One of China Internet's best kept secrets is how to design paid memberships that work -- they've experimented with this for 20+ yrs. For example, Weibo (China's Twitter) VIP Membership revenue was $124M in 2020.
Having studied these companies for years, Connie Chan (a16z) observed that leading Chinese membership models have a set of common benefits that they combine and remix in different ways to create a successful paid membership framework.
The four most common components are:
1) a mixture of earned and paid perks
2) an intricate leveling and points system
3) a balance of flexing and functionality
4) partnerships with other companies.
Her latest a16z post explores each of these four elements and how they contribute to a membership ecosystem through gamification as a way to deepen engagement with existing users and turn average users into super users