Robbie Kellman Baxter

Peninsula Strategies

We help organizations build forever transactions with the people they serve. This forever transaction is the secret to predictable, recurring revenue, higher corporate valuations and deeper, more meaningful relationships. We've worked with some of the most well-regarded brands in the world, including Netflix, Microsoft and the Wall Street Journal, as well as with visionary start-up entrepreneurs and mission-driven nonprofits & associations. You can read more about our clients' results here: https://robbiekellmanbaxter.com/clients/

Founder, Peninsula Strategies

Strava

Advisory Board Member

LinkedIn

I've authored and facilitated 10 courses, including Value Creation, Brand Building, Membership, Networking, Customer Success, Service Orientation, Business Development and B2B Sales. See the full list here: https://www.linkedin.com/learning/instructors/robbie-kellman-baxter?u=2125562

Instructor 

For over two decades, I have been helping organizations leverage subscription pricing, digital communities, and freemium models to build deeper relationships with their customers and generate predictable recurring revenue. I am the founder of Peninsula Strategies, a consulting firm that has worked with some of the most well-regarded brands in the world, such as Netflix, Microsoft, and the Wall Street Journal, as well as with visionary start-up entrepreneurs and mission-driven nonprofits and associations.

I am also an advisor, a speaker, an educator, and an author. I serve on the advisory board of Strava, a social network for athletes, and I share my insights and expertise on subscription and membership models through keynote speeches, podcasts, and LinkedIn Learning courses. I have written two books, The Membership Economy and The Forever Transaction, that anticipated and defined the massive transformation from ownership to membership and the rise of subscription pricing. My passion is to help organizations create forever transactions with the people they serve and achieve long-term growth and sustainability.

There are many new folks in my LinkedIn community, so I’d like to re-introduce myself to everyone!

Hi, I’m Robbie Kellman Baxter, and I help companies leverage subscription pricing, digital communities, and freemium models to build deeper relationships with customers.

Over 21 years ago, I left product marketing to dive head-first into the subscription world.

In the process, I’ve written two books:

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑 𝑬𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒐𝒎𝒚: 𝑭𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑺𝒖𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒔, 𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝑻𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 & 𝑩𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒅 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒖𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒖𝒆

and

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝑻𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏: 𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒐 𝑩𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒅 𝒂 𝑺𝒖𝒃𝒔𝒄𝒓𝒊𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑴𝒐𝒅𝒆𝒍 𝑺𝒐 𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝑪𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝑾𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝑵𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝑾𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝑳𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆.

I keynote frequently. I also host the podcast, "Subscription Stories," where I sit down with business leaders to discuss how they're using subscription pricing and membership models to redefine the biggest industries and generate predictable recurring revenue.

I've also developed and taught nine video courses for LinkedIn Learning on business topics ranging from innovation to customer success and membership.

Many people ask for my top 3 tips to scale a subscription business. They are:

1. 𝐈𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠-𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐦 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩𝐬.

Remember, subscribers are committing to a “forever transaction” with you because they trust you to help them achieve an ongoing goal or tackle an ongoing problem. Make sure you deserve that trust!

2. 𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐥.

I learned this when I worked for Netflix in the beginning of my subscription journey. Give your members the easy way out.

3. 𝐅𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐬, 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭 𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐬.

Remember why subscribers came to you in the first place and make decisions accordingly.

Looking for more subscription best practices? Check out my website to learn more: https://lnkd.in/gYUybbaE

#subscription #membership #strategy #customersuccess #pricing

Talks about #pricing, #strategy, #membership, #subscription, and #customersuccess

Advisor to the world's leading subscription-based companies | Keynote Speaker | Author of The Membership Economy and The Forever Transaction | Host of Subscription Stories Podcast

After seeing three kids through career launch, and coaching many of their friends (and my friends' kids) I am still by no means an expert. But I do know  a few things.

1). Career centers are generally not set up for personalized guidance*
2). You will not get an interview by submitting a resume **
3). If you don't network, it is nearly impossible to get a job***

For goodness sake, don't measure effort by the number of resumes submitted. Measure it by how well you have focused on what you want, and who you can connect with who can help you navigate your way.

*If your school, or your kid's school is the exception--lmk in the comments. I'd love to see role models!

**I'm sure there are a few recent grads who have the exact right resume (and keywords) to unlock the algorithm--if that's you, congratulations! It's like winning the lottery.  Truly.

