Major changes to Grindhouse North - please read

REVISED 09/12: After reviewing feedback from you guys, I've amended the new system of downloading content so there will be a longer window for downloading content. Please please re-read the full section on downloads again so you understand how it works etc.

REVISED 30/11: I've just amended the rollout timeline. The changes to the billing cycle and release schedule will come into effect on January 1st. The changes to the tiers and new prices will come into effect on Feb 1st, although work on access rights to the archive will be done in stages through December and January.

Hi everyone.

I hope this post finds you well.

This is a long post, but it contains lots of important info about changes to my release schedule and changes to the tiers, as well as changes to the billing system. So please take the time to read it.

If you have any questions, please re-read the post. If you're still unsure about anything please leave your question in the comments rather than DM or email me. That way, other people wondering the same thing will be able to see the answer.

Okay, so first of all I want to reassure everyone that the nature of content I produce WILL NOT change, nor will the quantity.

Secondly, I want to express my deep heartfelt thanks to all of you for your support. I say it all the time - because it's genuinely true - the content would not exist without your support and encouragement.

There are three sets of changes I need to tell you about 1) changes to billing 2) changes to the release schedule 3) changes to the tiers.

Changes to the billing cycle

I announced that changes to the billing cycle were coming back in October 1st. I explained why that is happening and what it means to you guys. You can read the post here https://www.patreon.com/posts/big-changes-to-113154176

To summarise, from December 1st, I will switch from 1st of the month billing to standard monthly subscriptions, where you are rebilled on the anniversary of your membership., eg: you sign up on the March 15th and you're rebilled on April 15th.

What does this mean to you?

• If you are currently rebilled on the first of the month, that will continue until you cancel your membership. If you rejoin at a later date, you will be rebilled on the anniversary of rejoining

• After I've made the switch, all new members or rejoining members will automatically be on normal subscription billing

• If you sign up or renew your membership via the Patreon IoS app, it will cost you 30% more

On that last bullet point, Apple has introduced a 30% fee for subscriptions via its in-app purchasing system, so that extra tax is being passed on.

So my advice is - if you do leave and then rejoin, rejoin via a browser. You'll still be able to access content via the Patreon app, but it will be 30% cheaper for you to handle all membership changes via a browser.

If you have an existing membership and you signed up through the IoS app, you wont be subject to the fee.

Patreon have written a guide for members, which is worth reading. You can view it here https://support.patreon.com/hc/en-gb/articles/27992185537037-How-iOS-in-app-purchases-work-for-fans

Changes to the release cycle (and downloads)

So the above billing cycle change means I need to organise my release schedule differently. Let me explain why ...

At the moment, I release 9 films per calendar month - 3 shootings, 3 stabbings, 3 stranglings. Those films are only available to download within the calendar month they are released. It’s really easy for me to track and all fans will have what they're expecting by the end of each month. That works only because everyone’s membership cycle is the same - renewing on the 1st of each month.

 The upcoming changes will mean - over time - fan’s membership cycles will be different. So my challenge was to devise a release schedule where members get all the films they expect, no matter what their renewal date is. And - to be transparent - to ensure they don’t get more films than they pay for.

Let me give you an example of the issue. At the moment, I release what I want when it's ready and as long as everything is published by the end of the calendar month, we are all good.

However, if I keep that release schedule when the new billing kicks in, there's a danger that members do not get to access the content they are interested in.

To illustrate - I release all my strangling films for January in the first week, a strangle fan joins as a Super Fan on January 15th, their membership expires on February 14th, I release all my February strangling films in the last week of February. That strangle fan won't not get download any of the content they wanted or expected.

I hope I've explained that well enough, because that rationale has informed the following changes. And here is how content will be organised and released starting January 1st 2025.

Films will be available to stream and download in batches. For example, I might release all three strangling films on Jan 2nd, all three stabbing films on Jan 9th, and then all three shooting films on Jan 16th. The next three strangling films will be released on Feb 3rd, the next three stab films will be out on Feb 10th, the next three shooting films on Feb 17th. Etc etc

So that's a huge change for me and will require me to be much more organised. It's not such a big change for you, in that you will still get nine films every membership cycle. But the next change is a big deal for you because it relates to how you download content.

There will be two ways for you to access downloads - the existing download posts and via WeTransfer email blast.

Downloads will only be available for a limited period after release and you will only be able to download films released during your membership cycle.

So the download posts will be live for 24 hours, which I had some feedback on that in the comments when I first published this post.

I appreciate that some fans felt that wasn't long enough - and it's important that subscriptions work for you as fans and not just for me as a creator.

So, to address your concerns, I'm going to start using WeTransfer in tandem with the normal download posts. When a film is released for download, I'll pull all the email addresses for the fans eligible for that download. I'll upload the 4K and HD files to WeTransfer, load in the email addresses and press send. Your download link with appear in your inboxes for your download at your convenience. Although bear in mind that WeTransfer links expire after 7 days.

For the WeTransfer element to work, you need to bear in mind two important facts:

1) Do not have WeTransfer blocked or have it set to end up in your spam folders 

2) The link will be sent to whatever email you have registered with Patreon, so please make sure it's correct.

Limiting the download window is necessary in terms of revenue protection. If I didn't do this, people would be able to download two months worth of content with just one month's membership - and that's not fair on regular long-term members and it's obviously not great business for me.

It's standard on other membership sites that members are only eligible to download content released during their membership cycle. Membership only works forward, so to speak.

