Can a membership site make your nonprofit more successful?

Think about it. Creating a membership site for your nonprofit does more than just attract donations. It's an excellent chance for nonprofits looking to gather a community of dedicated backers.

Membership platforms can act as magnets, attracting individuals eager to contribute to and shape the endeavors of thriving nonprofit organizations.They forge a strong community where every member plays a significant role in your mission's success.

And their contributions go beyond financial support as they gain a real stake in your projects and see firsthand the outcomes of their involvement. This dynamic shifts the traditional donation model, making every member a vital part of your nonprofit's progress.

But here's where the idea gets even better: each new member you welcome reduces the renewal costs significantly. This approach proves to be far more effective in generating funds than relying on single-time contributions.

Now, if all these perks make sense to you, you might be wondering, “How do I bring this to life for my nonprofit?”

That's where WishList Member steps in. It's the toolkit you need to create an engaging, dynamic membership site that resonates with your audience, encouraging them to invest not just their funds but their hearts and minds into your cause.

Let's take a comprehensive look into how WishList Member can transform your nonprofit's approach to engagement and fundraising.

Why Creating Your Own Membership Site is More Effective

Operating your own membership site offers total control over how you run your nonprofit, potentially leading to higher profitability compared to using platforms like Patreon.

With Patreon, you're essentially fitting your membership model into a predefined template. This includes the design, membership fees, billing cycles, and even how you receive payments – after Patreon takes its cut. You can tweak certain aspects like switching from monthly to yearly billing, but the overall framework remains rigid.

In contrast, managing your own site means you can shape every aspect of your brand and the member experience.

You're not boxed into someone else's system; you can craft your content presentation exactly how you see fit. This autonomy ensures you're not at the mercy of a third-party platform's changing rules or potential shutdowns.

Launching Your Own Membership Website with WordPress

WordPress powers nearly 40% of all websites, and its popularity is well-founded:

• Cost-Effective: WordPress is free and open-source.
• Extensive Customization: Thousands of both free and premium plugins and themes make it possible to convert your site into virtually anything, including a robust nonprofit membership site.
• User-Friendly: Even without deep tech skills, anyone can set up a WordPress site quickly.
• Secure and Reliable: Simple security enhancements can be made with plugins like Bulletproof Security or iThemes Security Pro.
• SEO and Flexibility: WordPress scores highly for SEO, making it likely to perform well in search engine rankings.

4 Key Benefits of Offering Memberships for Nonprofits

The Essence of Nonprofit Subscription Sites

At its core, a nonprofit subscription site offers a space where individuals can subscribe to support a cause they care deeply about. This model is akin to a membership, where the commitment to regular contributions sets the foundation for a long-term relationship between the nonprofit and its supporters.

The recurring nature of these donations is crucial, as it helps nonprofits forecast their budget more accurately, ensuring they have the funds needed to plan and execute their projects effectively. Which brings us to our next point…

The Power of Recurring Donations

Recurring donations are the lifeblood of sustainable funding for nonprofits. They provide a predictable income, reducing the uncertainty and financial volatility that can come with one-off donations.

This consistency allows nonprofits to focus more on their mission and less on constant fundraising efforts. According to a report by the Fundraising Effectiveness Project, the retention rate for recurring donors was 90% in 2020, highlighting the stability and loyalty this type of giving engenders.

Benefits Beyond Funding

Beyond the financial stability, subscription sites foster a closer relationship between the organization and its donors. Subscribers often receive updates, reports, and exclusive content, making them feel more connected to the cause and aware of the impact of their contributions. This heightened engagement can lead to increased advocacy and support for the nonprofit's mission.

Implementing Recurring Donations

To set up a successful nonprofit subscription website, organizations should focus on user experience, making the subscription process simple and the benefits clear. Tools like WishList Member offer seamless integration for WordPress sites, making it easier for nonprofits to manage subscriptions and engage with their donors effectively.

Patreon for Nonprofits: A Popular but Imperfect Solution?

Nonprofits have been exploring platforms like Patreon for recurring support, drawn by its straightforward setup and promise of a steady revenue stream. Since its inception in 2013, Patreon has offered an appealing prospect for nonprofits: a way to cultivate a supportive community and secure monthly pledges, giving a clear view of incoming revenue.