***I can already hear you saying "but what if I don't have a network" yet?  You do. We all do. Your friends, classmates (high school, college), friends parents, parents friends, coaches.  And by informational interviewing and strategic outreach, you can grow your network even as you find that first job.

If something worked for you (or your young adult), beyond the normal stuff--please share it here.  So many are struggling to find a foundational first job--let's help them.

Loyalty Matters. I’ve built my career on it!

According to a recent study, 94% of executives believe loyalty should be the primary focus (vs acquisition) in the current economic climate (Antavo AI Loyalty Cloud, 2023).

Loyal customers are more profitable, and you get a greater share of wallet from loyal customers. 

Loyal customers are the ones who often contribute to the health of your business. They provide feedback, make referrals, and even provide support and best practices to new customers.

And it matters more than ever. 

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 👋 I'm Robbie, I'm a consultant, author, and speaker covering all things subscription businesses.

💡 Free resources, expert tips & advice at robbiekellmanbaxter.com

📩 Join my newsletter: https://lnkd.in/g8bCw7pJ

🎙 Tune in to the Subscription Stories Podcast: https://lnkd.in/gdfjFeS

📹 Catch my latest videos on Youtube: https://lnkd.in/gW8RcSea


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A pricing strategy every subscription business should know 👇

The Van Westendorp Price Sensitivity Meter

You don't have to use any fancy techniques or technology to validate your subscription pricing —these 4 questions will provide you with a lot of insight into the right price for your offering!

1/ At what price do you think the product is priced so low that it makes you question its quality?
2/ At what price do you think the product is a bargain?
3/ At what price do you think the product begins to seem expensive?
4/ At what price do you think the product is too expensive?

You can leave the answers open-ended or provide ranges from which to choose. You can do it qualitatively, so you can hear the thinking, or as a survey.

You can also compare the responses you get from qualified prospects vs. existing customers you might be trying to convert to your new offering.

If I were doing this live/qualitatively, I might add a question at the end like,

"If I offered you early access to the subscription at the price you described as 'a bargain,' would you sign up right now?"

This lets you see if people are just trying to be nice or are telling the truth.

By understanding how your target audience perceives price in relation to quality and value, you can make informed decisions to optimize your subscription pricing strategy.


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👋 I'm Robbie, I'm a consultant, author, and speaker covering all things subscription businesses.
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A subscription is a tactic, not a strategy.
It’s a delivery model, not the mission itself.

The real strategy is delivering ongoing value that helps your subscribers reach their goals.
Because when they win, retention takes care of itself.

1. Go deeper, not wider (at first)

Before adding tiers, perks, or a new audience, go deeper with the members you already have.

Ask: Are they consistently getting the outcome they came for?

That means:
↳ Refining onboarding
↳ Measuring early wins
↳Closing the gap between sign-up and success

Retention is a reflection of results.

2. The Access–Consumption–Performance test

Every subscription should pass three checkpoints:

• Access: Can members easily get what they paid for?
• Consumption: Are they actually using it?
• Performance: Are they seeing tangible benefits?

If any one of these fails, you’ve got a churn risk.

Subscribers stay for transformation, not transactions.

3. The ethics filter (yes, it matters)

Don’t trap customers with hidden cancellations or manipulative billing cycles.
That’s not strategy. It’s survival mode.

A great subscription earns loyalty by delivering so much value that members want to stay. If they’d remain even when it’s easy to leave, you’re doing it right.

4. The pricing reality check

Pricing is where many teams confuse tactics with strategy.

Free trials, flash sales, and bundles work short term.
But real strategy aligns pricing with long-term outcomes.

Think:
✓ Sustainable for your business
✓ Fair for your customers
✓ Transparent to build trust

Price for the relationship, not the renewal.

5. The bigger play nobody’s talking about

AI discovery is changing the game.

When someone asks ChatGPT for “the best membership for entrepreneurs” or “a trusted subscription in wellness,” it won’t pull the cheapest. It will surface the most cited, most consistent, most trusted brands.

That’s why every video, post, and resource you publish matters. You’re training both your audience and the algorithms to see you as the go-to expert.

That’s the 2026 play.

6. Redefine your content pulse

Your content should reinforce three things:

• The outcomes your subscribers achieve
• The community and relationships you build
• The values your brand lives by

One clear strategy. One promise. One recurring result.

Because subscription success isn’t about getting people to pay again. It’s about earning their continued belief that you’ll help them win.

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👋 I'm Robbie, I'm a consultant, author, and speaker covering all things subscription businesses.
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