The most pivotal moment in growing the audience for your membership website happens immediately after a prospect becomes a member. It’s at this precise moment they’re most excited, most engaged and most open to your brand. How you respond next will leave a lasting impression and shape their perception of your business.
What is member onboarding?
Member onboarding refers to the process of welcoming new members after they’ve purchased a membership. One of the biggest mistakes businesses make is focusing all their energy on customer acquisition, only to neglect new members after the sign up. Without an effective onboarding process, even your best marketing efforts can go to waste.
An ideal onboarding experience will:
- Solve any technical challenges: Help new members with login issues, password setup and navigation.
- Encourage engagement: Get new members actively using your site by suggesting videos, promoting free courses and interacting with your content.
- Build community connection: Help members engage with your community and form connections.
- Create a positive first impression: Leave members feeling welcome, confident and excited about their purchase.
Let’s explore seven strategies to ensure your member onboarding experience is a memorable one:
1. Send a personal welcome email
When starting out with your membership site, every new customer is valuable. A simple “thank you” can go a long way in building goodwill. As your membership base grows, you can consider automating this process while maintaining a personal touch.
In your welcome email, include:
- A warm thank you message.
- Any essential housekeeping information - like login details.
- Clear instructions on how to get started.
2. Provide 'getting started' instructions
Passwords, login details and learning how to navigate a new site can be overwhelming for a first-time user. Hold their hand (virtually) by providing clear, step-by-step instructions on how to get started. You can send these instructions via email and also create a dedicated "Welcome" page on your site that includes all the essential information.
3. Design clear navigation
A well-organized content flow is essential to ensuring new members get the most out of their purchase. Your website’s navigation should be intuitive. The layout and organisation should be designed with the user in mind, making it effortless to locate specific content, explore available courses or join available online events. Each step of the journey should feel cohesive, with clear labels, well-structured menus and a logical progression between different sections of your site.
By organising your content with user experience at the forefront, you increase engagement and retention because members are more likely to stick around if they can easily access the content they paid for.
4. Create a sense of community
For many membership sites, the community is what keeps members engaged long-term. While people often join for the content, they stay for the relationships. If your site has a forum or community space, personally welcome new members and encourage them to introduce themselves. A simple question, like “What are you hoping to achieve here?” can spark conversation and help members feel more connected from the outset.
5. Offer a special discount
Reward new members with a store discount code, free digital download, online course or event. This bonus makes them feel valued and it an opportunity to reinforce the value of their subscription to your membership website. You could also use this as an opportunity to introduce higher membership tiers, encouraging them to unlock more premium content.
6. Highlight future content
Don’t just focus on the present. Get new members excited about the future! Highlight upcoming content, webinars or events that will be available to them. This motivates members to engage with current resources so they’re ready when new content arrives. Regularly updating them on upcoming features fosters a sense of exclusivity and reinforces the value of their membership.
Onboarding is more than just a “welcome”. A thoughtful, well-executed onboarding system helps eliminate confusion, encourages immediate engagement, and fosters long-term loyalty. Whether you're a new membership site owner or already established, taking the time to perfect your onboarding process will have lasting benefits for your business and your members alike.
