Announcement: Upcoming Pricing Structure & Offer Updates
Hey Everyone,
I know there has been a whirlwind of changes here in the past few weeks, and we are not quite finished just yet. We have a big update to announce to everyone that will take place in the coming week relating to the pricing here at WA.
Pricing changes, not to be confused with price increases, are coming. There are also a few other forward-looking changes, some exciting stuff taking place on the affiliate side of things, and I want to delve into some of the "deeper thinking" behind our decision-making that I want to discuss.
So let’s get right into things here!
First, the Pricing Changes...
One thing we have been very careful about over the years is the pricing here at Wealthy Affiliate. While the “competition” around us has been charging $1,000’s (and in some cases $10,000’s ) for inferior services, inferior training and inferior help, our focus was offering the most cost-efficient a BEST platform in the world for Internet Entrepreneurs.
When someone joins Premium, they are upgrading to an elite service. When we start discounting our service at every turn, we start to feel like the “sale bin” at a budget department store. If anything, we should be increasing our costs and we could easily charge much more and still remain cheaper than getting an education and service elsewhere.…but we aren't going to do that.
Instead, we are going to keep the SAME monthly price (plus offer additional value for action takers), but not lead with a discount that devalues the perception of our service.
I mean, in all honesty our pricing hasn’t gone through too many changes over the past 17 years. We charged $359.88 per year back in 2005 when we started out as a “keyword list” website, and people were happily paying for that. Fast forward 17 years, we are only charging $49 per month for a service that offers 100x more!
Our Premium has been $49 per month for 10 years. It will remain $49 per month.
The only thing we are changing is our lead offer, and we are doing this to improve the success rates for folks that are getting started online, while retaining the true value of our service here.
Updated Lead Offer: FREE DOMAIN With Premium!
So that leads me to the new offer. We are going to be offering ANYONE that upgrades to Premium, their own .com domain for FREE. A domain is a brand asset that is a precursor to creating any successful business online, and we wanted everyone to have their own domain when they started their business.
With the new "quick action" bonus, if someone goes Premium in the first 7 Days, they are going to get a Free .com domain ($15 value). If someone upgrades to Premium Plus+, they are going to be getting TWO free domains.
Current Pricing:
Premium: $19 First Month, then $49 Per Month (No Domain)
Premium Plus+: $49 First Month, then $99 Per Month (No Domain)
New Pricing (starting at some point next week):
Premium: $49 Per Month + FREE Domain
Premium Plus+: $99 per month + TWO FREE Domains
So the price of Premium is not going up, the offer when people decide to upgrade within the first 7 days of is simply being altered to better equip them to create a long term, and successful business online.
Without a domain, you don't stand a chance of creating a successful business and now EVERYONE that upgrades to Premium or Premium Plus+ will be equipped and ready to go.
Update to Current Website Limits
Along with the pricing update, we are also going to be reducing the number of websites that come with Premium & Premium Plus+. Our level of hosting service is comparable to any elite Managed Wordpress Host, and our level of support is unparalleled in the industry (normally you get a help desk, not trained Engineers that actually can fix your issues).
Hosting alone costs $100+ per month for comparable Managed Wordpress Services even at the 5 website mark, and then they typically offer all sorts of upsells to get the "red carpet" support that you get here with the hosting.
The following are going to be the updates, although not drastic, they are in line with the needs of these particular audiences and the value of these services alone are worth more than the cost of the monthly Premium & Premium Plus+ memberships.
CURRENT Website Limits:
Starter = 1 Website
Premium = 10 websites
Premium Plus+ = 50 Websites
NEW Website Limits:
Starter = 1 Website
Premium = 5 Websites
Premium Plus = 10 Websites
**Note: If you are currently on the existing plans, you are not going to be subject to any changes and you will be grandfathered your current website limits as long as you want to remain a member. This is only for NEW customers.
Additionally, we are going to have another level of hosting service coming for our power users that want to purchase their own fully redundant, dedicated server. This is going to be announced in a future update (in the coming months), and something that we look forward to offering more enterprise level users.
Affiliates, Get Ready for MORE Revenue!
Affiliates or newcomers that want to promote and earn a full-time income promoting Wealthy Affiliate should pay special attention to these updates! They are going to truly benefit you.
Formerly people that joined were getting a $19 offer. This equated to $8 in commissions. Of course recurring commissions would follow in subsequent months, but the problem with a leading $8 commission is that it was tough to make a go of any sort of “paid” advertising.
Now the first month offer, it sets people up EVEN BETTER for success and will keep people around longer because they actually have a domain asset. That is the foundation of their brand and this first month pays 2.5x more ($20). And if someone joins Premium Plus+ and gets the 2 FREE domains, your commission is $40 first month.
Also, Starter members are now going to be able to access our discounted yearly pricing RIGHT AWAY on the order page. Many people ask “how can I go yearly” and formerly they didn’t have an option to do this until they first upgraded.
They will now be able to purchase a YEARLY membership right away. These also come with the free domain(s), and significant savings. We have boosted the commission on the Premium Plus+ yearly membership as well, which happens to also be the best deal.