On Patreon, nonprofits set up a page where supporters can choose different tiers of membership, each with its own set of rewards or perks, encouraging a sustained monthly contribution. The strategy of granting insider status and exclusive content to paying members proved effective in building a loyal base.

The Appeal of Patreon

Patreon's user-friendly interface and widespread popularity make it an attractive option for nonprofits seeking to engage younger demographics and digital natives. It simplifies the process of setting up a recurring donation system without requiring significant technical know-how, making it accessible for smaller or less tech-savvy organizations.

Patreon for Nonprofits: A Double-Edged Sword

While Patreon facilitates the growth of nonprofit communities and engagement with core supporters, it also introduces dependencies and challenges:

• Fees and Financial Considerations: Patreon takes a cut from each donation as a platform fee, which can reduce the total amount that goes directly to the nonprofit's cause.
  
  
• Limited Customization: While Patreon offers ease of use, it limits how much nonprofits can tailor their pages and donation tiers to fully reflect their brand and mission. Operating within Patreon's framework restricts how nonprofits can present themselves. The uniformity of Patreon pages does little to differentiate one nonprofit's mission and identity from another, diluting brand impact.
  
  
• Donor Data Ownership: Using third-party platforms can restrict nonprofits' access to and control over their donor data, posing challenges for donor relationship management and long-term engagement strategies.
  
  
• Content Censorship Risks: Nonprofits are subject to the platform's policies and changes, which can affect their fundraising strategies and donor communications without prior notice. There have been instances where Patreon has censored content or removed membership sites not fully in line with its Terms and Conditions. Such actions can abruptly cut off both members and revenue, leaving nonprofits vulnerable.

Given these limitations, nonprofits might find platforms specifically designed for their unique needs, like WishList Member, a more fitting solution.

These specialized platforms offer greater control over content, deeper engagement with donors, and more flexibility in managing and acknowledging donations, aligning more closely with the requirements and values of nonprofit organizations.

While Patreon and similar platforms offer a quick start to recurring donations, nonprofits must weigh the benefits against the constraints and consider solutions that offer greater autonomy and alignment with their mission and operational needs.

WishList Member: A Tailored Solution for Nonprofits

WishList Member stands out as a WordPress plugin crafted with the needs of nonprofit organizations in mind, offering unparalleled flexibility and customization. This tool transforms any WordPress site into a full-featured membership platform, giving nonprofits the power to manage their community of supporters with ease.

Key Features of WishList Member

• Membership Levels: Nonprofits can create multiple membership tiers, each offering different access levels or benefits. This allows organizations to cater to a diverse supporter base, from casual donors to the most dedicated patrons.
  
  
• Content Protection: WishList Member ensures that exclusive content is just that – exclusive. Nonprofits can restrict access to certain pages, posts, or resources, making them available only to designated membership levels.
  
  
• Seamless Payment Integration: With WishList Member, integrating with leading payment gateways like PayPal, Stripe, and others is straightforward. This ensures a smooth donation process, encouraging more supporters to sign up for recurring contributions.
  
  
• Comprehensive Member Management: The plugin offers detailed member management tools, allowing nonprofits to track subscriptions, manage memberships, and communicate with their supporters effectively.
  
  
• Customizable Registration Forms: Nonprofits can tailor registration forms to capture essential information from their supporters, enhancing the ability to connect and engage with their community on a more personal level.

By leveraging these features, nonprofits can create a subscription site that aligns with their mission and branding and offers a user-friendly experience for their supporters. This level of control and customization is what sets WishList Member apart, making it an ideal choice for nonprofits looking to build and manage a thriving online community.

In short, WishList Member provides a robust, flexible platform for nonprofits to engage with their supporters, secure recurring donations, and protect exclusive content, all while maintaining their unique brand identity.

This specialized tool empowers organizations to harness the full potential of their membership site, ensuring a sustainable and impactful online presence.

4 Benefits of Using WishList Member for Your Nonprofit Subscription Website

WishList Member stands out as a robust solution for nonprofits looking to maximize their online presence and donor engagement. Its array of features not only simplifies the management of recurring donations but also enriches the donor experience, fostering a deeper sense of community and trust.

