This is a popular way for website owners to get more income and be able to fund their site. Do you offer your users an upgrade? How many different upgrade options do you give them? How much do they cost? Do you get a decent amount of users buying upgrades?
I had this for one of my forums and it was a great revenue stream. I was thinking of doing this on my blog but I'm leaning away from it. Not 100% sure yet.
There are no upgrades on my site. However, though, revenue from Patreon, once things get rolling, should cover site costs (a music lesson forum) and also make a livable income. It won't be easy, though!
Anyway, account upgrades are a tough thing - because the material needs to be superb - or you need really close friends who would pay despite that.