Evolving Toward a Community Business Model with Margy Thomas

07/21/20 • 39 min

Engineering Calmer Agencies & Consulting Firms: Calm is the New KPI

Thinking about shifting your business model is one thing...

Actually doing it?

Well, that’s a whole other thing.

You might wonder: do I burn the old one to the ground? Do I make a gradual shift? Or do I just tack on one more service to my offerings?

Maybe you do start from scratch... or maybe you take a more nuanced approach to shifting your business model from one to another... or maybe you add more value to your existing model.

Whatever your path, it’s crucial to examine the risks in your business, re-examine your business model, and then make changes to how you do business.

This month, we’re shifting from the abstract and into reality with stories from entrepreneurs like you of what it really looks like to evolve your business from one model to another.

My guest today is Margy Thomas, Ph.D., who recently made the move from 1:1 services to a membership model. Margy’s community, ScholarShape, is a place for creative, visionary scholars to gather and support each other in creating Story-Arguments, a framework that she developed.

For Margy, creating the ScholarShape community was the natural evolution of that framework. She looked at her business and realized that 1:1 services was no longer the best delivery option for her clients and it wasn’t the business she wanted to be running.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

What was going on in Margy’s business that drove her decision to create ScholarShape and shift her business model
How Margy executed the transition and what her business looks like now
Instead of a fast pivot, community can be a natural evolution of your existing work
What the decision process LOOKS like for someone thinking about making shifts in their business model

Learn more about Margy Thomas:

Learn more about Susan:

Scalespark Dollars + Decisions Roundtable
Twitter @ScaleSpark
LinkedIn @thesusanboles

Grab the Calm Service Design + Delivery Swipe File here

Thinking about shifting your business model is one thing...

Actually doing it?

Well, that’s a whole other thing.

You might wonder: do I burn the old one to the ground? Do I make a gradual shift? Or do I just tack on one more service to my offerings?

Maybe you do start from scratch... or maybe you take a more nuanced approach to shifting your business model from one to another... or maybe you add more value to your existing model.

Whatever your path, it’s crucial to examine the risks in your business, re-examine your business model, and then make changes to how you do business.

This month, we’re shifting from the abstract and into reality with stories from entrepreneurs like you of what it really looks like to evolve your business from one model to another.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

What was going on in Margy’s business that drove her decision to create ScholarShape and shift her business model
How Margy executed the transition and what her business looks like now
Instead of a fast pivot, community can be a natural evolution of your existing work
What the decision process LOOKS like for someone thinking about making shifts in their business model

Learn more about Margy Thomas:

Learn more about Susan:

Scalespark Dollars + Decisions Roundtable
Twitter @ScaleSpark
LinkedIn @thesusanboles

Grab the Calm Service Design + Delivery Swipe File here

Previous Episode

Where Community Belongs In Your Business Model with Sophie Bujold

It seems like everyone is adding a community or membership to their product lineup these days. It’s a great idea for three reasons: it diversifies your revenue stream, allows you to be in direct conversation with your customers, and scales pretty easily.

But is adding a community right for YOUR business?

And what makes a good community anyway?

And how might a community reduce your risk as an entrepreneur?

We've been talking about how you can manage risk and build resilience into your business all this month. And one of the ways to make your business less risky is to build in more than one way you make money by adding some additional revenue streams. If something happens to one of those sources, the other ones can float you for a while so you can figure out what to do next.

In the last episode, I talked to JoAnn Holmes about how to leverage your intellectual property to create additional revenue streams like courses, licensing, or books.

But harnessing your IP isn't the ONLY way you could add additional revenue or build resilience into your business.

Today, we're talking with Sophie Bujold about another option: building a community product around your business. Sophie is an entrepreneur and consultant with more than 18 years of experience in online community building, customer experience, and digital strategy. As the founder of Cliqueworthy, Sophie helps creative entrepreneurs gather with impact through outstanding online community experiences.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

Using community/membership model as a means to diversify revenue streams
Who should build communities & where should it live in your business
Where your community should live inside your business model—and how to create a great one

Learn more about Sophie:

cliqueworthy.com
LinkedIn: Sophie Bujold

Learn more about Susan:

Scalespark Dollars + Decisions Roundtable
Twitter @ScaleSpark
LinkedIn @thesusanboles

Grab the Calm Service Design + Delivery Swipe File here

Next Episode

How to Build a Community Around Your Business with Katie Hunt

Right now, building a community around your business is more popular than ever.

You might even be considering adding one to your business—perhaps to save you time, to add another income stream, or to make you more accessible to your clients—or all of the above.

No matter why you might consider adding community to your business model, you might wonder—a business owner who does the same thing is already doing this. So how can I do it, too? Should I do it at all?

Seeing someone beat you to the punch might feel deflating but I’m here to tell you that there are infinite ways to shift your business model and make it all your own.

No two businesses are ever the same. Even if two business owners offer the same thing, they’re doing it in their own, unique way. That’s why if you hear an idea for a new revenue stream or a new way of operating—or if you implement the same thing—it’ll always look different in your business compared to another business. It’s your special sauce.

In the last few episodes, we’ve been talking about using new revenue streams to create strength and resiliency and minimize risk in your business. Specifically, we've been doing a deep dive on membership and community models.

I talked to Sophie Bujold in Episode 39 about where a community should live in your business (and whether or not you should have one in the first place). And in Episode 40, I talked to Margy Thomas about how her community was an evolution of the work she'd already been doing with clients.

My guest today is Katie Hunt, founder of Proof to Product, where she helps product-based businesses create product lines, sell wholesale, and build stronger businesses. She has a podcast, courses, masterminds, coaching, conferences, and yes, a community. Katie’s helped thousands of brands get their products on the shelves of retail stores like Target, Anthropologie, Nordstrom, and independent boutiques around the world.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

An alternative look at what launching a community/membership model with a team looks like
How having a membership improved resilience in Katie's business—financially AND with the rest of her product suite
What evaluation process Katie went through before adding community as part of her business model
How Katie’s boundaries have been impacted through the launch of her program and the pandemic—and how she’s proactively reinstating those boundaries now

Learn more about Katie Hunt:

Learn more about Susan: