Field Notes
One membership problem at a time: what it is costing you, why it happens, and what fixing it gets you. Plus notes from building MemberPress.ai in public: what is real today and what comes next.
How is your site like an orchestra?
You know how the piece should sound. Keeping every section in time is what wears you out. Here's what it looks like when someone else holds the beat.
Seth 
Are Your Best Affiliates Treating You Like a Side Gig?
A flat commission rate pays your top affiliates the same as your slowest ones. Here's why that can cost you more than you might think.
Seth 
Your Best Readers Are Worth More Than Their Ad Views
Ad revenue is thin, volatile, and set by someone else. Here's why your returning readers might be your real monetization answer
Seth 
Your Renewal Date Is Making Members Feel Like Subscribers, Not Members
When dues renew on anniversary dates, every member renews alone. Here's what that costs you and what alignment actually changes
Seth 
Building Opal, week of Oct 12: your assistant can buy a membership, in testing
We're testing a way for an AI assistant to buy a membership on your site. It's off until you switch it on, and a person approves the exact price every time.
Seth 
Your Overall Engagement Numbers Are Lying to You
If new members keep leaving early but your engagement metrics look fine, you're reading the wrong signal. Here's the trap
Omar 
Your Community Has More Groups Than You Can Watch
When moderation depends on someone happening to see a bad post, it doesn't survive growth. Here's what changes the equation
Omar 
Should your membership site leave WordPress?
Sites with logins, payments and members are where WordPress is investing. How to tell whether yours should stay, and when plain pages make more sense.
Seth 
Building Opal, week of Oct 5: meet the owners we're building for
This week we showed who Opal is for: seven membership owners, each beside one of their members, and a page for six kinds of business.
Seth 
Your First Move After a Failed Charge Either Recovers It or Kills the Window
When a recurring charge fails, the wrong first move costs you the recovery window. The decline reason tells you which move to make
Omar 
Your Visibility Setting Isn't a Lock. It's a First Impression.
Public, private, or hidden: that choice is doing more than you think. Here's what's actually at stake
Omar 
Your Churn Problem and Your Completion Problem Are the Same Problem
Most course owners treat low completion and high churn as two separate fires. They're not. Here's what that means for your membership
Omar 
Your Funnel Is One Policy Change From Zero
Most membership sites run on reach they don't own. Here's why that's a structural problem, not a traffic problem.
Seth 
Opal: where she's been, where she is, where she's going
We're building MemberPress.ai in public. Here's the vision for Opal, your assistant, and an honest list of what's real today and what's next.
Seth 
Your Paywall May Be Losing Members Before Price Ever Enters the Picture
Most membership owners build a paywall to protect content. In our experience it can quietly cost conversions before price even matters
Seth Ready to get your own membership to its first paying member? Connect your site and tell Opal what you sell.