update: the latest KingsCrowd memberships can be found here.
ANNOUNCING KINGSCROWD’S NEW MEMBERSHIP PLANS
KingsCrowd was founded to give everyone institutional-level research and analytics on the online private markets. For three years, we’ve provided deep insights and analysis via Analyst Reports, produced Founder Profiles that give you a glimpse into the inner workings of founders and their companies, and created data-driven algorithms that assess the investment potential of every startup that’s raising.
Now, that work has paid off. On April 12th, we will end the Merlin ratings beta period and release it as a paid offering. And with that change, we realized that we needed to redesign our membership plans.
We know that not every startup investor is the same. But every startup investor needs someone in their corner, providing them with the foundation to make informed investment decisions — so we created membership plans for every budget.
Each of our new membership tiers are built to offer something unique. Keep reading to learn just what that is.
WHAT’S CHANGING?
Starting on April 12th, KingsCrowd will offer four membership options:
- Public (Free)
- Starter ($10 Per Month)
- Pro ($30 Per Month)
- Merlin ($50 Per Month)
HOW THIS AFFECTS YOU
On April 12th, all users with an active Crowd or Pro membership will be automatically upgraded to the new Pro membership plan at their current $10 or $20 pricing, respectively. As long as you keep an active membership, you’ll keep your current pricing. Keep renewing and you’ll keep saving.
For current Pro members, you’ll get the extra kicker of a free 3-month Merlin membership upgrade with the option to subscribe at a $10 discount at any time during that trial. Again, as long as you continue to renew, you’ll keep your discounted Merlin pricing. If you are a Crowd subscriber and like the sound of this deal, upgrade to Pro before April 12th and you’ll get the same upgrade treatment.
For Free license subscribers, the offer extends to you also. If you sign up for a Crowd or Pro membership before April 12th, you automatically get the same VIP treatment.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
WHEN ARE THE NEW MEMBERSHIP PLANS TAKING EFFECT?
April 12, 2021
HOW WILL THE MIGRATION WORK?
We will migrate existing members to their new membership plan automatically. There will not be an opt-in or opt-out option, and no action is needed on your part. We will honor legacy pricing for existing Crowd and Pro members.
- Free members → Public membership plan
- Crowd ($10) members → Pro membership plan at $10 legacy pricing
- Pro ($20) members → Pro membership plan at $20 legacy pricing with free 3-month trial of Merlin membership plan and option to upgrade to Merlin at an exclusive discount
WHAT WILL YOUR NEW PUBLIC (FREE) MEMBERSHIP INCLUDE?
KingsCrowd plans to offer a free membership option for those just starting out as early-stage investors. With democratized access to startups investments, investors need democratized access to information. That’s why we decided to offer a free plan available to anyone.
Here are all the things that Public members will be able to access:
- Portfolio & Follows – Create personal portfolios with all the companies you’ve invested in (or are considering) regardless of fundraising platform.
- Education & News – Learn everything you need to know to become a startup investor, and stay up to date on all market news and updates.
- Company Analytics & Fundraising Details – View detailed company- and raise-specific data including company description, deal terms, financials, and fundraising performance metrics such as: amount raised up to date, number of investors, and many more.
- Trending Companies – New deals, closing soon, momentum leaders, likely to sell out, etc.
- Preview of Advanced Company Search with the latest 10 deals.
WHAT WILL THE NEW STARTER MEMBERSHIP INCLUDE?
The Starter membership plan will provide access to all the content that Public members can see as well as the following:
- Two Curated Monthly Picks – We’ll send you Analyst Reports on two high potential startups each month, allowing you to build a diversified startup investment portfolio in just one to two years.
- Founder Profiles – Get inside access to founders’ background information and Q&A sessions.
- Full Advanced Company Search access – Customizable and searchable table with all rated deals, the platform, industry, security type, and more. (Merlin Ratings and Staff Picks will not be visible)
- Market analytics – Limited access to market insights including valuations trends, total amounts invested per month, average amounts raised, top platforms, top security types, and much more, all updated on a weekly basis.
WHAT WILL THE NEW PRO MEMBERSHIP INCLUDE?
The new Pro membership plan will include all the content available to Public and Starter members as well as:
- Full access to all Analyst Reports – Top Deals, Deals to Watch, Neutral Deals, & Underweight Deals
- Market Analytics – Get full access to our comprehensive market insights including valuation trends, total amounts invested per month, average amounts raised, top platforms, top security types, and much more, all updated on a weekly basis.
- Advanced Company Search – Customizable and searchable table with all rated deals, each company’s respective platform, Staff Pick level, and more. (Merlin Ratings will not be visible).
