The idea of owning a website that generates any form of recurring revenue is very appealing to online entrepreneurs and affiliate marketers. It provides a sense of stability, predictability, and the potential for long-term growth.
For Liz Wilcox, a single mom and savvy entrepreneur, the idea of creating an affordable, low-maintenance membership program was the key to unlocking the lifestyle and financial freedom she wanted.
By using her expertise in email marketing and understanding what her audience needed, Liz created the Email Marketing Membership - a set of ready-made newsletter templates that members can access for just $9 per month.
In this article, we'll explore how Liz turned her used-up email templates into a thriving $500,000 business, and the strategies she used to build, grow, and keep her membership program thriving.
Liz Wilcox
Identifying the opportunity
Liz had been an email copywriter for a long time. But despite getting copywriting contracts worth up to $20,000, Liz found the work draining. As a single mom, she recognized the importance of building a business that would support her lifestyle and allow her to be there for her family. This was a turning point where Liz realized that trading her time for money would never give her the freedom she wanted. That's when she thought of making money from the email copywriting templates she had already created, which were generating good open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates for her clients.
For some time, Liz had been building an audience on social media that focused on email marketing. At the same time, she had collected emails from people in her audience who were new to email marketing and eager to learn. She realized this was a chance to solve an ongoing problem for her audience in a recurring way.
Liz noticed that many beginners had trouble sending emails regularly. But there wasn't anyone offering affordable, pre-made newsletter templates to make this easier. Liz had accumulated a lot of email templates from her client work. So she decided to take those templates and turn them into a valuable membership program.
The key insight was that Liz could use her existing expertise and content to create a steady stream of income. By providing her email marketing know-how and done-for-you templates, she could offer an affordable solution to her audience's ongoing needs.
This membership program approach allowed Liz to take the email templates she had created for her clients and turn them into a subscription service that brought in steady monthly income, instead of just using them for her client work.
Launching with momentum
To test out her idea and get people excited about it, Liz reached out to her existing email list of 800 subscribers. She sent them an email with a catchy subject line:
"Can I have $9?"
In the email, she shared her goal of signing up 100 members in 30 days:
"I'm going to send you a new newsletter template every single week. It's only $9. If you've been on my email list for a while, you know my stuff is great. So why not join?"
By making this public and creating a sense of urgency, Liz was able to hit her first 100 members in just 28 days. The excitement around this initial milestone led to organic word-of-mouth promotion on social media, which further fueled the growth of the membership program.
Leveraging affiliates to promote the membership program
As the Email Marketing Membership started to gain popularity, Liz decided to create an affiliate program. This would encourage others to promote the membership and share it with their own audiences.
Liz offered a very generous commission - 50% of the $9 monthly membership fee. This provided a strong financial incentive for affiliates to actively promote the program.
With the help of these affiliate partnerships, Liz's membership grew rapidly, jumping to 700 members in just 3 months, taking it to $6,300 MRR. The affiliate program allowed Liz to tap into other people's audiences and platforms to drive more sign-ups.
Optimizing for long-term growth
After 9 months, Liz's membership program was doing very well. But she started thinking about how to make it sustainable in the long run.
Liz took inspiration from SaaS companies and their annual subscription plans. She decided to test out offering an annual access option during a Black Friday promotion.
This annual plan included a full year of newsletter templates, instant access to all her digital products, and free lifetime access to any new products she created. To create a sense of scarcity and demand, Liz capped the offer at 100 spots for the first 2-hour launch window.
This promotion was a big success. It attracted 225 annual members and generated $37,000 in just a few weeks. This influx of capital and long-term commitments from her members gave Liz the financial security she needed to step away from her client work. She could now focus exclusively on growing her thriving membership program.
