What does it look like to grow a Patreon community? Here’s my boots from the ground answer.

Okay let’s just rip the band-aid off. 🩹

On Friday, August 21, 2026, I launched a 30-day challenge to grow the More Movement Please Patreon community (aka Movers and Shakers) to 1,000 members. Thirty days, one thousand people. An absolutely unhinged goal, and spoiler alert – I knew this going in.

Today is day 7.

We have 28 members.

Twenty. Eight. Not 280. Not 2,800. Twenty-eight real, wonderful humans who believed in my fitness podcast and this movement enough to hand over their email address, and I love every single one of them! But, let’s be honest about the math. At this pace I am nowhere close to 1,000 by day 30.

I could hide that number. I’m not going to. I built this whole brand on real talk and proof over polish, so here’s the proof: this is hard, growth is slow, and I’m doing it in public anyway.

I’m even doing a YouTube Shorts challenge about this and repurposing my videos on Facebook and Instagram. Fun fact, this is all by design. As I told my head coach Rhonda this morning after Tabata – I was fairly certain we would NOT get to 1,000 members in 30 days. But, I’m trying anyway and there’s a very intentional reason behind this!

Why I’m even doing this

More Movement Please is the show I record from my car. I’ve done several episodes with Rhonda Goode, a certified fitness instructor with 14 years of experience under her belt. She’s the head coach, I’m the hype woman, and together we’re building a Patreon community around it called Movers and Shakers. Two tiers, $5 and $15 a month, real coaching content and community behind the paywall.

This isn’t a vanity project. It’s the pillar of my personal brand with an actual product, actual community, and actual life-change potential behind it. So when I decided to go all in on Movement in 2025, launching a podcast and ultimately a community ended up being part of that plan.

I set a stupid-big goal on purpose. I wanted a number so audacious that even a “failure” would still mean real growth. Twenty-eight members in a week isn’t the headline I wanted, but it’s more members than I had a week ago!

What actually happens when people launch a Patreon

Before I hit publish on this challenge, I went digging. Not for cheerleading, for real numbers and real advice from people who’ve actually done this. Here’s what I found.

You don’t need a stadium of fans, you need 1,000 true ones. Back in 2008, Wired founding editor Kevin Kelly wrote an essay called “1,000 True Fans” that basically predicted the entire creator economy. His argument: you don’t need millions of followers to make a living as an artist. You need roughly 1,000 people who genuinely believe in you and will show up, pay up, and stick around.

My 1,000-member goal isn’t random. It’s a direct nod to that idea, and it’s a good reminder that this isn’t about chasing viral overnight blowups – though I would LOVE for this to happen. The truth is, this membership drive experiment is about finding your true fans, even if that only happens 28 at a time.

Podcast Patreons genuinely work, and there’s data to prove it. Patreon reported that more than 40,000 podcasters earned money on their platform and pulled in a combined $350 million in 2023 alone. Podcasting is one of the biggest earning categories on the entire site. So no, I’m not chasing a fantasy. I’m just early in a race that other podcasters have already proven is winnable.

Keep your tiers stupid simple. Eric Silver, a podcast producer who’s run a Patreon for eight years and counting, broke down his approach for Descript: people mostly want two things from a membership, bonus content and hearing their name shouted out on the show. He warns against piling on extras like Discords, behind-the-scenes videos, and research notes because it turns into overload for you and for them.

Rhonda and I already run lean with our $5 and $15 tiers, and honestly, reading this made me feel good about not overcomplicating it further. We initially had two more paid tiers, but recognized that this was too many for now. We’ll revisit those two again in the future once it pops off.

Promise less than you think you can deliver. The team at Resonate Recordings put it bluntly: late bonuses kill member retention faster than almost anything else. Their advice is to launch with fewer tiers and fewer perks than you think you can handle, then add more once you actually know your members and your own bandwidth.

Noted. Rhonda and I are keeping our promises boring and consistent on purpose.

A real launch pitch beats a passive announcement. Patreon’s own creator guide says the strongest launches include a short, personal video explaining the what and the why, a clear call to action, and repeating that CTA everywhere: bio, show notes, socials, email footer. Weekday launches also tend to outperform weekend ones.

I did some of this. I clearly need to do more of it, louder and more often.

Launching a Patreon is really an exercise in valuing your own work. Writer Cherie Hu spent a year running her own Patreon page and wrote about the biggest lesson she took from it: starting a membership isn’t just a business move, it’s a crash course in learning to ask for what your work is worth and actually believing you deserve it. 

Twenty-eight members so far is my signal that people already think this is worth being a part of the community. I’m letting that sit with me today.

Failure the first time doesn’t mean failure forever. My podcast pal Joe Casabona’s honest account of “My Failed Patreon Experiment” describes launching a Patreon after hitting 50,000 downloads, overpromising, underdelivering, and watching it flop. Years later, a relaunched and much simpler membership actually worked. Slow starts and even outright failures aren’t the end of the story. They’re just data.

I’m taking this information with me to the bank…and I will keep working on making this the best community I can for the highest good of all involved.

What I’m changing for the rest of this challenge

Based on all of that, here’s what shifts starting today:

• More personal video asks, repeated more often. Not a one-and-done announcement post. A real, “hey, here’s why this matters” pitch, said out loud, more than once, on more platforms.
• Keeping our two tiers exactly as simple as they are. No new perks, no scope creep. Just consistent delivery on what we already promised. In fact, we might streamline them even further.
• Leaning into the true fan mindset instead of the raw number. 1,000 true fans is still the goal on the wall. But I’m measuring day to day by whether the right people are finding us, not just the ticker going up.
• Being loud about the real numbers the whole way. You’re going to get updates on this. All of them. Even the ones that sting a little.

The ask

If you’ve been thinking about joining Movers and Shakers, today’s the day. $0 gets you in the door, $5 gets you exclusive episodes, and $15 gets you the deeper coaching content from coach Rhonda. Twenty-eight people already said yes. I’d love for you to join us too!

And if you’ve got tips of your own for growing a membership community, I want to hear them. Head here to give me feedback. This challenge is public because I want to learn in front of you, not just report back at the end.

What 5 folks I spoke to shared as advice about launching a Patreon

Before I started digging into all the data and creator interviews above, I asked around and heard from five people who wanted to share their advice about launching a Patreon. So here’s what they told me, straight from them:

Anchor Patreon to a Defined Brand Narrative

I help authors and creators launch platforms like Patreon through proven brand development and media strategies built over 30 years. My approach centers on consistent messaging that connects with the right audience at the right time.

Brand essence comes first. Define your core values, mission, and vision before opening any doors to supporters so your tiers and updates feel cohesive from day one.

I used this exact process when building memorable author websites and persuasive media kits that generated press coverage. Those same steps turn a Patreon into a natural extension of an established narrative instead of a disconnected add-on.

Marilyn Heywood Paige, Principal, Marilyn Paige

Keep One Simple Tier, Evolve From Feedback

The process began once I had accumulated a small but active following on my website and content platforms. One of the first big changes is: no one joins your Patreon just to be a Patreon – they join to know the value they will receive from a streamlined, simple system. Thus, I stuck with the basic tier, which offered one reward and one piece of content, with no other vague offerings.

Also, it helped to think of Patreon as a continuation of the content you are making, rather than something else you make. In each post or episode where I talked about additional material, I would mention it without making any special effort, so that people knew I was talking about a Patreon. The initial supporters were mostly those already familiar with what I create, just looking for motivation to join.

If I could do things differently now, I would limit myself to the minimum at the start and shape future tiers based on the behavior of those who joined before me.

Asawar Ali, CEO, Link Building Agency

Set Clear Tradeoffs, Launch Few Authentic Tiers

Building a dedicated community that is willing to invest in your work comes down to one fundamental principle: radical clarity about what you offer and why it matters to them. When we built Doggie Park Near Me into a directory covering over 6,300 dog parks across all 50 states, we learned that people don’t just support platforms; they support the mission and the authenticity behind them.

My number one tip for launching a membership program like Patreon is to clearly communicate the tradeoffs of your tier structure to your audience from day one. You can’t be everything to everyone, especially when resources are tight. We prioritize our work by focusing on what our users care about most, like fencing and water availability, rather than trying to build every feature at once. Apply this to your Patreon by launching with only two or three highly manageable tiers. If you overpromise exclusive content, you will quickly burn out.

We’ve built deep trust through our direct, real dog and real human reviews on Auggie’s Blog. You must establish that same authentic connection on your podcast and website before you ask for financial support. Before launching, we suggest researching your audience’s exact pain points so you can align your membership rewards with their actual needs. Invite your listeners into the building process. Share the behind-the-scenes planning on your podcast, explain how their support will fund specific projects, and keep your communication channels wide open. When people feel like partners in your building process rather than just subscribers, they will gladly back you. It’s all about delivering genuine value, setting realistic boundaries, and keeping your promises to the community you serve.

Rina Gutierrez, Part-time Marketing Coordinator, Doggie Park Near Me

Build Trust With Clear, Simple, Valuable Tiers

Launching a subscription or membership platform successfully comes down to one core ingredient: building trust through clear communication from day one. At Equipoise Coffee, we’ve learned that you can’t just ask people to buy in; you must show them exactly what they are getting and why it matters. Whether you are selling freshly roasted beans or digital content, your audience needs to feel the value immediately.

When we established our business in 2021, we realized that people don’t just want a product; they want to be part of a community. If you are launching a Patreon, you need to treat your membership tiers with the same care we use when sourcing single-origin options like our Mexican La Laja Honey or Colombian Supremo. Each tier must have a distinct, clear value. We always explain the tradeoffs to our stakeholders and customers directly. If a certain tier requires more of your time, be transparent about that. Honesty builds the strongest communities.

Another tip is to focus on education and exclusive access. We connect with our audience through an educational blog that explains the science of achieving a smooth, less bitter roast profile. For your Patreon, offer behind-the-scenes insights that make your supporters feel like true partners in your creative process. Do not overcomplicate your rewards at the start. When resources are tight, prioritize delivering one or two high-quality benefits rather than promising the world. Keep your tiers simple, communicate consistently, and let your unique philosophy shine through. That is how you turn casual listeners into dedicated patrons who will support your podcast for the long haul.

Rory Keel, Owner, Equipoise Coffee

Start Small; Prioritize Engagement Over Subscriber Count

Start small with your initial founding-member group. This is the best advice I can provide. You don’t need dozens of membership tiers ready to go right away. Build them as needed. By starting small with say 25-50 founding members, you’ll have honest feedback, predictable conversation, and less work. I noticed engagement remained above 70% throughout a few community first projects as long as the member count stayed small during the first 90 days. Community momentum is built through interaction, not the number of subscribers.

Community growth will often fizzle out when rewards are no longer able to be produced. Users join your community for the access, consistency, and connection. They leave when those reward whispers become less frequent. Fulfillment is much easier by only offering a single membership tier for the first couple months. You’ll also avoid large confusion. Additionally, retention was higher when promises were easy to keep each week. Take as much time as you need. 40 engaged members will bring more value to your business than 400 subscribers that never participate.

Cyrus Kennedy, Chairman & Acting CEO, The Ad Firm

Onwards and upwards my friends. Have you worked out today? 💪