From Struggling Student to Building High-Converting Membership Sites
If you’re a course creator, coach, or expert, you already know the truth:
📌 A membership site isn’t just a website—it’s a business.
But here’s the problem… most people focus on building the site and forget what really matters:
- ✅ How will you get people to join?
- ✅ How will you keep them engaged?
- ✅ How will you turn members into repeat buyers?
That’s where I come in.
I don’t just build beautiful membership sites—I build strategic ecosystems that attract, convert, and retain members.
💡 Why am I so obsessed with this?
Because this industry changed my life.
1. The Beginning: Struggling to Find My Path
If you told 17-year-old me in 2009 that one day, I’d be an expert in high-converting membership sites, I wouldn’t have believed you.
Because back then, I thought I was too dumb to figure things out.
I struggled with school. Programming classes? Forget it. Arrays, indexes—I was completely lost.
But when it came to design, something clicked. The first time I built an HTML site for a school project, I got excited. I loved making things look great—hover effects, animations, even messing around with Flash (back when it was cool).
I didn’t realize it at the time, but that moment in 2009 planted the seed for everything that came next.
2. The Struggle: No Money, No Experience, No Job Offers
At 17, I wasn’t just looking for work—I was desperate to find it.
My mom, a single parent, was struggling to send four kids to school. My older brother had a cool job, and I envied that independence. I wanted to earn my own money, buy what I wanted, and help my family.
But I kept failing job applications.
- ❌ Jollibee? Rejected.
- ❌ Call centers? Rejected.
- ❌ Multiple interviews? Rejected.
Then my brother introduced me to Odesk.com (now Upwork)—and that’s when everything changed.
💡 I wasn’t just learning—I was fighting to survive. I had no choice but to get REALLY good at this.
3. The Breakthrough: Learning at 10X Speed Under Pressure
I landed a job with a Norwegian company selling printer ink—they used Joomla CMS.
I had never touched Joomla before, but instead of admitting it, I said yes and gave myself a 7-day crash course to master it.
From there, I kept pushing myself to learn WordPress, Infusionsoft, membership sites, and automation tools—not just because I wanted to, but because I had to.
That pressure forced me to master membership site development at an insane pace.
Fast forward a few years, and I had built hundreds of websites since I started freelancing at 17—including many membership sites for different industries.
Now, I use that same intensity and experience to help my clients build membership businesses that actually grow.
4. My Deep Dive Into Membership Sites
After 3–4 years of freelancing, I landed a game-changing opportunity.
I started working with Jorge from Florida, who specialized in WordPress membership sites.
We used tools like:
- Infusionsoft (back when it was ugly 😂).
- iMember360, Active360, AccessAlly, Memberium, and LearnDash.
- Thrive Themes and WP Bakery (before Elementor existed).
This was where I mastered the tech behind membership sites.
I didn’t just build sites—I learned how to connect systems, automate sales, and optimize retention.
5. Becoming the Breadwinner & Owning My Future
After 4-5 years working with Jorge, his business had a slow down, and for the first time, I felt real financial pressure.
I wasn’t just working for myself—I was the main provider for my family.
🚨 No matter how hard I worked, I could only take on so many clients before hitting a ceiling.
If I wanted to keep supporting my family and create real financial stability, I couldn’t do it alone.
I needed a way to scale beyond myself—to build a system, not just trade hours for money.
That’s when I decided to start building a team.
6. Scaling Beyond Freelancing: Building My Own Team
- By 2019, I knew I didn’t want to be a solo freelancer forever—I wanted to build something bigger.
- In 2020, I started hiring part-timers, and by 2022, I had built a real team.
- By 2023, we moved into a commercial space, and by August 2024, we transitioned into a fully remote team.
We’re leaner, smarter, and more effective than ever.
7. The Hard Truth: Membership Businesses Need Marketing
💡 A membership site isn’t a business—it’s just a website, unless you market it.
That’s why businesses like Dan’s & Graeme’s (The Online Dog Trainer) thrive. They:
- ✅ Test different pricing, upsells, and funnels.
- ✅ Track what works and adjust.
- ✅ Are willing to lose money on some tests to get bigger wins.
🚀 The businesses that grow treat marketing as a non-negotiable part of their strategy.
8. The Future: UX, UI, and Marketing Strategy for Membership Sites
Before, I just wanted to build beautiful membership sites.
Now, I build high-converting membership ecosystems that:
- ✔ Are designed to convert.
- ✔ Have built-in engagement & retention strategies.
- ✔ Use marketing principles that drive real business growth.
💡 I started diving deep into marketing in late 2024, and this year, I’m committed to mastering the foundation.
🚀 Because a membership site isn’t just a website—it’s a business.
Ready to Build a Membership Site That Actually Makes Money?
I help course creators, coaches, and community leaders turn their knowledge into revenue with high-converting membership sites.
If you’re ready to attract, convert, and retain more members, let’s talk.