He wanted a blog/website where he could showcase the Grand Valley area that encompasses Grand Junction, Fruita and Palisade. He’s writing posts about the area, tips for homebuyers like facts about property taxes, etc. and offering his services to buyers, sellers, builders, developers and real estate investors. This is a prime example of content marketing services I can provide.
He’s sharing our story about the research we did, why we finally chose to move to Grand Junction, and all sorts of tips and funny stories along our journey that will benefit others.
The focus is on the blog posts with just a few static website pages. The focus keyword phrase is “move to Grand Junction” and is used as the name of the website and on many pages and within posts.
We are using advanced techniques to increase his SEO (search engine optimization) with this style of content marketing. The site is attracting users from across the United States. Stats are being recorded with Google Analytics and will be used to aid in future blog posts.
After just a couple of months, we are ranking either #1, 2 or 3 (it fluctuates) for the keywords Move to Grand Junction Colorado, Move to Fruita Colorado and Move to Palisade Colorado.
All photos on the website were taken by Paul, myself, or a couple from our daughter, and I give her photo credit. That helps to keep it authentic.
https://growyourmindshare.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Move-to-Grand-Junction-logo.png500500Michelle Aspelinhttps://growyourmindshare.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Mindshare-Marketing-logo.pngMichelle Aspelin2023-11-16 11:03:262024-04-02 10:31:01Move to Grand Junction website
If you are considering implementing MembershipWorks (MW) on your WordPress website but want to defray the costs of this amazing membership software, you will like what you read here. If you already have MW, you can still add some of these elements to your website to help offset the cost of your monthly membership with MembershipWorks (see pricing). Keep in mind, these are in addition to the customary ways that websites can defray costs like selling advertising on their website. Even if you choose just one of these, it could be all you need to essentially get MembershipWorks for free! MembershipWorks is an opportunity to monetize your website.
First, I will say that the same opportunity exists with the first three elements/features on the list below. You can charge a posting fee for these elements either to your members, nonmembers, or both. It’s easy to earn revenue with MembershipWorks.
You can include the opportunity to post in one of these elements as a benefit to your members for the amount of your current membership. Gaining you more members who value this benefit.
You can create a new Membership Level or Membership Add-on and upsell your current membership.
You can offer your members a discount on the cost of making a post on one of these first three revenue ideas.
1. Classified Ads Posts – create a community or member only marketplace. Give your members and website readers first dibs on items your members are selling. Helps generate website traffic as well as revenue for your company, organization, club, nonprofit, etc.
2. Announcement Board Posts – bring your members to your website vs relying on Facebook or other third-party sites. Your Announcement Board can be a public board anyone on the website can view or for members eyes only. Posts can be specific to your organization and offer a benefit to members and others. Helping your website be the “go to” site for news in your industry. See DEMO Announcement Board
3. Job Board Posts – allowing posts like this on your website could help your site become a career hub. You could charge employers a fee to list jobs on your board that your members would be interested in. Or your members might be the ones doing the hiring for their own organization. Here’s what MW says about the Job Board feature:
“Job Boards are a powerful retention tool. Members who find a job through your website are more likely to renew their membership so that they can stay on top of career opportunities. If you make the Job Board only available to current members, prospective members are also incentivized to join.”
4. Shopping Cart – create a Shopping Cart to sell items on your website to your members only make the marketplace public and sell to everyone. Items can be physical products you mail or ship to your buyers or digital content. You can offer item options, quantities, and limits. You can sell sponsorships for your events, expos and other opportunities by using the Shopping Cart.
5. Forms – use a Form for a one-time thing like signing up for a class or workshop where you can charge a registration fee. You can also use a Form for sponsorships for a one-time opportunity.
6. Events – similar to Forms but instead you use the Events feature to create an event on your calendar and sell “tickets” to that specific event, helping not only to offset your MW software fee but the event costs as well!
7. Donations – offer a list of suggested donation amounts or allow the donor to fill in the amount they want to donate. And if you are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, be sure to let your donors know that all or part of their donation could be tax deductible and they should as their tax preparer. Donations can be for your general fund or for specific funds you choose to promote. Great for annual giving campaigns.
8. Membership Directory – let’s not overlook the obvious here. Some clubs are free to join, and that’s great if you don’t ever incur any costs for the club, group or organization. But if your club has expenses, then creating a very specific list of membership benefits and charging a Membership Fee is a great way to offset your costs. See DEMO Membership Directory
9. Specialized Directory – MembershipWorks is all about the Member Directory, but did you know that you can add other Specialized Directories and charge a fee for the listing? For example, several of my clients are dog clubs and they have a Breeder Directory in addition to their Member Directory. Members pay an extra fee at the time they renew their annual membership. Members themselves can add or remove this directory listing at any time, making it easy for your administrators!
