Practical questions about the work

What does a site review actually cover?

Four things, in this order: how the membership is priced and presented, the path from landing on the site to becoming a member, the first fortnight of a new membership, and how the material is organised once someone is inside. I also go through the cancellation path, which is the part almost nobody looks at and where a surprising number of problems live.

What it does not cover is design, technical performance, or anything to do with how people find your site in the first place. Those are real subjects. They are not mine.

How long does a review take?

About ten working days from the point I have access to the site. If you need it faster, say so on the first call and I will tell you honestly whether I can. I would rather turn the work down than rush a reading of somebody's livelihood.

Do you work with sites that have not launched yet?

Rarely, and not with a review, because there is nothing to read. If you are still building, the two guides that would form most of my advice are already written: choosing a pricing model and structuring member only content. Come back when you have members and something is bothering you.

What size of site do you usually work with?

Most clients have somewhere between fifty and three thousand paying members. Below fifty there is usually not enough evidence to say anything useful, and you are better served by the guides. Above a few thousand the work changes shape and often needs a team rather than one person reading everything, though I still take those engagements when the problem is a specific one.

Do you sign a non disclosure agreement?

Yes, happily, and I will sign yours rather than asking you to sign mine. I never name clients, quote their numbers, or use their sites as examples, with or without an agreement in place. Anything you see written up here comes from my own site or is described generally enough that nobody could identify it.

What is your refund position?

For a site review, if you read it and it tells you nothing you did not already know, write to me within fourteen days and I will refund it in full. That has happened twice and both times it was the right call.

Workshops are refundable up to seven days before the date, after which the preparation is already done. Monthly advisory can be stopped with thirty days notice and I do not bill beyond it.

Will you recommend a platform or a tool?

I will tell you what I have seen work and where I have watched people struggle, but I take no commission from any platform, plugin or payment provider, and there is no list of recommended tools on this site. That is deliberate. The moment I earn from a recommendation, the advice is worth less to you.

Do you work for a share of revenue, or for equity?

No. I charge a fixed fee, and I would rather be able to tell you that your plan is a bad one without it costing me anything. A consultant with a share of your revenue has an opinion about your price that is not entirely about you.

How quickly can you start?

Usually two to four weeks out, occasionally longer. I work with one client at a time, so the queue is real rather than a negotiating position. If the timing does not work, I will say so on the first call rather than holding a place for you.

Who is this not for?

Sites where the plan is to grow quickly and sell, because most of what I know is about the long dull middle. Owners who want the decision they have already made confirmed. Anyone looking for tactics to make leaving difficult, which is the one thing I will not help with. And subjects I find distasteful, which I get to define and do not argue about.