1. Recurring Donations Made Easy

One of the standout benefits of using WishList Member is how it streamlines the setup and management of recurring donations. With its intuitive interface and seamless integration with major payment gateways, nonprofits can easily establish a recurring donation system.

This ensures a steady flow of support, crucial for long-term planning and project sustainability. The process is designed to be hassle-free for both the organization and the donors, encouraging more supporters to commit to ongoing contributions.

2. Exclusive Content for Donors

WishList Member enables nonprofits to create a tiered membership system, where different levels of support grant access to various types of exclusive content. This could range from in-depth reports and newsletters to videos and special webinars.

Offering these perks not only incentivizes higher levels of support but also keeps donors engaged and informed about the nonprofit's work and achievements. This strategy has been shown to enhance donor retention, as supporters value the insider information and feel more connected to the cause.

3. Transparency and Trust

Transparency is key in building and maintaining trust with supporters. WishList Member facilitates this by allowing nonprofits to share detailed updates and reports directly through their membership site.

Donors can see firsthand how their contributions are making a difference, reinforcing their commitment to the cause. This level of openness is invaluable in nurturing a loyal supporter base who are more likely to advocate for the nonprofit's mission.

4. Full Control and Ownership

Unlike third-party platforms like Patreon, which impose their own branding and operational constraints, WishList Member offers nonprofits full control over their membership site. This autonomy means organizations can tailor every aspect of the site to reflect their brand and mission, from the layout and design to the content and member interaction.

Full ownership of the platform and the data it generates also means nonprofits aren't subject to sudden policy changes or fees, ensuring stability and security for both the organization and its donors.

Best Practices for Thriving Nonprofit Membership Sites

As you embark on expanding your nonprofit’s membership base using WordPress and tools like WishList Member, consider these foundational strategies:

1. Define Your Membership Program Clearly: Establish clear goals and benefits for your membership program to ensure potential members understand what they are signing up for.
   
   
2. Simplify the Sign-Up Process: Ensure the registration process is straightforward and quick, removing any barriers that might deter potential members.
   
   
3. Design Tiered Membership Levels: Create up to three levels of membership, each offering progressively greater benefits to encourage upgrades and sustained engagement.
   
   
4. Set Appropriate Membership Fees: Conduct research on membership pricing in your sector to set fees that are neither too high nor too low but reflect the value of membership.
   
   
5. Promote Your Membership Program Actively: Use various marketing channels to announce and promote your membership program to reach a wider audience.
   
   
6. Communicate Content Updates Regularly: Keep your members informed about when new content is available, such as daily posts or weekly updates, to maintain their interest and engagement.
   
   
7. Engage with Members Consistently: Regular interaction with your members can significantly enhance their experience and loyalty to your cause.
   
   
8. Facilitate Member Interaction: On your site, provide a space where members can communicate with each other, fostering a community atmosphere.
   
   
9. Offer Exclusive Interaction Opportunities: Organize special events like Q&A sessions or live discussions where members can engage directly with your team.
   
   
10. Maintain Regular Communication Through Email: Use email drip campaigns to stay connected with members, providing updates and personalized content.
    
    
11. Commit for the Long Term: Building a successful membership site is a long-term endeavor. Stay committed to continually enhancing the member experience and growing your community.

These strategies are crucial for building a robust and engaging nonprofit membership site that attracts and retains members effectively.

Conclusion

Your nonprofit needs more than a platform. It needs tools it needs to thrive in a digital world. With WishList Member's suite of features, you and your nonprofit have a larger potential to flourish.

With its ability to tailor experiences for your donors, manage recurring revenue streams with ease, and maintain full control over your content and community, WishList Member is designed to meet the unique challenges and opportunities nonprofits face.

For nonprofits poised to transcend the limitations of conventional platforms and step into a realm of greater autonomy and connection, WishList Member invites exploration. It’s an opportunity to see how a specialized tool can refine your fundraising efforts and fortify relationships with your community.

We’re eager to engage with your insights or any inquiries you might have. Feel free to spark a dialogue in the comments section below. Let’s explore together how WishList Member can elevate your nonprofit in this digital era.

Think about the last time you visited a really great membership site. It's 2024, and these sites have come a long way from just forums or gated content. 

