How to Launch a Successful Membership Website

ARTICLE SNIPPET - What should you consider when starting a subscription-driven website? The answers are not always obvious, even to a seasoned print or electronic publisher. Starting a new website is very different from running an existing property. Over the past 10 years, my partners and I have worked on over 100 successful website startups, as well as several that were not successful. Our understanding of website publishing is rooted in the world of print, which has given us insight into the similarities and differences between the two types of launches. This report will document the best practices we’ve seen, and been part of, over the past decade. The examples and costs we use to illustrate the best practices we've identified are geared toward a website that will generate $2 to $5-million per year in total revenues after three to five years.

Website publishing is different from print publishing in several ways. While all the traditional revenue streams apply (subscriptions, advertising, classified listings and product sales), website publishers also rely on affiliate marketing programs. These programs are revenue streams unique to the Web. The mix of revenue can also be quite different from print publishing, with advertising being less dominant than in magazine or newspaper publishing.

There are a number of things that could make or break your success when launching a website. The author of this report has spent the past decade launching over 100 successful websites, and some that weren't so successful. Here's a 17-step best practices list he's compiled along the way.

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