How Do I Create a Membership Site Using WordPress?
A membership site is a website that requires users to sign up in order to access content. It’s a great way to monetize your website content and drive recurring revenue for years to come.
It’s easier than ever to create a WordPress membership site, thanks to a wide array of tools and plugins. But how do you go about doing it?
Create a Membership Page
Whether you’re looking to create an online learning course or offer your subscribers access to exclusive articles, videos, or other content, membership sites can be a great way to monetize your website. These websites can be built on a variety of platforms, but WordPress offers a great solution for beginners with the power of plugins like MemberPress.
Before you start building your membership site, it’s important to have a clear idea of what you want to accomplish. This will help you decide on a platform and make the best use of available tools to get your website up and running.
First, you’ll need a way to manage users. This includes defining the types of access they should have and how they can be billed for it. Depending on the type of membership you’re creating, there may be other things you need to consider as well.
You’ll also need a way to track users and sales. This information can be used to see how effective your marketing campaigns are and how much revenue you’re making. You can even use it to determine if you need to optimize your website for more traffic or sales.
One of the most popular types of membership sites is those devoted to online learning. These websites typically sell courses, video guides, tutorials, and mentoring.
While you can build these kinds of sites on any CMS, WordPress is an excellent choice because it has a wide selection of membership plugins that will meet every need you have. Additionally, the WordPress platform allows you to customize your website with Elementor and other visual editing tools.
The next step is to set up a signup form so your visitors can become members. You can also add a login form so your members can access restricted parts of your website.
Once you’ve completed these steps, you’re ready to launch your membership site! Take a backup of your website before beginning. This is especially important if you’re using plugins.
Once your site is live, you can deactivate maintenance mode, start promoting, and plan more high-quality content for your members. This will help you grow your subscriber base, which can then lead to increased sales.
Create a Pricing Page
A pricing page is a vital part of any membership site, as it enables visitors to choose which membership plan is best for them. It can also encourage visitors to upgrade to a more expensive option by highlighting its additional features and benefits.
You can easily create a pricing page with MemberPress, which has a variety of pre-built templates that you can use. You can also customize your page by adding custom CSS.
Once you’ve created your pricing page, you can add it to your navigation menu so that website visitors can sign up for a membership plan. Simply visit Appearance > Menus and select a menu to add it to. You can then drag and drop the pricing plan to rearrange its position in your menu.
It’s a good idea to create multiple membership levels on your membership site, so that you can offer varying pricing plans and access. This will give your audience more options, and it will also help you test different packages as your business grows.
For example, you could offer a free trial to get your audience hooked and encourage them to buy a subscription when they’re ready. This will ensure that you can continue to generate income from your site in the long term.
You can also use a plugin like Membership & Content Restriction to set up different content types on your membership site, such as restricted and paid areas. This makes it easy to create different pages and posts that are accessible by all members, as well as those that are only available to subscribers.
Another way to prevent unauthorized access is by creating a login form that only allows approved members to access the content on your website. This can be a great way to protect your content from spam and hacking.
Finally, you should offer a selection of payment gateways to your subscribers, as this will make the registration process simpler and more convenient for them. Whether you’re using PayPal, Stripe, or another payment processor, giving your customers more than one option will help them choose a plan that suits their needs and budget.
Create a Registration Page
WordPress can be a powerful tool for creating membership sites. It offers a variety of page builder options, including Elementor, that make it easy to create content-rich websites. However, if you want to design membership site pages that look beautiful and convert, you might need to use a more advanced page builder.
One of the most important parts of any membership site is its registration page. This is where members sign up to gain access to premium content and community features. These may be free or gated for paid members.
Having an effective registration page can help you drive more traffic to your site, generate more leads, and increase conversions. If you’re not sure how to go about creating a successful registration form, there are several tips and best practices that can help.
First, you’ll need a WordPress website that allows user registration. This could be a forum community, membership site, or other type of online platform. Using a WordPress plugin for user registration is an excellent way to set up a secure, simple, and reliable registration process.
Once you have a WordPress site that supports user registration, you’ll need to create a registration page and link it to your website’s navigation menu. You can do this by going to Appearance >> Menus and creating a new or editing an existing menu.
Then, click Add to Menu and select the pricing page you created earlier. Once it’s added to the menu, drag it to where you want it and then Save.
You can also configure your registration page with a countdown timer to increase your signup conversions. This will give people a sense of urgency and help them complete their registration faster.
Another option is to use a membership website management plugin such as WP-Members. This is an all-in-one plugin that helps you manage your site and restrict specific content to registered site members. It’s easy to setup and comes with strong security and customer support.
You can even connect your new registration page with an email marketing platform to grow your list and send automated emails to your new subscribers. With the right tools, you can create a great-looking registration form that will generate leads and convert them into paying customers.
Create a Login Page
You might not think of the login page as a priority, but a well-designed login screen can boost your website’s conversion rates. It’s a place to introduce users to your products, show off your site’s features, and more.
Login pages are also a great place to offer free trials. This will help you build trust with your users and encourage them to sign up for a membership plan.
When designing a login page, make sure to include all the necessary elements for a smooth and secure experience. For example, don’t use the same username for all accounts, and give users the option to create unique login details. This will avoid frustrating users who don’t remember their login information.
In addition, don’t forget to provide a link for forgotten passwords. This is a common problem, and can lead to people leaving your site and never returning.
If you’re using the Members plugin, you can also add a dedicated login widget to your site, so that members can access their accounts at any time. To get started, head to Appearance >> Widgets and drag the MemberPress login widget to a widget-ready area of your choice.
Once you’ve added the form, you can customize it by adding an image or logo to the header and adjusting the display settings. You can do this with the Content field on the User Login Form template or by clicking the Add Media button above the text editor.
Lastly, you can customize the text that appears on the submit button. You can either select a sample template to auto-populate the text box, or insert your own custom code in the text area.
When you’re done with the text, click Save and Update to finish the form. Then, you can go back to WPForms and use your newly-built login form.
Next, you’ll need to set up a return URL parameter for the login page. This allows you to specify a URL that unauthorized users should be redirected to after logging in. This is useful for preventing spammers from entering your site.