They're now bustling hubs where people connect, learn, and share like never before.

Given the speed at which technology evolves, it's crucial to stay abreast of industry changes, especially if you're keen to make your mark.

So let's dive into the dynamic world of membership sites in year 2024, where the game's changed and staying ahead means being bold, creative, and downright savvy.

Here's your insider look at latest and greatest trends, the dos and don'ts, and the secret sauce that'll transform your membership site from surviving to thriving in this turbo-charged online era.

And yes, it's going to be easier than you think! 

The Digital Renaissance of Membership Sites

The game of membership sites is changing in 2024. We're witnessing a digital renaissance in the world of membership sites, and it's thrilling!

This year, we're seeing a seismic shift in how membership sites operate, interact, and engage with their audiences. The rules have changed, and the playbook is being rewritten as we speak.

With new trends popping up and technology playing a bigger role, it's all about staying informed and adaptable.

Let’s break down what’s new and what’s working.

The Trends That Are Redefining the Game

In this whirlwind of digital transformation, several key trends are emerging as game-changers:

1. DO Embrace Hyper-Personalization

Gone are the days of one-size-fits-all content. This year, it's all about creating a tailor-made experience that speaks directly to each member's preferences, interests, and behaviors.

Remember this figure: 80%. Epsilon reports that 80% of consumers are more likely to do business with a company that offers personalized experiences.

If you thought personalization was confined to addressing members by their name, 2024 will challenge that perception.

AI and machine learning technologies are getting sophisticated, providing advanced levels of personalization in content delivery, email communication, and product recommendations. 

So, what does this mean for your membership site? This means you can deliver highly tailored experiences to your members using technological advancements.

For example, you could use machine learning to curate content to the unique preferences of each member. This might mean suggesting articles, courses, or forums based on their browsing history or even the time they spend on certain sections of your site.

Likewise, AI can help tailor email communication, serving members with timely and relevant information, amplifying engagement and retention. 

One way of implementing this trend on your site is through a form builder plugin like WPForms. You can use WPForms to collect information about your members, and integrate it with ChatGPT for AI-generated notifications. Send unique, tailored alerts to members based on their form submissions, enhancing the individualized experience and fostering stronger member engagement.

2. DO Explore Virtual Reality Integration 

Another game-changer in the 2024 member-centric trend is the increasing role of Virtual Reality (VR) technologies.

According to Grand View Research, the global VR market size was valued at USD 15.81 billion in 2020 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18.0% from 2021 to 2028.

Adopting a cutting-edge trend such as VR may seem daunting at first, but remember, it doesn't have to be an all-or-nothing approach.

Begin by identifying specific areas that can benefit from VR and evaluate the feasibility. Always cater to what your members need and would find most beneficial. 

In a membership context, VR can provide immersive experiences that connect members in a way not possible through traditional online formats.

Think virtual meet-ups, product walk-throughs, guided tutorials or collaborative workshops. It's an innovative way to increase member engagement and provide value that goes beyond the typical. 

However, integrating VR isn't just about driving engagement; it can also revolutionize the way you provide value to your members. Say you're running a fitness membership site—using VR, you can offer personalized workout sessions, virtual trainers, and immersive wellness practices. 

Businesses are rapidly exploring VR integration. Goldmans Sachs predicts that by 2025, VR technology in the workplace could be a $16.1 billion market. That's a significant hint towards the potential of VR, pointing to a promising future for the membership site industry as well. 

On the final note, VR is here to stay. The sooner you embrace it, the better edge you will have in the competitive landscape of membership sites.

So, don't neglect this trend; instead, jump in and ride the wave of virtual reality to foster a futuristic, novel, and innovative user experience for your members.

3. Value-Driven Pricing Models 

The age-old practice of a ‘one size fits all' pricing model for membership sites is not enough to draw potential members in 2024.

In 2024, it's all about:

• Providing your clients with personalized and tiered plans, and
• Focusing more on the value provided rather than just flat rate fee. 

This shift towards value-based pricing allows you to make your membership packages more attractive by aligning your prices with the perceived value of your offerings.

In fact, McKinsey research indicated a 1% price increase, when done right, could generate an 8% increase in operating profits. 

