Our athlete membership tiers and coach earn structure will be updated with the release of Pod1um 2.0, effective 1st September 2024.
How does POD1UM differ from other coaching software solutions?
POD1UM is unlike any other SAAS(software as a service) platform that is currently available to coaches or fitness professionals.
The list below outlines some of the unique aspects of the POD1UM business model;
POD1UM is a two-sided platform attracting two sets of users (coaches & athletes), and effectively using data obtained during onboarding to “match” supply & demand.
The supply side, a curated list of leading performance specialists, can join the platform by invitation/application only.
The demand side, athletes of all levels, sports and locations, are acquired through targeted marketing, and can join the platform for free through the website or mobile App.
POD1UM provides a turn-key solution for coaches to offer their content and services online. Some of the many aspects managed by the platform include;
Currency conversions
Global tax management
Language translation
Legal protection
Customer support
Marketing
Through a combination of targeted marketing, and data driven recommendations, POD1UM actively acquires customers & revenue for its coaches.
POD1UM rewards coaches when they promote their content, or the platform itself. We do this with commission paid on all transactions made by customers who were acquired by an individual coach. This can occur in the following ways;
Organically, where users arrive at the platform through the coaches profile page, following a google search for example.
Through marketing, where a custom link extension is used by the coach when directing traffic to any part of the platform.
This remains true for the lifetime of each user, regardless of the content or services purchased.
A coach who actively promotes their profile, or the platform itself, can generate monthly recurring revenue without a single sale of their own services or content.
Much of the revenue retained by POD1UM is re-invested in marketing & growth campaigns, feature development & improvements, and in providing exceptional athlete support services. Ultimately, benefiting coaches from increased traffic, conversions and customer satisfaction.
How do Coaches earn revenue from their content & services?
There is no fee to create and host content on POD1UM, and you can publish as much free and paid content as you like. It has been our intention from the start to help high quality sports professionals to earn meaningful revenue from their expertise & experience, and this is made possible in the following ways:
Membership/subscription revenue
Consultation/coaching services
Content Sales/One-time-purchases
Promotion/Referral commissions
Membership/Subscription Revenue
For €49/month (Bronze) or €79/month (Silver) a user gets access to any one of the training plans on the POD1UM platform, and can swap for another plan at any time, as much as twice per month. They also receive a selection of premium features including integrations & support. When a user cancels or fails to meet payment on their subscription, they lose access to all plans. This is a key differentiator between memberships and one-time-purchases.
Coaches receive a minimum of 50% of all subscription income that POD1UM receives, after taxes & payment processing fees.
We calculate who earns what based on two metrics only:
Total days a coaches training plans are “active”, as a percentage of active days for all plans in a given month. Active is defined as a user having the plan in their library. This calculation dictates the percentage of the total commission pool that each coach will receive.
How the user was acquired (Coach promotion/referral or POD1UM marketing). This is separate from the commission pool and is explained in greater detail below.
Where a Bronze/Silver membership signup occurs through coach promotions, the coach will receive an additional 20% of the membership transaction amount, and will receive an equal commission on all recurring payments on the subscription, plus commissions on any additional future transactions from the user regardless of who created the content or who offers the service.
Example breakdown for a sale that occurs through a coach referral link;
Revenue:
Transaction amount (Inclusive of VAT/tax): €79
Less VAT/Taxes: (13.5% VAT for silver memberships)* €10.66
Less 3.5% processing fee: €2.76
Net amount: €65.58
Split:
Coach commission pool (50%): €32.79
Referral commission (20%): €13.12
POD1UM (30%): €19.67
Example breakdown for a sale that does not occur through a coach referral link;
Revenue:
Transaction amount (Inclusive of VAT/tax): €79
Less VAT/Taxes: (13.5% VAT for silver memberships)* €10.66
Less 3.5% processing fee: €2.76
Net amount: €65.58
Split:
Coach commission pool (50%): €32.79
POD1UM (50%): €32.79
*VAT/Tax rate is subject to customer location
1-to-1 Coaching/Consultation Services
Coaches have the opportunity to list availability for consultation services (one-time), or for 1-to-1 coaching (Gold memberships).
The coach sets the price and receives a minimum of 90% of the net revenue on each of these services. There is a 5% referral commission on consultations & Gold membership subscriptions.
Digital Content/Plan Sales
Training plans are available as part of our Bronze & Silver Memberships on the app, however, they can also be purchased individually through our website. A key difference is that with a purchase, the user owns the content and will retain access indefinitely. With a membership, the user is in essence “borrowing” the content, which is removed from their library should they cancel their subscription.
The coach sets the price and receives a minimum of 70% of the net revenue on individual content sales. There is a 10% referral commission on one-time purchases of content.
Promotion/Referral Commission
As discussed above, it is possible for coaches on the platform to promote their own (or other) content or on the platform and claim a commission. Furthermore, coaches can invite sub-affiliates, for example influential athletes they work with, and receive an adjusted commission on sales from users they acquire.
Another key feature of the POD1UM referral model is lifetime commissions. This means that a coach can promote and sell their own content or services and continue to benefit even if the user “swaps” to another coach on the platform. Where applicable, commissions are rewarded to the associated “affiliate” on every transaction for the lifetime of the user.
POD1UM Take
In addition to paying referral/affiliate fees, revenue retained by POD1UM is invested in marketing & growth campaigns, feature development & platform/software improvements, and in providing exceptional support services. Ultimately, benefiting coaches from increased traffic, conversions and customer satisfaction.
Payment
POD1UM processes all payments via Stripe Connect, which can be set-up directly from the coach dashboard.
Our payment cycle for coaches is monthly. We issue payments on the 23rd of the month when their revenue total reaches our payment threshold of €50.00. If this day falls on a non-working day, the payment will be received on the next working day.
Notes
Throughout the early stages of the business we will work to find best product-market fit. We will continue to optimize the platform, its features, marketing funnels & channels, number of coaches/sport, pricing strategy and revenue model.
It’s important to note that all aspects of the model are subject to change, but that any and all changes will be in the interests of maximizing user satisfaction on both sides of the platform.
We feel there is a significant advantage to be gained for coaches who join POD1UM early, primarily by accumulating ratings & reviews on their listings & profile, and therefore increasing their ranking on recommendations and search as the platform scales.