How to Set Up Your Memberships

Thangs gives you options to set up memberships and build recurring revenue from your designs. In this article, we break down the different membership styles and customization options available, giving you everything you need to launch your own.

Thangs membership styles

Thanks has three types of memberships: Downloads, monthly releases, and chapter-based. Below we explain each of them so you can choose the best fit for you and your business.

• Downloads Plan: The most straightforward option. You set a specific number of download credits available to members each month. Subscribers can then "pick and choose" exactly which models they want to download from the model library assigned to this plan. This is the easiest to maintain plan, and perfect to combine with a commercial license.
• Monthly Releases Plan: Members get access to every model you release during the months they have an active subscription. You can customize this to include a set number of previous months' releases or offer a discount on one-off back-catalog purchases. This type of plan creates the most value for long term members and adds a sense of exclusivity to your designs.
• Chapter-Based Plan: This plan delivers a pre-set sequence of model sets. No matter when a member subscribes, they always start at "Chapter 1" and progress through your collection month by month. Ideal for tutorials, modular systems, or narrative-based designs.

Membership options

There are several important choices you need to make around pricing, enabling upgrade paths, and member count limits that can help you drive retention and build member loyalty.

Monthly vs. Annual memberships: To provide your members the best value, you can offer both monthly and annual pricing. Providing a discounted annual rate incentivizes members to lock in for 12 months, which in turn guarantees long-term income for you as a designer. Win-win!

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Upgrade Path: As a designer, you can create up to five different membership plans to fit your business model. This flexibility allows you to offer separate Personal and Commercial tiers, set varying monthly download credits, or even split your design catalog across different plans. To help increase your revenue, you can also define clear membership upgrade and downgrade paths, making it seamless for members to move into higher-tier plans as they grow with you.

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Member count limits: To create a sense of exclusivity and encourage early sign-ups, you can set a member limit on any plan. This is a great way to gain momentum quickly when starting out on Thangs; for example, you could offer a discounted "Early Access" tier to incentivize your first followers, or maintain tighter control over commercial license holders.

More member engagement options

Setting up your plans is just the beginning. There’s more that you can do to engage your members and keep them excited about your offerings including:

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• Link your Discord channel to your store to automatically grant active members access to your private community spaces. 
• Create a welcome pack to provide instant access to a curated set of models the moment a member joins as an immediate "thank you" for their support. 
• Offer custom discount codes to welcome new members or reward active subscribers with special pricing on your back catalog. 
• Use built-in email tools to keep followers and specific tiers updated on upcoming designs, plan changes and exclusive insider news. 

Launching your first membership plan

Thangs supports the business model that fits your style—whether that’s a full-time membership site, individual sales, or occasional drops in the Thangs Bundle. If you're ready for recurring support, launch your first plan today.