For example, a basic level could offer access to webinars and articles, while intermediate and top-tier levels could include one-on-one mentorship sessions, exclusive reports, and more.

These additional features would provide value for the price increase, which could drive member satisfaction and loyalty. 

But it's not as simple as increasing prices. It's critical to conduct continuous A/B testing, surveys, and even price sensitivity surveys.

Understanding what content and services your audience values most, and their willingness to pay for it, is key.

And if you're looking to optimize your survey efforts, Formidable Forms, a powerhouse WordPress plugin, makes it possible to not only collect data but also to use that data to create listings, directories, and even complex calculators.

You'll need to carefully analyze and measure the values your membership site provides to different segments of your users. Fortunately, with the advancement of technology, we now have sophisticated tools and software that can help us track these data to back our pricing decisions with facts and figures. 

The future of membership sites is moving towards this direction, and it's a space filled with potential. So, go ahead and explore the possibilities of a value-driven pricing model for your membership site.

4. DO Widespread Automation 

From marketing automation to customer service, 2024 is about automating more than ever. A MarketsandMarkets research predicts the global automation market to reach $3.4 billion by 2024. Integrating automation tools into your membership site can lead to more efficient processes and elevated user experience. 

So, what kind of automation tools are we talking about here? 

Email Automation

Well, as a membership site owner, you can engage your members more efficiently with automated emails or newsletters.

FunnelKit Automations and WishList Member come together to create a powerhouse of marketing efficiency on WordPress.

This integration allows for effortless contact importing, audience building tailored to your content, and automated access upgrades upon form submissions or purchases.

Plus, it smoothly transitions members between different levels and offers a personalized touch with coupons for expired memberships. This combination is a game-changer, making marketing not just more effective but also intuitively responsive to member actions and preferences.

Other tools like ConvertKit, Campaign Refinery, or ActiveCampaign can help you manage your email list and automate personalized messages.

Customer Service Automation

Likewise, you can enhance your customer service using automation.

AI-driven chatbots, like Tidio and Olark, can automatically respond to common customer inquiries on your site. This will not only improve response time but also free up time for your customer service agents to handle more complex issues. 

Data Automation

Data automation should also be on your radar. After all, who wants to spend countless hours analyzing data when software can do that?

Tools like Google Analytics and Tableau can gather valuable data about your members and their behaviors, providing insights that can help you make data-driven decisions. 

Automation doesn't mean you're replacing the human touch, though. It, instead, enhances it by giving you more time and energy to engage with your members on a more profound level. It is all about working smarter, not harder. 

5. DO Nurture Your Micro-Communities 

A study published on Tint shows that 73% of consumers have positive views on brand engagement in communities.

In 2024, anticipate the surge of smaller, niche-focused, highly engaged communities within your membership site. Focusing on micro-communities allows for more direct engagement, fostering stronger relationships with your members. 

Often, these micro-communities are built around specific interests or goals. For example, a fitness membership site may have communities focused on yoga, vegan diets, or marathon training. These offer spaces for members to connect with like-minded individuals, drive discussions, share insights, and support each other. 

The key to the success of micro-communities lies in their ability to foster a sense of belonging.

In addition to fostering stronger relationships with existing members, micro-communities serve as powerful magnets for potential members.

Talk about the power of conversation! Word-of-mouth referrals is a colossal engine driving a staggering $6 trillion in annual consumer spending. That's right, a jaw-dropping 13% of consumer sales come from people simply talking about products.

As members of your micro-communities share their experiences in these specific niches, it introduces your site to more individuals likely interested in what you provide. 

Moreover, there's a growing trend toward monetization within these micro-communities. The 2024 trend entails introducing premium tiers within the communities or charging for niche-specific content like webinars, ebooks, or courses. 

Ultimately, in 2024, the emphasis for membership sites will indeed be “less is more”. By focusing on smaller, high-engagement communities, you can enhance the value of your site for members while at the same time driving growth and profitability.

Don't currently have a forum on your website? A free plugin like bbPress could help you bring your community on site and open up opportunities to monetize your content.

6. DO Gamify to Boost Engagement 

Member engagement stands as a cornerstone for success in the membership site industry. With a lackluster engagement strategy, it's hard to keep your members interested or involved. And that's where gamification steps in. 

