This article explains what it means to make a post available to all of your Paid members rather than making a post available for specific tiers.
Please note that we may refer to a US Dollar ($) amount; however, Patreon supports many currencies.
Posting for paid members
When you publish a post for all paid members, the post is available to any member who pays you on a recurring basis (monthly, per creation, or annually) regardless of their payment amount. This means that all members who have joined your tiers and those who are paying you with a custom pledge will have access to the post.
How is posting for Select tiers different from posting for Paid members?
When you publish a post for select tiers, only members who have joined those tiers will have access to the post. Members who may have joined with a custom pledge will not have access to posts that have been published for select tiers. If you create new tiers down the line, members who join those tiers do not automatically have access to posts you’ve published for select tiers in the past. You'll need to edit your posts to grant your new tiers access after you create them.
How do custom pledges work?
Members who join your Patreon with a custom pledge are not tied to a specific paid tier. Their payment will be processed on the payment schedule you’ve selected. Since members with a custom pledge aren’t tied to a paid tier, they may not see posts you publish if you do so for select tiers.
Depending on your Patreon setup, there are two ways that members may create a custom pledge:
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The Join now button if you have paid tiers: When members scroll past your paid offerings, they’ll see a join now button. When they click the join now button, they'll see your paid tier offerings again as well as a button to Make custom pledge
- If you don’t have paid tier offerings, but allow payments, members will only be able to join with a custom pledge amount. As an example, if you were recently upgraded from the now deprecated Lite platform plan to the Pro platform plan, but haven’t created paid tiers yet, your members will only be able to join with a custom pledge
Things to note about custom pledges:
- The custom pledge suggestion defaults to $5 USD
- The minimum amount is $1 USD
- Members who pay you with a custom pledge are not assigned to a specific tier (if you offer paid tiers). These members appear as No tier members in your Relationship Manager
- Because they're not part of a tier, they aren't tracked for benefits and won't access certain benefits, like Discord roles
- Members with a custom pledge only have access to posts you publish for Paid members
Why is the custom pledge minimum $1?
We allow for custom pledges so that members can support creators even if they're unable to join a tier. As the name suggests, there are no benefits or tiers associated with custom pledges, regardless of the amount given.
For example, a member can pay $15 USD a month, but not be in your $15 tier. Whether or not you want to give this member benefits assigned to your $15 tier is entirely up to you. Many creators require members to be within a tier to receive benefits. You can review membership with a custom pledge in your Relationship Manager.
When should I post for Paid members?
Each creator has their membership delivery set up differently. Here are situations where creators use the paid members option successfully:
- You’ve been upgraded from the Lite plan to Pro: If you’ve recently been upgraded from the now deprecated Lite plan to the Pro plan, posting for paid members will ensure that your posts are seen by all of your paid members
- General announcements: If you have a message for all members supporting you. Posting for paid members is a simple way to get the word out. It also ensures that the post is visible to members in new tiers without any editing on your end
- Special offer announcements: If you're running a special offer and want to get the word out to members, posting for paid members is a great idea
- Changes to tiers or benefits offered: If you're retiring a tier, or restructuring your tier prices/benefits, it's a good idea to give ample time for members to prepare for the changes. Posting a message for paid members is a way to get the word out and get them excited for the changes to come
- Taking a vacation: If you plan on taking some time for yourself (and please do!), posting a quick note for paid members is a great way to let them know. If you're pausing your billing, don't forget to let members know – it will help avoid any confusion
- Polls you genuinely want all paid members to participate in: If you are thinking about updating benefits, or have a question you want to hear from all of your members about – posting polls for paid members is a great way to tease out and get insight from members
What if I want my posts only to be visible to certain tiers?
You'll want to use the select tiers option when publishing your posts. You can choose which tiers will have access to these posts. Members who've made a custom pledge will not be able to view these posts, regardless of payment amount.
If you get reports from members upset that they can't see posts even though that's how much they're supporting you, check your Relationship Manager. If members appear as No tier, it means that they made a custom pledge and should update to the correct tier.
Many creators who publish posts for select tiers proactively reach out to members who have made custom pledges.
How do I find members who've created custom pledges?
You can find all custom pledges or No tier members with a few clicks in your Relationship Manager. To get your list of members, set the following filters:
- Member type: paid member
- Status: active payment
- Tiers: no tier
Below is a sample message you can send to members who've made a custom pledge but may be eligible for benefits based on the payment amount:
Hi there,
I noticed that you made a custom [AMOUNT] a month pledge, but aren't in my [BLANK] tier, which is [AMOUNT] a month.If you'd like to receive benefits tied to my [BLANK] tier, please update your membership and select the [BLANK] tier. It should be a quick fix, and Patreon's created this article to help you through it: How to edit your membership
If you'd prefer not to receive [BLANK] tier benefits, that's cool too! I just wanted to make sure you weren't missing out on any of the perks.
Thanks for being a member!
