Why you should launch a monthly membership?

Fanbase Memberships: what’s in it for clubs?

Yesterday, we launched Fanbase Memberships to all of our Fanbase packages, read more about that here. In this article, we’re focusing on why clubs might want to offer memberships in the first place. What’s in it for them?

Today subscription services make up a huge part of our lives, from phone contracts, to music, to food boxes, to the razors and household goods. The stats back it up too. Apparently, Brits spend more than £2 billion every year on subscription services and 70% of business leaders say subscription business models will be key to their prospects in the years ahead.

Traditionally the sports industry has been slow to keep up with this global trend. Rugby clubs lead the way and football is following. More and more sports clubs are starting to offer a monthly membership / subscription to fans and this is why you should think about joining them:

Secure recurring revenue

Offering a weekly / monthly membership to your fans allows you to bring in an additional revenue stream. Think about the current money makers for sports clubs - we have ticketing, merchandise, food and drink, hospitality and sponsorship.

The one thing that most of these have in common is that they are heavily reliant on fixtures, this is why so many had such a difficult time during the COVID pandemic when games were being played behind closed doors.

Depending on the setup of the club and how they deal with finances there can often be cash flow problems during the off season when no matches are taking place but money is still being spent on paying the manager and players. Monthly memberships are available all year round, ensuring that you are still bringing in revenue during these months.

Provide a budget friendly way for fans to support their club

As mentioned above we are starting to move into a cost of living crisis with energy prices reaching an all time high, not everyone has the opportunity to purchase a season ticket or go to as many games as they used to.

The loyal fans will still want to support their club in whatever way possible so it’s important to give them an easy way to do so, by offering a £5 / £10 membership with some nice benefits it’s a way for them to still engage with the club without breaking the bank.

Tap into an international audience

In sports one of the most popular membership use cases is the opportunity for fans to support their club from anywhere in the world while receiving some nice benefits, if we think about the money makers mentioned above - almost all are reliant on physically being able to go to a game.

By offering a monthly membership, these fans who maybe lived in the area then moved away for work or education can now become part of the club again in a way that benefits both them and the club.

Engage and grow your fanbase

Offering memberships gives clubs the opportunity to get creative. Find new benefits to offer your fans, whether that be personalised videos of the players or manager, membership pack sent to their door, free merchandise, physical membership badge or medal.

There are lots of different ideas that clubs are trialling as part of their membership scheme. If you get it right for all audiences, this is a great way to engage and grow your fanbase as the positive sentiment towards your club grows.

Interested in using Memberships for your club? Get started here.