The first step in retaining members is to create a good first impression. This is done through member onboarding, the process you set up that makes sure new members know how to use and get the most out of your site.

A major problem membership sites face is that their new members join, spend just a little time on the site, and then disappear, eventually cancelling their subscription because they haven’t enjoyed the benefits the site promised. They may also disengage because of technical issues, or because they don’t clearly understand how to use the site.

The result of a good onboarding process is that the new member is quickly and easily engaged with your site after joining. They’re immediately accessing its content and community (if you have one) from the beginning. More than just an automated welcome email, it actually gets the new member started using the site.

There are many techniques you can use for successful onboarding.

Video Welcome Email. Create a video where you introduce the new member to your site. Seeing the actual owner, who they’ll interact with in the future through the site, puts a human face on the experience. You can also use your video to walk the new member through the site using a screencast recorder.

Email Series. Send out an email series after people sign up introducing key features they may not know about, or highlighting the best content. At the end of the series, let the new member know what new features they can expect to see in the future. Focus on helping people learn how to use the site better.

New Member Guide. Create a new member guide to help people get started. Show them where they can find everything they might need on the site.

Provide a Content Path. Take all of the content you have and create a “path” which leads the new member from the first content they should see to the next, and the next, and so on. You might create different paths for different categories, types of users, levels, and so on.

You can also create any combination of the above, or a bit of everything. The whole point of onboarding is to get new members using the site.

How to Choose Your Onboarding Method

For a simple membership site, a welcome email and a quick guide to using the site might be just enough for a new member. You just need to point them in the right direction to get them started using the site.

If you have a great deal of content, the process will be more involved. For a library of content, you really need to help new members figure out how to find exactly what they need. If your site is too complicated or confusing, you’ll lose members.

Put yourself in the shoes of your new member, who knows nothing at all about your site. Assume it’s not obvious to them. You may want to have someone else try the site and give you feedback on what they found difficult. You should at least go through the sign-up process yourself assuming the role of a user.

How to Retain New Members

Your onboarding process is the first step in encouraging retention. Member retention is vitally important for long-term success. It’s much easier and more economical to keep existing members and get them engaged, than to find new ones and go through the onboarding process all over again.

Some techniques for member retention include:

• Sending regular emails that remind members of site features and the benefits of membership. These should be occasional and low frequency or else your members may feel they’re receiving spam messages. You may be able to create a system for identifying members who aren’t using the site and send emails to these specific members.
• Send emails to members informing them of new content you’ve added. If your site has regular content updates, you should proactively tell members about this new content.
• Encourage members to log in and look at a new piece of content or a key piece of content. Encourage members to take action or complete lessons. Completing lessons and gaining the results are what drive home the benefits of your site to the member.
• Build excitement about content that’s coming. For example, for drip-feed content, tell members what’s coming up in the next installment. Let them know what’s happening next and when.
• Depending on the membership model chosen, consider an on-site forum or private Facebook group for communicating with members. If the member is already part of a supportive group, they’ll be more receptive to messages within that group.
• Offer high-value bonuses for long-standing or loyal members. Make this a regular part of your membership maintenance.
• Make sure that you always provide excellent customer service and that you’re receptive to your members’ needs.

In addition to tactics for retaining members, you should identify some tactics for bringing back members who have drifted away.

One way to do this is to offer a free month of membership when someone cancels. As the end of their term approaches, contact them offering a special deal if they stay.

You can also keep members who are leaving by offering a “down-sell” to a cheaper tier within your site. Maybe they don’t want to be a Gold Member anymore but they’d still like to enjoy the benefits of Bronze Membership.

Another method is to send out short automated messages to people who have left after a set period of time, saying something like, “We miss you.” In the message, offer a discount coupon for signing up again and mention new content or benefits. Follow up to this email with another message.

Finally, it’s a good idea to survey leaving members to find out why they left. Through these exit surveys, you can identify issues or areas that your members are unsatisfied with.