KEY INSIGHTS

FIRST, SURVEY TO DETERMINE NEEDS

To develop a value proposition, identify your “whales” — your most enthusiastic and engaged readers. Once you find them, go out and speak with them. Figure out why your publication is so important to them, what they care about, and how well your brand satisfies their needs. Really listen for what gets them emotionally charged. Next, validate what you heard in those interviews with a quantitative survey of your broader email list. — Rob Ristagno, Founder and CEO of the consulting company Sterling Woods Group PubExec

THEN CREATE A VALUE PROPOSITION

Based on consumer feedback, determine what tangible problems you can solve, plus which emotional benefits you can provide (eg, we will make more confident, more recognised, more connected, more developed personally or professionally, or more entertained). Then put together a value proposition that addresses your readers' needs and wants. Ristagno/PubExec

CREATE THE PROGRAMME TO DELIVER ON YOUR PROMISE

Now figure out how you take all your content, data, access to experts, and access to communities and turn it into something that fulfils the value proposition. Think beyond content. You don't need a boatload of features. Just two or three things on top of a subscription is enough. Just make sure these offerings solve the tangible and emotional needs of your “whales”. Consider:

• Access to experts or editors in a monthly live, interactive webinar

• Tools that make it easier for subscribers to do their jobs: templates, diagrams, graphs, charts, etc. National Journal, for example, provides members with useful PowerPoint presentations that can help streamline report creation

• Tools that make it easier for subscribers to pursue their hobby: calculators, charts, maps, or indexes, depending on your niche

• Charitable contributions to a bigger cause

• Educational resources, like videos and ebooks Ristagno/PubExec

A MEMBERSHIP FUNNEL IS ESSENTIAL

Create a “trust funnel” by using qualitative and quantitative audience data to develop hypotheses on how to build trust, cluster members (ie by value or activity), set up a measurement framework, and create engagement activities. Engaged Journalism Accelerator Program

MEMBERSHIP-LIMITED CONTENT BEATS PAYWALLS

A study of sites running closable models such as premium and hard paywalls, and non-closable models such as meters or memberships, found that locked content had a median monthly conversion rate 14 times higher, according to subscription software company Piano. INMA

THE BIGGEST MISTAKE

“The biggest and most common mistake is to take a pile of your existing products and throw them together into a membership programme, then sit back and expect an enthusiastic response. This lacklustre approach yields lacklustre results.” Ristagno/PubExec

A TWO-PRONGED STRATEGY

Similar to Slate, The Guardian uses a dualpronged approach: 1) Provide enough value to attract and engage consumers in the free content, while offering premium, behind-thescenes content as an added benefit to members, and 2) When the company publishes a story that holds truth to power and generates a lot of attention, it is paired with a highly active membership drive. Lenfest Institute

MEMBERSHIP-DRIVEN TURN-AROUND

“On August 15, 2018, we announced the start of membership for the Daily Maverick. At the time, we weren't entirely sure how we were going to fund December's payroll. [A year later], with more than 7,000 members joining us and a 75% growth in headcount since we started, things look a lot brighter. Building a recurring and significant revenue stream has been liberating.” — Styli Charalambous, cofounder & CEO, Daily Maverick, Cape Town, South Africa Nieman Lab

MEMBERSHIP IS OWNED BY COMMERCIAL AND EDITORIAL

The Guardian decided membership would be more than a “marketing play” — it would be owned in equal part by the newsroom. The Guardian appointed one of its editors to be in charge of membership and to help define the membership strategy in partnership with the commercial team. Lenfest Institute