10. Credit Card Processing – Some of my clients worry about offering online payments to their members because of the extra fees that credit card processors charge. First, you need to know the laws in the area you are located. You may be able to increase the cost of the item or membership dues to cover your costs. For example, if you are charged 2.5% for credit card processing, simply add that amount to the cost of your item’s price. If your item is $35, the 2.5% fee is $0.875 so you could charge $36 to cover the fee and a little extra for your organization.
We highly recommend using Stripe for your payment processing because they don’t charge a monthly fee and if you are a nonprofit, ask them for a discount off the fee published on their website. Here’s what Stripe has to say about passing along their credit card processing fees to your clients, customers or members.
“You can pass Stripe fees on to customers by including them in the final charge amount, but it’s essential to ensure compliance with any applicable laws pertaining to your business. Calculate the gross amount, taking into consideration that increasing the final amount also increases the Stripe fee. Be aware that charging processing fees may be prohibited by law in some jurisdictions, so always act in accordance with the applicable regulations.” Read Full Suggestion by Stripe
Revenue Reporting
When I customize the ways you can earn revenue with MembershipWorks, I can indicate what type of revenue you are collecting so you can run reports and upload the revenue to QuickBooks. Revenue can be classified as membership, donations, events, cart items or other. Make sure your treasurer or bookkeeper is an Admin on your MW account so they can login and get the sales revenue on a regular basis.
Don’t let the monthly membership software fee prohibit you from using MembershipWorks to strengthen your organization.
It can add so much regarding the organization of your membership, promoting your members, reducing administrative time and increasing accuracy and transparency. Having a system like this makes it easier to pass on the tasks and responsibilities to the next volunteer or employee who does this important work.
My clients claim that the benefits MWs offers far outweigh the monthly fee.
Ask about a custom DEMO to explain all the benefits of using MembershipWorks AND how you can use it to help generate revenue! Read about the DEMO on my website and watch the 3 short introductory videos about what MW is and how it works.
https://growyourmindshare.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Monetization.jpg17742365Michelle Aspelinhttps://growyourmindshare.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Mindshare-Marketing-logo.pngMichelle Aspelin2023-10-19 11:53:302023-10-19 11:53:30How to earn revenue with MembershipWorks
What Do Clients and Customers Think of Your Website?
Do clients and customers ever tell you what they think of your website? Probably not. What about prospects or potential members for your organization? They might share with you if they like it, but if they are turned-off by your website, they just go away and you never even know why you lost them.
First impressions are very important in business and for nonprofit organizations. What does your website say about you?
It doesn’t matter if you dedicate time and resources for nice business cards, brochures and other marketing materials if online users never get past your website.
Need a new website?
I work with clients to review their current websites and discover what’s working and what’s not. I make sure that their message is in alignment with their other marketing materials and that the message is clear and attracts their ideal client.
I have recently worked with several clients where we reviewed their Facebook page, LinkedIn profile, website and print materials to get them all looking and saying the same cohesive message.
I create websites and blogs primarily using WordPress because it’s search engine friendly naturally. Plus, I can customize the design to fit my client’s style. For some clients, Weebly is the best platform for a website. See my post about Weebly vs WordPress.
Clients give me an idea of what features they need like online forms, a calendar for events, videos, password protected pages, shopping cart, downloadable documents, etc. I create a proposal based on my client’s needs. We work together on design style and content until the site is launched.
Once the website is live, I teach my clients how to maintain their site. I offer tips on effective blog posts and how to stay fresh. I do as much or as little as my clients want me to do. Some clients want to take it over and run with it, others want me to make the updates. I’m fine either way. You can read my “How I work” post. I offer advice and training to empower my clients. However, many just don’t have time to work on a website, they are busy serving their customers, members and clients.
I enjoy taking on an outdated website and giving it new life. I love creating websites and blogs my clients are eager to share. If you need a new website, or want to update your current website, I’d love to hear from you.
I have more recommendations on my MembershipWorks profile if you are looking for a website for your nonprofit that includes features like Membership and Event management, online Donations and Custom Forms.
https://growyourmindshare.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/WordPress_Websites_and_Blogs-235x200.jpg200235Michelle Aspelinhttps://growyourmindshare.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Mindshare-Marketing-logo.pngMichelle Aspelin2022-02-01 14:42:592022-02-02 16:01:36Need a New Website?