Delivering unparalleled value
At the core of Liz's membership are the weekly newsletter templates, which she initially just shared via a simple Google Doc link. As her membership grew, Liz enhanced the value by opening up a community for her members once she reached 1,000 subscribers. To keep her members engaged and satisfied, Liz focuses on three key things:
- Invested support: Liz regularly interacts with her members, helping them make the most of the tools and tips provided in the membership.
- Personal connection: By sharing her own stories and experiences, Liz helps her members feel a sense of belonging and connection, encouraging them to stick around.
- Consistent value: Liz continually delivers helpful content, like workshops and short courses, in addition to the weekly newsletters.
By creating a strong, supportive community and consistently providing valuable content, Liz has built a loyal member base that not only benefits from the membership but also contributes to its ongoing success.
Driving traffic and sales
To keep growing her membership, Liz uses two main strategies: affiliate marketing and podcast guesting.
With affiliate marketing, Liz offers a very generous 50% commission to encourage people to promote her membership program. This gives affiliates a strong financial incentive to share the program with their audiences.
At first, Liz used a platform called SamCart to manage her affiliate program. But she later switched to ThriveCart because it had similar features but was more cost-effective in terms of platform fees.
In addition to affiliates, Liz actively looks for opportunities to be a guest on podcasts. This allows her to reach new audiences and direct them to her membership site.
Together, these two methods - affiliate marketing and podcast guesting - ensure a steady flow of new members joining Liz's program. This helps maintain the momentum and growth of her successful business.
By getting affiliates to promote her program and appearing as a guest on podcasts, Liz is able to consistently drive traffic and sales to her thriving membership model.
Tackling churn
Like any membership business, Liz has to deal with some people canceling their memberships (known as "churn"). Her current churn rate is 8-10%, which is a bit higher than she'd like.
However, Liz believes that for members who actively use the content, strategies, and templates provided, the membership is extremely valuable. The benefits they get are worth much more than the $9 monthly fee.
To reduce churn, Liz continuously works on improving the member experience and providing even more value. This includes regularly updating the content library, hosting live Q&A sessions, and offering personalized support and feedback to members.
By focusing on delivering exceptional value, Liz is able to keep most of her members engaged and active, despite the natural churn that occurs in any membership program.
By focusing on delivering exceptional value, Liz is able to keep most of her members engaged and active, despite the natural churn that occurs in any membership program.
Balancing work and family life
As a single parent, Liz has found a great way to balance her work and personal life. She organizes her workday to be very productive in just 5 hours. This allows her to take her daughter to school and still have quality time with her family.
Liz is able to run her successful business while also fulfilling her responsibilities as a parent. This work-life balance is inspiring for other entrepreneurs who are juggling family commitments along with their entrepreneurial pursuits.
The future of the Email Marketing Membership
Liz's membership program has grown a lot and now has around 4,500 active subscribers. This rapid growth has made it harder for Liz to provide the same level of personalized care and attention that was there in the early days.
To address this, Liz is making changes to the membership to ensure members continue to get great value and relevance. Her plans include:
- Upgrading the courses and materials
- Introducing a new interface to make it easier for members to find templates
- Hosting live workshops on important email marketing topics
- Focusing more on high-level masterminds and annual members
By making these improvements, Liz can deliver an even better experience as her membership program continues to grow.
Liz's ambitious goal is to reach 10,000 members by the end of 2024, transforming the Email Marketing Membership into a $1 Million MRR standalone business.
Beyond just financial success, what really drives Liz is the desire to rekindle the genuine relationships and profound impact that initially fueled her passion for this venture. By keeping things fresh and laser-focused on serving her ideal members, Liz aims to create an emotional connection and facilitate life-changing experiences - these are the true hallmarks of entrepreneurial success for her.
Conclusion
As Liz continues to refine and grow her membership, her unwavering commitment to nurturing genuine connections and delivering transformative experiences remains at the forefront. With a bold vision for the future and a proven track record of success, Liz Wilcox's Email Marketing Membership is poised for even greater heights, cementing its position as a leading resource in the world of online entrepreneurship.
