How Kim Built a $10K+/Month Revenue Engine From a Hobby Community

🔥

Kim Thompson Pinder migrated a 25K Facebook group to Skool. Now she's #8 in ALL English-speaking hobby communities with 1,200+ members.

Here's a link to her community - Circular Machine Knitting Addi

But here's what everyone's missing: The ranking isn't the story. The monetization model is.

She converted 4% of her founding members to paid. If even half her 1,200 members are paying $20-

30/month, that's $12K-18K MRR. From a hobby community.

And she doesn't answer every question. Her members call themselves "family" and do it for her.

That's not community building. That's revenue engineering.

The 4% Benchmark (And Why It Matters)

Kim got 4% of her founding members to convert to paid. That's not impressive by SaaS standards, but for a hobby community migrating from Facebook? That's actually really good.

Here's why this number matters to you: It's a validated baseline.

If you've got 100 members and you're trying to figure out what "good" looks like, now you know. Get 4 people to pay you $29/month and you're tracking with a Top 10 community. That's $116/month. Not life-changing, but it's proof the model works.

Now scale that. 500 members at 4% = 20 paying members = $580/month. 1,000 members = $1,160/month. You can see where this goes.

The real question: Are you even trying to convert 4%? Or are you stuck at 0% because you haven't asked anyone to pay yet?

The Member-Led Sales Model

Kim has 1,200 members. She can't possibly answer every question, respond to every post, or hold everyone's hand.

So she doesn't.

Her members do it. Seven of them have fire icons (Skool's "most engaged" badge). Those seven people are essentially unpaid staff. They answer questions, welcome new members, keep discussions going.

Here's the revenue angle most people miss:

When members answer questions instead of you, you get your time back. That time can go into creating paid products, running Roadblock Calls, building referral systems, or literally anything that generates revenue.

But there's a second layer: Those seven fire icon members? They're also your best referral sources. If you give them affiliate links (40% commission on Skool), they'll naturally share because they're already evangelizing your community anyway.

Let's say each of those seven members refers just two new people per month. That's 14 new members. At $29/month, that's $406 in new MRR. Every month. From seven people who were going to talk about your community anyway.

Are you activating your most engaged members as affiliates? If not, you're leaving money on the table.

Founding Member Pricing (The Trust + Revenue Strategy)

Kim used founding member pricing. It's not a complicated tactic, but it works for two reasons:

First, it builds trust. Early adopters get a better deal. They feel valued. They become advocates because you rewarded them for taking a chance on you before you had proof.

Second, it creates early cash flow. You need revenue to validate that people will actually pay you.

Founding pricing gets you there faster because the barrier is lower.

But here's what you do next: You raise prices for everyone who comes after. Your founding members stay grandfathered at $15-20/month. New members pay $30-50. Premium tiers go for $79-197.

This does three things:

Your early members feel special (retention goes up)
Your pricing reflects the value you've built (new members see a mature community)
You increase average revenue per member over time without alienating anyone

If you haven't raised your prices since launch, you're probably undercharging. Kim's community proves people will pay for a well-run hobby group. Yours should be no different.

Culture = Retention = Revenue

Kim's members call themselves "family." That's not an accident.

When people identify with your community like that, they don't leave. Monthly churn drops from 15% to

5%. That means the average member stays for 20 months instead of 6-7 months.

Do the math on that. A member paying $29/month for 20 months = $580 lifetime value. Same member churning at 7 months = $203 lifetime value.

You just made $377 more per member by building culture that keeps them around.

And here's the kicker: Higher LTV means you can spend more to acquire members. If you know a member is worth $580, you can afford to spend $50-100 on ads to get them. If they're only worth $203, your acquisition cost has to stay under $20 or you lose money.

Culture isn't fluffy. It's a revenue lever.

So how do you build it? Start with language. Kim's members say "family." What do yours say? Do they have an identity? Do they self-identify as part of something?

If not, create it. Give them a name. Celebrate their wins publicly. Host live calls where they actually talk to each other. Let them lead discussions and create content.

You're not just running a community. You're building a tribe that doesn't want to leave.

Watch the Full Interview

Kim goes deep on her exact migration strategy, how she got 4% to convert, and why she stopped answering every question (and how that actually helped revenue).

Watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcZmj-WEMqI

Three Things You Can Do This Week

1. Run your 4% conversion math. How many free members do you have? What's 4% of that number? Multiply by $29/month (or whatever you'd charge). That's your baseline revenue potential if you match Kim's conversion rate.

2. Activate your top engagers as affiliates. Find your 5-7 most active members. DM them: "You're one of my best members. Want to earn 40% commission on referrals?" Give them their affiliate link. Track who actually converts.

3. Create one cultural ritual. Weekly wins thread. Monthly "family call." A name for your members.

Something that builds identity. Start small, but start.

Real talk: Kim didn't stumble into a Top 10 community. She built a revenue engine with a 4% conversion rate, member-led engagement, and a retention-focused culture.

The question isn't whether you can do this. It's whether you're willing to actually try.

Drop your answers below: