Yesterday, the 3D printing repository Thangs introduced a new tool to help creators invite members of existing subscriber lists to their Thangs membership program. It’s the most recent in a slew of changes to the platform over the last year aimed at helping creators manage and communicate with subscribers on the platform.
The migration tool sounds simple – users download a CSV template, fill it out, and upload it. Their subscriber list receives an invitation to join their Thangs membership program with options to offer up to a 50% discount — a basic, straightforward marketing tool for a 3D modeling business. But it’s far from the only useful creator feature Thangs has introduced over the last year.
Since Thangs launched creator analytics – that helpfully shows designers what their members are searching for – last October, there’s been a steady stream of similar new features. In November, a membership CSV export allowed creators to download the emails of users (who have not opted out of providing contact information) and connect with their audience outside the platform. December saw communication improve within the platform by introducing creator blog posts, followed by the “projects” feature to add documentation to models.
So far this year, Thangs has introduced cappable membership tiers that allow designers to create limited offers, bundles to make bulk 3D model offers, and “canonical plans” that launched new membership systems such as monthly and “chapter-based” releases where members gain access to additional models as they stay subscribed as opposed to a basic limited-download plan.
There’s something of a renewed repository battle raging right now, with Bambu Lab’s MakerWorld having come in strong last year with (recently tweaked) high-value rewards tempting contributors, Anycubic launching the suspiciously familiar-looking Makeronline, and a variety of other repositories launching over the past year.
Clearly, the market has grown, and repositories are vying for a larger share. Thangs making its website more user-friendly for creators, particularly creators as independent businesses, is a welcome result.
For more details, see Thangs’ recent membership migration tool blog post, and check the Thangs blog at large for details on the variety of changes it has introduced since last October.
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License: The text of "Thangs Keeps Adding Helpful Tools to Sell 3D Models" by All3DP is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.