Planning a membership site? Do yourself a big favor and get Yaro Starak’s Membership Site Masterplan report

I’ve been working lately with a colleague on plans for a membership site and finding that there are some interesting challenges involved, so I was more open that I might have been when my partner Suzie encouraged me to listen to a recorded version of Yaro Starak’s Membership Site Masterplan Report (affiliate link).

I was not disappointed. Far from it.

I was very impressed and learned a lot. And having listened to the audio version, I knew I had to download, print out and read the whole 72 page report. Which I did – and was even more impressed.

Certainly I was quite well disposed in advance to learn from Yaro on the subject of subscription-funded membership sites. From having watched his steady but nevertheless amazing progress over the years as an Internet entrepreneur, having observed how others spoke of him and having met him in real life (we actually co-hosted a panel at a conference once), I know that the guy is real, with a good sense of humor, not a boaster or a booster, and has a genuine interest in helping other people succeed and create the lifestyle they want.

The report is actually quite challenging, especially if you read between the lines. Yaro makes no secret of the fact that if any of us want to create the sort of six figure income which he has created for himself and which he shows is possible with a well planned, well executed membership site, we are going to have to work our tails off for a while. But not forever.

I am sure I would learn more from Yaro’s coaching course and probably have more accelerated success that way, but even from the report I feel I can now confidently go about developing and implementing a successful membership site.

As far as I could see, just about all the key areas are covered, including marketing, the technology to use, advice on pricing, how to use psychological triggers to influence decision-making (and do that ethically, so you can sleep at night) and lots of great advice on the pre-launch and launch phases.

There is even advice on how to set up and manage your site so that you can get the best price if and when the time comes when you want to sell it.

The one area I would like to have seen something included was that of keyword research: perhaps too big a subject to tackle in the space of what is already a very full (and free) document, but at least some words to alert people to the value of keyword research and where to get more information about that.

That said, it is an excellent report and was well worth the time I spent reading it. And drawing on the report’s content and other research I’ve been doing I’ve now done a spreadsheet with a checklist of all the key issues and tasks involved, from go to whoa. That was an exercise well worth doing, especially as it helped show up the things I hadn’t previously been taking into account.

The link again.

Do you know of other resources (especially free ones) for people planning or managing subscription-based membership sites?

What’s Next Boomer Business Summit, Chicago, March 19, 2010

For the seventh year in a row, on March 19, leading experts on the “boomer and beyond” marketplace will gather for the What’s Next Boomer Business Summit.

• Boomers were born between 1946 and 1964
• 77 million baby boomers represent 28% of the U.S. population and account for 77% of all financial assets
• Every 7 seconds someone is turning 50
• By 2010, 108 million people will be over 45
• Households headed by someone 40 or older hold 91% of America’s net worth
• Boomers constitute 35% to 38% of Internet users
• The caregiving marketplace is $800 billion

There is an impressive lineup of speakers, with a wide range of experience.

The day-long program includes a 45 minute session of what I assume are parallel workshops – four in all, on the general topic of “Web 3.0 Strategies: Tools You Can Use NOW to Boost Your Boomer Business”.

• Maximize the effectiveness of your e-newsletter and online marketing programs
• Get a handle on mobile marketing trends and how to reach your customers on smart phones and mobile devices
• Connect, engage, and build loyalty with your customers using FaceBook, twitter, YouTube, blogs, and other social media
• Incorporate iPhone apps into your overall marketing strategy
• Make Google tools work for you

(I must confess to cringing a little at the “Web 3.0″ tag. I’m not really sure what “Web 3.0″ is: I assume it’s meant as something like “beyond Web 2.0″, but the items listed look to me suspiciously like Web 2.0).

If you are one of the 800+ members of Boomer Authority™, you may have picked up already that there is a 20% discount for the Chicago event (membership of Boomer Authority™ is free).

Note: Des Walsh is the Boomer Authority™ Country Chairperson for Australia – an honorary position.

Why I don’t instantly say yes please when offered books to review

I love books.

I love talking about books I enjoy.

I don’t really love reviewing books, although I’m pretty sure that in doing so I learn more about the subject than on a more casual, less accountable reading.

But lately I seem to be getting quite a few requests to accept advance copies of books, both on subjects to do with the main focus of this blog, working from home, and also on social media, about which I blog more frequently on my Des Walsh dot Com site.

And I’m not keeping up. The books are starting to become something of a burden, not a pleasure.

Part of the challenge I have with the whole exercise of reviewing is that I have this sense – old-fashioned, quaint even, as it may be – that I should actually have read a book before posting about it. And related to that is the fact that I want to feel that I’ve done justice to the book.