I’m so happy that the Rottweiler Health Foundation found me during their online search for a WordPress Website Designer. They were looking for someone to help update their website AND help them complete their nonprofit membership integration with MembershipWorks, a task they had been trying on their own for over a year.
I was able to create a whole new WordPress website for them and finish setting up their membership process in MembershipWorks to help manage their members, multiple donation campaigns, and sync it up with MailChimp (for email marketing) to keep their lists updated automatically. They were fantastic to work with. Their Board members are all over the country so we did everything over Zoom and it worked out great, see rottweilerhealth.org.
“Our non-profit was looking to move our membership management to MembershipWorks. However, we had issues with several other things and had stalled out. I found Michelle on a google search and contacted her to see if she could help.
After speaking with the people involved, she presented a proposal and got to work!!
Michelle helped to work through our issues. She was right there, guiding us were we needed it, and letting us get comfortable with MembershipWorks. She also was able to fully integrate our WordPress system, and helped us get all of our other issues taken care of, including updating our website.
The Rottweiler Health Foundation is now moving along smoothly with our system. We are hearing good things from our Board and our members. All of the issues were done on schedule and on budget too.
As Membership Chair, I am thrilled with how easy it was to work with Michelle. And I know if I run in to any questions in the future, she will be right there to help.” Pat Carkoski, Membership Chairperson
If you know of a group or nonprofit who is struggling to manage their membership, volunteer or donor databases, have them reach out to me! I will see if my strengths and experience match their needs so we can find solutions for them.
You can view other completed websites to see the clients I have helped, view their websites and read their story.
It’s time to log into your WordPress website and see if you have a warning about the need to check your PHP version of the software. Its software that resides on the server computer where your website is hosted. Most of my clients sites are hosted with BlueHost.com but I know others use GoDaddy and other host services.
When you log in, you will see a warning on the Dashboard. If you don’t see the warning then you are all set. If you do see the warning then you need to alert your hosting company and ask them to update your PHP software. Most times, there is no effect to your website. Check your site immediately after the update to make sure everything still looks ok and links and forms are working properly. I have had one client who’s theme was outdated. The theme maker quit making updates for it. Therefore, it wasn’t compatible with the most recent PHP software version and her site “broke” and wouldn’t display at all.
The good news was that all of her content was still there, we just needed to find a new theme. We chose one from the same provider as the original theme to make the transition the easiest and most cost effective. It only took 2 hours to convert and give her website a whole new look. It’s much more updated looking, it’s simple and easy to navigate.
If you need help to check your PHP version of the software or fix your site if your theme is outdated, let me know. There are some scans I can run ahead of time to see if your site might have issues. It’s important to keep all of your plugins updated as well as your theme and WordPress version. Updates are typically done to improve security, speed, fix bugs, and add options.
Let me know if you have any WordPress or website hosting questions. For questions about BlueHost, visit my Resources page. To see all of the services I offer, view my Virtual Administrative and Marketing Services page.
https://growyourmindshare.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/PHP.jpg692692Michelle Aspelinhttps://growyourmindshare.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Mindshare-Marketing-logo.pngMichelle Aspelin2020-09-14 12:26:292022-02-01 15:37:20Check your PHP version and update
Because I want to offer my clients exactly what they need. What I have found is that for SOME of my clients, WordPress is just too much. It is so robust and offers so many features and settings, that it becomes too much for them to edit, update and manage moving forward. I got turned on to Weebly from a fellow website developer who noticed the same thing and is now making Weebly vs WordPress websites for her clients.
I am still a firm believer in WordPress. I believe it will continue to be popular and the right choice for some of my clients. But, having this secondary option, is refreshing.
Weebly has about 100 themes to choose from vs WordPress’s 1200 themes, and then there are enhanced WordPress themes you can purchase.
Weebly offers a simple “drop and drag” building interface that makes it easy to see exactly what your site will look like once published.
WordPress is King when it comes to Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Plus, it offers almost an unlimited assortment of plugins you can add to the platform to give your site extra functionality. Weebly is a good option if SEO isn’t vital to your site, like you aren’t trying to attraction readers from the entire world, maybe just your geographic location.
As far as price, it’s less expensive to host a WordPress site than Weebly. $4.95/month vs $8.99/month (using BlueHost.com)
There are tons of other, more detailed comparisons I could make, but I prefer to meet with my clients and listen to what they want from their site FIRST before I recommend one or the other. See my page about How I Work.
If you are considering a new website or blog, or updating a current site, give me a call. We can meet, with no obligation, to determine what’s best for you.
I just launched a new website called Move to Grand Junction for my husband, Paul Aspelin. Paul is now a licensed Realtor® with The Christi Reece Group in Grand Junction, Colorado.
