Like most paysites Twistys has had an interesting year. It isn't a record year but Twistys is still doing very well. Our traffic sources are varied and like others some have really dropped off and replacing those has been very important.
There is one thing that has worked EXTREMELY well for us. Our loyal customers! They've become even more loyal over the past year. We've tried to open as many means of communication with them (forum, comments, etc) and myself (and other Twistys members) have become very engaged with our members. Many of them know when they join Twistys they are not only joining a great paysite but joining a site that cares about what they want. We listen to requests. We build, update and change the site according to the feedback and discussions we have with them. I've noticed particularly over the last few months more and more of them thanking us for caring and in many cases when they leave it's financial reasons and as soon as they can afford it they are back.
I'm not sure if this advice can be applied to your business. Those close to me know I'm a huge Gary Vaynerchuk fan (http://garyvaynerchuk.com) and I've always been engaged with our members but the more I listen to him the more I want to do more. And in 2010 I've really kicked it up a notch. I've also added as much transparency as I possibly can. Our members are real people and I'm a real person like them. They really appreciate being listened to but also like it when they know the site owner can identify with them (whether it be their likes, dislikes, whatever).
Give it a try. In tough times I truly believe when people are spending their money they need to get back more than just what they paid for. If you can create some sort of connection and relationship it goes a long way.
There is one thing that has worked EXTREMELY well for us. Our loyal customers! They've become even more loyal over the past year. We've tried to open as many means of communication with them (forum, comments, etc) and myself (and other Twistys members) have become very engaged with our members. Many of them know when they join Twistys they are not only joining a great paysite but joining a site that cares about what they want. We listen to requests. We build, update and change the site according to the feedback and discussions we have with them. I've noticed particularly over the last few months more and more of them thanking us for caring and in many cases when they leave it's financial reasons and as soon as they can afford it they are back.
I'm not sure if this advice can be applied to your business. Those close to me know I'm a huge Gary Vaynerchuk fan (http://garyvaynerchuk.com) and I've always been engaged with our members but the more I listen to him the more I want to do more. And in 2010 I've really kicked it up a notch. I've also added as much transparency as I possibly can. Our members are real people and I'm a real person like them. They really appreciate being listened to but also like it when they know the site owner can identify with them (whether it be their likes, dislikes, whatever).
Give it a try. In tough times I truly believe when people are spending their money they need to get back more than just what they paid for. If you can create some sort of connection and relationship it goes a long way.
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