At the same time, I realize that the authors and their publicists might prefer I did not take that line and if I was not going to read the whole book, couldn’t I at least skim it and write a brief post about it, with a link?

Not an unreasonable expectation.  Just not an easy one for me to deal with.

There is also the fact that some PR/marketing companies offering books for review don’t realize I’m in Australia and then have trouble getting the publisher to ship the book here.

Time for some clarification

So for a recent pitch I received from someone I did not know, I wrote what I thought was an honest and hopefully helpful response, and in which I included a “let you off the hook” clause for the possibility that they hadn’t realized they would need  to ship the book to Australia :

The concept certainly looks interesting and I am sure there is a demand. I’m frankly being rather cautious about accepting books for review as it’s not my primary focus, they tend to pile up and I feel guilty and even more so when the people who have sent them follow up, quite understandably, with prompts.

Also, if I accept a book for review I will only do so on the basis that I can review it honestly, not just write a puff piece. I would add that I do not seek to gain any notoriety by being unfair or unkind and I do try to “accentuate the positive”.

Then there is the expense for you as I am in Australia and do not any more agree to review books from electronic versions. Some publishers refuse to ship review copies to Australia.

Sorry to be less than enthusiastic, but I wanted to be open with you. If you still want to chance my getting around to reviewing the book, please let me know and I’ll send you a shipping address. If you decide otherwise I will understand completely.

Guess what? Date sent Feb 1, as of Feb 28 no reply.

Not holding my breath.

Anyone care to share their thoughts on this, perhaps showing me a better way to handle it?

Image credit: “Books behind the bed”, zimpenfish, via Flickr, Creative Commons

Invitation to participate in a short survey to help with podcast planning

I’ve put together a short survey (see below), designed to elicit some views and advice on what would be the best time duration for my podcast show on BlogTalkRadio, Des Walsh & Friends.

I’ve been sticking to a thirty minute duration, but am not wedded to that. The thirty minute duration was chosen on the basis of a highly subjective assessment, namely that:

• it enabled my guests and me to share with listeners some reasonably useful/interesting information and opinions
• because it was only half an hour it was not going to be seen as a less than productive time sink.

Related to the second bullet point, the thirty minute duration also met a criterion I’d read or heard from some podcast expert, that it was a good “commute” timeframe for those who want to download and listen on the go.

But I don’t really know.

I do know that when the half hour comes up I am typically wanting to keep going with the conversation.

Then, when I listen to one hour podcasts, some seem a bit too unfocused, a bit rambly and I get a bit antsy.

Hence the survey. It’s really short, with only a few questions and a box for any comments.

Sorry, there is no Caribbean cruise for the most interesting response, but I will report back here on the results. And I’ll be truly grateful.

Think of the good karma.

Click here to take survey

A recent guest on my Des Walsh & Friends program on BlogTalkRadio, Shirley George Frazier, shared valuable insights and tips on marketing and business generally.

Shirley is a Solo Marketing Specialist, Best-Selling Author and Professional Speaker. Shirley is recognized worldwide as one of the foremost experts on marketing strategies for small businesses and independent owners who work without employee assistance.

One of the people in small business I most admire and respect – as well as being a totally delightful person to meet online or IRL – Shirley has been in business since 1990. She is President and CEO of Sweet Survival®, a consulting firm specializing in business and marketing support. She speaks at conferences, trade shows and business meetings worldwide.

In the best tradition of the new world of social networking, our friendship developed first online. We then had the pleasure of meeting face to face, a.k.a. in real life (IRL) in New York City in late 2008.

Some of the topics on which Shirley shared her experience, insights and wisdom:

• How to manage multiple activities effectively, focusing on what you want to accomplish on a yearly, monthly, weekly and daily basis
• How she has traced her entrepreneurial inclinations and talents back to a great-great-grandmother and other forebears
• The wonderful story of how an amazingly successful gift basket business got started
• How someone who has suddenly been put out of work can look seriously and practically about starting their own business
• Practical guidance on how to do due diligence on business opportunities
• How people without special technical expertise can cut through the mystification and get started with a website and a marketing campaign
• Why although offline marketing is a necessity, businesses still need to do offline marketing as well

And much, much more.

[Click here to listen if player above does not appear]

Some details for more information about what Shirley does and thinks and how to reach her:

Solo Business Marketing and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/ShirleyFrazier

If you have a relative or friend who is even vaguely wondering about the possibility of establishing their own business, or who is in business already, I urge you to share the link with them. I know that if you do, you will be doing them a seriously good favor. Know someone like that?