$49 + free domain => $20 first month commission
$99 + free domain => $40 first month commission
$49/mth recurring => $23.50 recurring monthly commission
$99/mth recurring => $46.50 recurring monthly commission
$497/year recurring ($41/mth) => $230 recurring yearly commission
$697/year recurring ($58/mth) => $320 recurring yearly commission
So there you have it, some pricing side updates along with slightly adjusting the websites plans. These are going to be taking place at some point next week and we wanted to give all members and all affiliates some advance notice here.
If you are not already a Premium member and you want to be grandfathered into the current website plan, along with the $19 first month offer, you can upgrade here to take advantage of this.
And as always, we appreciate all feedback. If you have any questions or comments about the new updates, please leave them below. We are excited about this transition and this has been a long time in the making. :)
Recent Comments
174
I like this and you can see the thought process that has gone on in putting this together.
I am also looking forward to finding out more about the dedicated server, albeit I’m not yet at that stage, it is a powerful option. I hope and guess that the banners will be the next things ready.
Thanks again .
Stephen
Sounds good Stephen, the dedicate is definitely a sought after option for those that want to be on their own server, with their network of sites. It is going to be competitive in terms of its pricing, and will include Premium Plus+ by default.
Definitely an option that is more leaning for the power user, but as we build out our website entities that is a stage we are all going to reach.
Thank you for the update on the new pricing policy to be effected next week Kyle.I have noted that the pricing policy has taken into consideration new entrants who have just started Affiliate,It give them a chance to grow their business by giving them a .com website and well as give them a boost in terms of Affiliate referral commission.Its well done from you Kyle.My question is what will happen to some of us who have just joined premium but did not benefit from the .com website?Are you going to take us into consideration and also give us a chance to grow?
Hi Kyle
Yes, I know all too well what others are charging for really an inferior product compared to what you have here. I have always thought how much better it is to have patrons (like myself) that are dedicated to the program you have produced. This produces loyalty I would rather stay a member of WA, I feel like Keira, and I have really found a home. We have not met in person as of yet, but that time is coming. I can see the light and it is getting closer, really want to thank you for the opportunity you have given us especially in such hard times.
Joe & Keira
Team Pi
So wonderful to hear Joe/Kiera, it is amazing to think that there is such an awesome community of folks here and that we have only really met "digitally".
The reality is, we have always put our community and our audience first and that will continue to be the case as we march forward with updates, improvements, evolutions, and innovations.
Thanks for the feedback and it is great to have you here as part of the family! :)
Good morning Kyle,
I hope you're doing well.
Thank you for the update, it sounds like good things are happening!
I like the sound of a dedicated server, it will be interesting to see what the cost will be. I would imagine that it could be quite popular.
Have a great day.
Roy
Lots of good things are happening. We will be revealing the cost, and the new upgrade page closer to the date, but we are really excited about being able to offer that. ;)
It's always good to see new things happening! I must admit I had to start using a dedicated server when my site grew, as I also use a Datafeed on some of my websites. As you can imagine, it is quite server hungry!
I look forward to the new updates.
Roy
Yes, that is the case for many folks and we are going to be more competitive than the top Managed Wordpress Dedicated solutions out there.
We are also going to be offering a fully redundant option as well, meaning that you are getting two servers running in parallel so you have real time back-ups and two running instances of your website. This is something that FEW companies in the dedicated hosting industry offer.
Good morning Kyle,
Thank you for your reply.
Offering a fully redundant option, which I must admit I haven't heard of, sounds like a great idea! I look forward to hearing more in the near future.
Have a great day.
Roy
See more comments
Kyle,
Given the error I spotted that WA corrected re the "Upgrade" button, I just wanted to check in with you about this --
Your blog post says that with the new pricing structure, Premium members will get 5 websites.
But on the check-out /order page (https://my.wealthyaffiliate.com/upgrade) the Premium account shows that Premium members get "10 Premium Websites"
Maybe I'm misunderstanding something, but the blog post and the checkout page seem to be indicating different things for the Premium level.
Thanks for clarifying my confusion...
David B
Yes, you still get 10. We are making this change POST Black Friday, so if you join prior to that update you will be grandfathered into the 10 websites, and 50 websites if you elect to go Premium Plus+.
I hope this clarifies for you here, but this change hasn't taken place yet. :)
Kyle, Yes that clarifies my confusion!
Just one question about the offers:
At the current price levels, The Premium Plus level gives a customer 5 x the number of websites but is 2 x the price of the Premium membership, not 5x. I see that the new pricing structure for Premium Plus will be 2x cost and 2x the websites.
Just for my learning, What was WA's thinking in giving the Premium Plus 5x the websites at only 2x the price as they were/are right now before the new pricing kicks in?
Kyle, if we were a Premium member but determined we needed/wanted the additional features/benefits of Premium Plus, could we make that upgrade and be grandfathered in the Premium Plus plan before the changes to the plan take effect post-Black Friday?
Kyle,
I didn't see a reply so just wanted to check in with you on this question - if our organization is a Premium member but determined we needed/wanted the additional features/benefits of Premium Plus, could we make that upgrade and be grandfathered in the Premium Plus plan before the changes to the plan take effect post-Black Friday?