WHAT DO I NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE ALL-NEW MERLIN MEMBERSHIP?
Three years in the making, KingsCrowd is proud to announce the official launch of KingsCrowd’s Merlin Ratings & Analytics. The Merlin membership plan will include access to everything available to Public, Starter, and Pro users with the addition of unlimited access to our quantitative Merlin ratings and analytics.
IF I SUBSCRIBE NOW, WILL I BE AFFECTED BY THE INCREASED MEMBERSHIP PRICING?
No. We will honor the legacy membership price for as long as you remain an active member.
WHAT ABOUT ANNUAL PLAN PRICING? WILL THIS STILL BE AN OPTION WITH A DISCOUNT TO THE MONTHLY COST?
We will continue to offer discounted annual pricing of $100 for Starter, $300 for Pro, and $500 for Merlin.
Legacy Crowd annual members will be converted to new Pro membership plans at their $100 legacy price. They will renew when their current subscription expires at $100 per year legacy pricing.
For legacy Pro annual members, if they elect to upgrade to Merlin before the end of the 3-month free upgrade period, they will purchase a Merlin subscription at $40 per month or $400 per year. Otherwise, their subscription will renew at its planned expiration date at $200 per year legacy pricing.
Pro Lifetime subscribers will be upgraded to Merlin Lifetime at no additional charge.
WHAT HAPPENS IF MY MEMBERSHIP LAPSES AND I WANT TO SUBSCRIBE AGAIN AFTER THE CHANGE TAKES PLACE?
If a legacy Crowd or Pro member’s subscription is canceled or expires without a renewal, they will lose the right to their legacy pricing. If they re-subscribe in the future, it will be at the new prices.
AFTER APRIL 12, WHAT IS SOMEONE COMES TO KINGSCROWD THAT DOESN’T HAVE A MEMBERSHIP?
No problem.
We will continue to allow users without an account (unregistered) and non-logged in users (unauthenticated) to visit and preview a limited amount of content on KingsCrowd.com.
ARE THERE ANY BENEFITS TO BECOMING A PRO MEMBER BEFORE APRIL 12?
Yes!
All legacy Pro members will automatically receive a 3-month free upgrade to Merlin, with the option to subscribe at a 20% discount to the monthly or annual rate. If they elect to upgrade, they will be able to renew at the 20% discounted price ($40/month or $400/year) as long as they maintain an active subscription. If they do not elect to subscribe to Merlin before the end of the 3-month free upgrade period, they will revert back to their Pro membership plan at their $20/month or $200/year legacy pricing.
I’M THINKING OF BECOMING A MERLIN MEMBER, BUT I WANT TO KNOW WHAT MAKES MERLIN BETTER THAN A PRO MEMBERSHIP?
The value proposition of a Merlin Membership speaks for itself. It includes:
- Merlin ratings of companies, including the detailed breakdown of the five 5 key metrics (Price, Market, Team, Differentiators, & Performance) components of the rating and Risk ratings.
- Access to Merlin ratings data within the rating table, including sorting and filtering by Merlin rating. Merlin will power future analysis tools and capabilities that will be available exclusively to this tier.
- All other features and tools available to other membership tiers.
WHY IS KINGSCROWD CHANGING ITS MEMBERSHIP PRICING AND WEBSITE DESIGN NOW?
We understand that not every investor is the same. So we created membership plans for every budget and need. Since the membership plans affect what content a member has access to, we updated the navigation and organization of content to align with the new membership plans to ensure a good user experience for all members.
As a part of this update, we are also officially launching our Merlin ratings feature, which is why we created the all-new Merlin membership plan. It’s designed for those investors that want the most data-driven and sophisticated approach to their investment decisions. Our Merlin ratings are purely quantitative, assessing each company on price, market potential, team, differentiators, and financial performance. Merlin also provides a quantitative assessment of the risk each investment brings.
When paired with Analyst Reports and other KingsCrowd content, Merlin will provide a thorough set of tools that help improve decision quality while reducing the time required to perform due diligence.
At $50 a month or $500 per year for an annual subscription, you truly will be an informed venture capitalist.
I HEARD KINGSCROWD HAS LOADS OF NEW FEATURES AND PRODUCTS COMING SOON, WHAT CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT THESE?
As a part of the membership plan update, we are releasing a redesigned navigation experience. We think the new design and content organization will improve your experience by making it easier to find what you are looking for.
Our incredible team is working on a number of additional updates, enhancements, and new capabilities that will continue to increase the value of each of the new membership plans. We will have more to announce in the coming months!