To illustrate, using the example above, say I release three strangling films on Jan 2nd, three stabbing films on Jan 9th, and then three shooting films on Jan 16th. Then I release the next three strangling films will be released on Feb 3rd, the next three stab films will be out on Feb 10th, and the next three shooting films on Feb 17th. If you're long-term member and your membership renews every month month, you'll be eligible to download all those films (or as many as you want). However, if you join on January 14th, you'll be eligible for the films released on Jan 16th, Feb 3rd, and Feb 10th.

Don't panic: if you're a member and you miss downloads you are eligible for because you are on holiday etc, just DM me and I'll sort you the links.

I think the change in downloads will impact members differently. If you're the kind of fan who dips in and out, then this is quite a big change. If you are a regular, long-term fan whose membership just keeps running and renewing (thank you, love you guys!!) then all that's different is the download window and the WeTransfer element.

I'm also going to make some changes to how I tease and promote content - so all fans know what films are coming and when. So expect the Coming Soon posts maybe a week or two before the release date. Also expect video teasers for upcoming releases too.

This promotional activity will be mirrored on YouTube and my socials. I'll also be sending out mail shots letting old members know what's coming up.

All promos will clearly state the release date along with a reminder that fans need to be members ON THE RELEASE DATE to be eligible for the download.

I've mentioned it several times but the eligibility for downloads is a big change from how we currently do things, so I'm going to repeat it and pop it in bold.

You have to be a member at the time a film is released to be eligible to download it.

Changes to tiers and pricing

Okay so before we get stuck into this, let me provide some context. I know some of you will have skipped ahead when you saw the word "pricing" but please come back and read the context so you understand everything.

When I think about tiers and pricing, I work on the assumption that I have three distinct audiences - strangle fans, stab fans, and shooting fans.

I know there are many fans whose interests crossover - and that's great, love that for them. But when it comes to making decisions about Grindhouse North, it helps me to think of my fans in three separate groups.

So even though I release nine films every month, my assumption is that each fan is probably only going to be interested in three of them. And I price my tiers based on that.

I introduced the Super Fan tier back in July 2020, so about 4 and a half years ago. It started with the promise of five new releases every month. Super Fans currently enjoy six new films and three archive videos, so a total of nine films. I have never raised the price of this tier.

In fact, the last price rise was to the Gorehound tier back in May 2021!!

Also, recently fans requested an extra stab film every month. I've tried that for the past few months and it's worked well so we'll be keeping that.

As well as that, fans also recently asked for more nudity. Again, I've tried that over the past few months and it's gone down well.

Naturally, creating an extra film every month and incorporating more nudity increases the cost of production, so that needs to be reflected in the pricing and tiers.

Let me walk you through the new tier structure - all pricing is listed here in USD.

• NIGHT STALKER $5 - This is a new tier and members will get access to the COMING SOON posts (so over 100 screengrabs a month), any video teasers, news posts, and some polls. This tier is really aimed at tempting current FREE members into being paid members. Current free members get absolutely no content and cannot see any posts at all - so they sign up, pay nothing and get nothing. But there are hundreds of them so if I can convert a fraction of them to this tier, it will be worth it. I'm also thinking this might be good tier for people to downgrade to if they are taking a break but want to keep an eye on forthcoming releases.

• GOREHOUND 4.0 $15 - This tier will allow members to stream 3 new releases each month, on top of everything in the Night Stalker tier. The price of this tier is currently $12.50, so it's rising by just $2.50 to reflect the rise in production costs. Access to the archive will be limited to streaming the previous three months of films released into this tier.

• PSYCHO KILLER 2.0 - This tier is being retired. You can read the reasons why in this post https://www.patreon.com/posts/important-news-2-115977358

• PSYCHO KILLER SUPER FAN 2.0 $28 - This tier gets everything in the Night Stalker tier as well as six new films to stream and download. Access to the archive will be limited to streaming the previous three months of films. Most long-term members are in this tier, so I've removed the re-releases from this tier to minimise the price rise and keep it to just $3.

• PSYCHO KILLER SUPER FAN VIP $36 - This new tier gets everything in the Super Fan 2.0 tier plus three archive releases and full access to stream all the archive. Members of this tier will also have exclusive access to XXX edits and other spicy bonus films. However, these will be when they are available and not every month.

• PSYCHO KILLER SUPER FAN VIP + 3 $60 - This reworked tier gets everything in the VIP tier, as well as any three films from the archive to download.

• PSYCHO KILLER SUPER FAN +6 $84 - As above, but with any six films from the archive to download.

• PSYCHO KILLER SUPER FAN +9 $105 - As above, but with any nine films from the archive to download.

Rising prices is not something I do lightly but I'm also aware of what my colleagues in our genre charge and what they offer in terms of quality. Even with these small price rises, I still believe Grindhouse North offers outstanding value.

Obviously I have a lot of work to do in terms of implementing these changes. I will change the billing mode on January 1 and will also change the price of the tiers that day. Your January renewals will be billed at the old/current price, with the new price kicking in for February's renewals. If you leave and rejoin, it will be at the higher price for January though.

I will be making amendments to the access rights etc throughout December and January.

So there you go. I believe all these changes are necessary to keep growing Grindhouse North. I have some really cool plans for 2025 that you'll want to be a part of.

As with all changes, we will review as we go and tweak and amend as necessary.

As I mentioned at the top if this post, if you have any questions - read the post again. If you're still not sure about anything, leave a comment below.

Thanks, Dan