.

Links and Resources:

Do you have a habit of only working on your membership when you're about to promote it?

If you're stuck in a cycle of adding new bonuses and changing up the member area only before promotions -- and feeling super frantic and stressed while you do it -- this episode is for you.

We also discuss how to think about the role of your community manager in a new way, and how they can help you work on optimizing and improving your membership all year round.

Links and Resources: