Let’s talk about memberships …
January 30, 2008 – 3:22 pm
I have no doubt you have received many promotions for membership sites the past year or so. You’ve probably also received numerous promotions for various products “teaching” how to become rich with membership sites … I have. I’ve also bought a few, and I’ve become a member of several sites producing and purchasing great new material for it’s members to use in their marketing.
Membership sites come and go. Some are great and get constant updates several times a month. Some simply stop adding updates after a couple of months. Others provide updates in a timely manner, but with crappy products hardly even worth reading yourself, much less promoting in any way, shape or form.
I’ve already mentioned Cody Moya a couple of times (who primarily refurbish Public Domain material that you are not “allowed” to resell if you cancel your membership), and Ian del Carmen is another one. Sure, they both update regularly (but some of Ians sites never produce any updates at all), but they limit the members’ rights so much it’s not even funny.
I’m a member of Liz Tomey’s MyOriginalEProducts. Last year was great. New products every month, high quality stuff. But then something happened. There were no products for september, october and november. So I wrote a comment on one of her blogs, asking if there were ever going to be any updates. Suddenly there were products for december, so I figured I should stay onboard. But there has been no products for January either, so my guess is she doesn’t take her membershipsites very seriously… A real disappointment, as I’ve always been a fan of Liz …
Another site that has been great since it opened, PrivateLabelMonthly, also took a nosedive and shut it’s doors for good this month. That is a real shame. I’ve built niche sites that produce income from their material for so long now, I feel kind of handicapped now that they’re gone. Where else am I going to get graphics, articles, autoresponder series, ebooks etc. in well researched niches ready to plug and play?
In June 2006 I became a member of a place called PLAS (PrivateLabelArticleSite) which seemed real promising at first. The members of PLAS were all supposed to get training on how to start our own membership sites selling PLR articles and ebooks. PLAS took a dive, many members were screwed over royally by Burton Clement by paying him $500 to become VIPs of the highest level never having to pay for the membership again. Burton took their money, together with most of the membershipfees, and disappeared. PLAS was reborn as 2PLR, and naturally I became a member of 2PLR instead. Netiher PLAS nor 2PLR ever delivered what was promised, so my PLR membership site died a slow death as well. 2PLR has now disappeared off the face of the earth as well.
A couple of memberships I’m still a member of, and will stay a member of, are the Rich Jerks membership and the Unselfish Marketer membership. Both these sites provide new fresh material regularly, sweeping the Internet for great bargains where rights can be passed on. I’ve also found a new supplier of unrestricted PLR articles (200 per month) and a supplier of PLR newsletters that I strongly believe will fill up atleast a bit of the gap left by PrivateLabelMonthlys’ death.
Enough about me and the memberships I’ve belonged to. What are your favorite membership sites? Which membership sites have been the most disappointing? Do you feel like you’ve been ripped off by any membership sites?
Tell me! I’d really, really like to know!
7 Responses to “Let’s talk about memberships …”
I’ve been a member of NicheProductsMonthly – now closed, Rusell Brunson’s Affiliate Landmine – now lacks on good material, PLRSuperClub – closed, Private Label Books – cancelled, and many other. 97% didn’t deliver what they promised! They often lack of new and good material, they don’t update, they don’t care about customers anymore…though there are a VERY few exceptions….
Marian
By Marian on Jan 30, 2008
Hiya Bjorn,
A belated Happy New Year To ya. Another great issue you brought to life here about memberships. I too have experienced the same with a few memberships whereas they went downhill and didn’t continue to keep the content or products coming as promised and claimed.
Two of them were run by the same guy. One membership site was Earnbox, and the other was PatelSecrets. Earnbox for example hasn’t been updated in 6 months. However, on the positive side, I do have to say that they both have much to offer if someone wants join up for a couple of months and grab everything that’s in there… it would be well worth it.
I too, like you am impressed with Jaykay’s UnselfMerketer membership and all that it offers. I got in early before all the price increases, but I’d still join today at the current price because it’s well worth it. Thanks for the warning about Liz’s site because I was considering it. I too have always respected Liz, but I guess she’s gotten so busy with her other projects that the site is neglected now.
On the positive side of membership sites, there are two that I have nothing but high praises for. One is SoftwareGold at http://makemoneyconcepts.com/axgold which give you an exclusive premium software every month and a brandable ebook that presells the software and you keep 100% of the money. The brandable ebook also encourages readers to join the site under you which pays 50% commissions monthly. They also give you an instant software site system which they update monthly that sells the software for you. They also give you private label rights software or products with source codes monthly, viral software tools, a private label ebook club, and access to all previous issued software and products. It’s a heck of a bargain.
The other membership site is pushbuttonpub at http://makemoneyconcepts.com/pbp which gives you several exclusive instant turnkey business packages each month to sell and use, 300 plr articles, an ebook of the month which members can brand with their affiliate links and sell or give away, premium web hosting if you want to put up a site, premium autoresponder and list hosting, instant ad tracker, wholesale product locator, resale rights coop where you request they buy products you wish to resell, and the internet marketing coop where you request they buy products which you need for your own use.
Both sites ae more than well worth their small monthly cost. There’s another one I join at http://makemoneyconcepts.com/rxcard just last month that has paid for itself already and all you have to do is give away discount prescription drug cards that save people up to 75% off their drug costs. I was reading in google news that there are about 50 million people in the U.S. that have no health insurance or are underinsured, and some counties are starting a program that gives discount card where people save only up to 20% off prescription drug costs.
Like I said, I just joined last month, but there’s a lot of earning potential there in giving away something free that’s needed by so many. You make money every time a card is used that you give away, and the cards cost nothing because people print them out on the computers. I’ll probably give you an update on it at another time after I see my first check
Oh, the plr articles at pushbutton doesn’t have the Cody Moya restrictions. I was in the Cody yourownarticles membership and I know what you mean because I have personally experienced the same.
Geez, this comment has turned into a mini ebook hasn’t it? Oh well, hopefully, like you, I’ve contributed something that’ll save readers money and frustration, as well as to help point them into worthy and profitable directions.
Thanks much Bjorn, and keep it flowing in the informative and helpful way that you have come to be known for.
By Terry on Jan 30, 2008
The only one I’ve stayed with is unselfishmarketer. The worst one I joined is Martin Slater’s Learn4Profit.com. Constant delays and promises and a waste of money buying a resellers license since there’s bugger-all there.
I’m surprised at support for Liz Tomey. All the products I’ve seen from her are rebranded – nothing new.
Having a clean-out of emails I’ve found that 90% of membership sites have disappeared in a year.
They would require a lot of work and why join a membership when there’ll always be someone selling the same for $7?
By Ross on Jan 31, 2008
Hi Bjorn,
I also bit the big one with PLAS and 2PLR along with you.
The ONE membership that I continue with is John Delavera’s Turbo Membership. I have been a member there for the last three years and he has not missed a month where he didn’t provide a top notch product and more. Jak Kay’s site is another one (USM).
I also run a membership site through 2getsales.com where a new product is added every month, but the products are for resale and the members can earn points for each sale so they can trade points for products. The products that I promote are not the $7 wonders and some of them are high ticket items ($67 to $197). So giving these to members for paying a monthly $17 or $27 membership fee is simply not good business. However, when the member refers someone, they will accrue points from sales made by their referrals as well. So it is possible that you could earn enough points to trade for those high ticket items with just two sales.
Each member earns a minimum of 50% commission on every sale plus 10 points for every dollar in sales. When their referrals make a sale, they earn 5 points per dollar in sales.
By Mark on Jan 31, 2008
I think Ian del Carmen’s websites are great. You mentioned he’s not updating his sites frequently, I thought you should know that his updates are automated and are sent directly to emails. Not inside the members areas…
Mary
By Mary Collins on Jun 29, 2008
Hi Mary!
Is that something he started doing recently? I’ve never gotten a single mail with updates from Ian from the 6 or so membersites of his I’ve joined (the ones I’ve purchased lifetime for that is).
So far, the routine has been 1) He starts it, promotes it heavily and I’ve stupidly signed up – 2) He delivers good quality month 1, and questionnable not-so-great content month 2, and then it’s dead.
But I’m glad you’ve found something you like! If you like something, and it meets your requirements, you should stick with it.
By Bjorn on Jun 29, 2008
Maybe you should check the spam folders? I got some of my emails from him being tagged as my email client as spam. Not good if we need that email…
Thank you anyway.
By Mary Collins on Jul 16, 2008