Membership has a life cycle. Just because a member cancels, it doesn’t mean they won’t return. So, why not leave an open door for them to come back?

I’ve seen memberships where, if you cancel, they basically say, “You’re dead to me!”

I know of one such membership business, that if you cancel your membership, you’re literally blacklisted and are not allowed to rejoin. Never! Your email is removed, you’re wiped from the database and put on a list.

As I listened to this person boast about his cancellation process, he bragged about how he had someone who canceled and tried to join again. The customer paid a membership fee and everything. This person then bragged about how he’d refunded the new customer and said that person was not welcome as a member.

I understand that some memberships have a waiting list, application process, or other means that might prevent a member from immediately returning.

But if you can create an open door… if you can create an opportunity for when they get past their trouble, tension, or transition to return, then you will help perpetuate the membership life cycle.

When you set out to “rescue” your members from canceling, you’re showing that you have a genuine interest in their well-being.

As you do this, here are a few more suggestions:

• Do not continue to bill them for their membership. There are some memberships that are giving the rest of us a bad reputation. They make it difficult for people to cancel. You can make it easy for someone to cancel their membership and billing, just difficult to leave and no longer be a member.
• Put them in a “reactivation campaign.” They were once sold on your membership. This can make it easier to sell them again on your membership. Those members who have canceled can be some of the easiest to get to sign up. Why not market to them and invite them to come back?
• Always smile! Let’s face it. Someone canceling their membership can feel personal to you. But their decision isn’t personal to you, so smile and let them know it’s okay to come back.

When you do this, you send your member a life preserver to help rescue them from canceling and they’ll actually thank you for it.

Think about that – when is the last time a member thanked you for not letting them cancel? I’ve seen it happen all the time. You can have it happen, too.

If you’re interested in learning more about if and how I can help you scale your coaching business, here are three ways we can work together:

1. Grab a copy of “High-Ticket Coach.” It’s my brand new book on how to create, launch and sell your high-ticket membership offer. You’ll also get a ton of free resources and tools to help sell your current membership offers.