Note from Ron: Normally I don't recommend starting membership on such general
topic like gardening because there is so much free information available online and tons of low cost printed material on the topic.
Even though I think you are far better off with a niche topic for a membership site, here's someone who has a successful site on a very general topic-gardening.
This article is post thanks to Peter Schaible of SEPA (Subscription Website Publishers Association) If you are seriously interested in starting a membership
website I highly suggest you join this organization. Learn more about Swepa
A membership website for gardeners attracts hobbyists by the
thousands and is growing like top seed.
Dave's Garden (or, DG, as it has come to be known) is the
brainchild of Dave Whitinger, and was launched in August 2000. It
is a series of web sites that cater to the needs and desires of
gardeners and farmers.
This is a website where members share their triumphs and dilemmas
in their gardens and their lives. DG is also a place for
gardeners to share seeds or plants with other gardeners.
DG has 73,398 members. In the past seven days, 549 signed up.
Membership has grown by 0.75 percent this past week.
In June 2003, 596,847 unique users generated 12,125,694 page
views. Members and visitors spend a lot of time on DG, averaging
20 page views per person, exceeding the industry average. DG is a
very big website.
Dave's Garden is a member-supported community. Subscriptions are
available at an annual rate of $15, or a bi-monthly rate of $5.
The site is free from advertising.
Subscribed members have access to 79 forums that enable gardeners
of every niche and interest to converse online, as well as access
to some special features of the plants database, and regularly
scheduled live chat sessions.
Non-paying members are able to participate in all the other
features of Dave's Garden. See a full description of all those
features here: http://davesgarden.com/about/index.php?page=tour
If you do not use the forums or the advanced features of the
plants database, you do not need to pay for a subscription to DG.
Recently several of subscribers organized "round robins" for
seeds, secret plant swaps, photo contests, and cooperative bulk
purchases of plants and bulbs.
Additional information at http://davesgarden.com/welcome.php.
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