As per research published by MordorIntelligence, the gamification industry is skyrocketing from a cool $9.1 billion in 2020 to blasting off to an astronomical $30.7 billion by 2025.

We're talking a whopping 27.4% compound annual growth rate. That's the gamification market turning up the thrusters and going full speed ahead!

Clearly, it's a trend not to be missed.

The integration of gaming mechanics into your membership site can trigger your members’ natural desires for competition, achievement, and collaboration.

Get ready to experiment with various strategies that uplift user engagement, that make your site more fun, exciting and addictive, such as:

• Leaderboards
• Progress bars
• Milestone celebrations
• Points
• Badges

Remember, the key to successful gamification is relevancy. Your members should perceive their rewards as meaningful for the effort they put into achieving them.

Test different game mechanics, analyze your member's feedback, and adjust accordingly. With careful planning and creative execution, gamification could be the golden ticket to boosting your membership growth and retention in 2024.

So, why not make your membership site a more intriguing place? Incorporate gamification as a novel way of offering value, and you might just keep members coming back for more. After all, who doesn't want to be part of a vibrant, engaging online community? 

7. DON'T Count Out LMS

The future is bright for those who integrate courses and Learning Management Systems (LMS) into their membership sites.

According to a sparkly new report from Reports Insights, this market is projected to take a colossal leap from USD 17.36 billion in 2022 to a jaw-dropping USD 69.69 billion by 2030. That's a supercharged growth rate of 19.2% annually from 2023 to 2030. So, in the world of elearning, this is like going from a bicycle to a supersonic jet in less than a decade!

By incorporating courses, quizzes, progress tracking and course gamification on your site, you'll be adding a whole lot of interactive content that makes learning not just informative but downright addictive.

For your membership site to stay ahead of the game, embracing the LMS integration trend is not just advantageous but vital. It offers streamlined learning experiences, advanced insights, and ultimately higher returns – all which pave way for a thriving future of your membership site.

CourseCure

WishList Member users can take advantage of CourseCure, which is available on all WishList Member plans.

The CourseCure course builder turns WishList Member into a powerful LMS. By combining all the functionality of a membership plugin with an intuitive and flexible course builder, you can start selling engaging courses on your site in a snap.

Mix and match gamification features like quizzes, points, and badges to maximize student engagement and course completion rates.

This flexibility not only enriches courses but also incentivizes participation with rewards, making CourseCure an essential asset for membership sites aiming to leverage courses for member retention and engagement.

8. DO Optimize Content For Voice Search 

If your membership site’s content isn’t optimized for voice search yet, you’re potentially losing out on this flourishing traffic source.

Users typically use conversational language for voice search, and it’s usually question-based. So, rethinking your site's SEO strategy to consider phrases and long-tail keywords might just hit the right note. 

According to a report from Synup, there's a whopping 4.2 billion active voice assistant devices. And get this, 27% of searches on the Google App are now done using just your voice.

Plus, there's a staggering 1 billion voice searches happening every month from mobiles and voice search devices. Whoa, voice assistants are taking over the world!

So, how can you start? Begin by optimizing your content for natural language and conversational queries.

Websites with a FAQ page also tend to do better with voice search because it contains questions and answers in a conversational manner.

You should consider adding a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section which can address common queries relating to your membership site that aligns with how users typically ask queries when using voice search. 

9. DON'T Forget to Diversify

Remember when text content was everything? Well, those days are long gone. Say goodbye to the days of only reading long articles.

This year, expect a mix of podcasts, videos and interactive quizzes. It’s all about keeping members engaged and coming back for more. 

According to a recent forecast by Cisco, videos will represent 82% of all internet traffic by 2022.

Diverse content formats have emerged as a powerful trend in the 2024 membership sites industry. Let's shed some light on this emerging reality, and how it could benefit your venture. 

Video would be a key driver in this trend. According to an Oberlo report, video content increases the average visit duration by as much as 88%. This demonstrates the massive potential of diverse content formats to increase user engagement and time spent on your site. 

Integrated podcasts are gaining attention, too.

In 2023, the global podcast market was already massive, sitting pretty at US$ 17.9 billion. But fasten your seatbelts, because it's rocketing to an eye-popping US$ 144.1 billion by 2032. That's a whopping 26% growth rate between 2024 and 2032.

What's fueling this meteoric rise? It's a perfect storm of more smartphones, easy access to streaming, anyone-can-be-a-creator vibes, a surge in podcast wizards cooking up all sorts of content, the magic of audio-on-demand, and a gold rush of advertising ops.

Remember, providing diverse content formats is about meeting the evolving needs and preferences of your members so they continue seeing value in your site.

So, consider researching the kind of content they enjoy and resonates most with them. Furthermore, make sure each piece of content, regardless of its format, aligns with your brand's identity and message. 

Above all, technology has made content creation easier than ever before. Tools like Adobe Spark, Visme, and Canva can significantly simplify the process of making engaging videos, graphics and podcasts So, don't shy away from experimenting with content formats in 2024!

How to Build Your Membership Site

It's an exciting time to build a membership business. The global subscription economy is on the up and up, and is projected to grow to a massive $1482.11 in 2027.

Plus, it's also easier than ever before, as membership site tools evolve to integrate new technologies and create a seamless experience for their own users. So let's get to it!

Step 1: Pick a Web Host

There are a lot of options to consider here – should you go with a more-budget-friendly, shared hosting option? Or does your business operation call for a more robust solution, with greater storage and processing power?

Read our guide on choosing the best web host to explore your options.

Step 2: Choose the Right Platforms

Make sure you choose a trusted, quality CMS and membership platform to build the foundation of your membership site.

WordPress is the most popular CMS in the world for many reasons. Here are just a few:

1. It's free to download and install, meaning you can invest your budget on other important tools and premium plugins.
2. It's user friendly even for beginners making it a breeze to upload, manage, and update content.
3. It's open-source – and always has been. From day dot, WordPress's source code has been freely available for creators to play around with. This made WordPress a sandbox for programmers to contribute to the WordPress ecosystem, which led to…
4. Endless plugins and themes that are ready for your to use right out the (virtual) box. The upshot is that whatever website you plan on creating, or whichever way you plan to expand in the future, there's likely o be a plugin that can help you get there – no coding required.

Choosing the right platform can be a game-changer, enhancing your interactions with your audience. But the question remains – how will you choose the perfect platform?

We've created an essential checklist for picking a membership site platform that best aligns with your specific business goals.

Membership Plugin Features and Integrations You Need:

• Easy Setup: Building your membership site shouldn't be rocket science.
• Secure Member Log-ins: Ensuring members have a safe and private access point to your site.
• Automated Billing and Subscription Management: For handling recurring payments and membership renewals.
• Analytics and Reporting Tools: To track member engagement and site performance, helping you make informed decisions.
• Progress Tracking: Especially useful for educational sites, allowing members to track their learning journey.
• Payment Gateway Integration: Secure and reliable options for members to make payments.
• Email Marketing Integration: Tools to keep in touch with your members, send updates, and promote engagement.

WishList Member is one such plugin that carries all these features and integrations. With WishList Member, you can turn your WordPress site into a recurring revenue machine.

Some Additional Plugins You May Want:

• Interactive Community Forums: Spaces for members to connect, discuss, and share ideas.
• Customizable Member Profiles: Allowing members to share information about themselves, fostering a sense of community.
• Event Calendars and Registration: For organizing webinars, workshops, and other events.
• Downloadable Content Options: Such as ebooks, worksheets, or templates for members.
• Live Chat Support: Providing real-time assistance to your members.
• SEO Tools: To improve your site’s visibility and ranking on search engines.

Adding all these plugins can improve and optimize your current site into a thriving membership or subscription business in 2024.

Step 3: Designing for User Experience

The design of your membership site should focus on creating a smooth and enjoyable experience for your users. This means having a clear layout, straightforward navigation, and ensuring your site loads quickly. 

After all, a site that's a breeze to use is more likely to keep members engaged and coming back for more. 

Another key aspect is ensuring your site is responsive, meaning it works well and looks good on any device, whether it's a desktop, tablet, or smartphone.

For a more in-depth guide on how to build your first membership site, check out our How-To Guide.

Turning Your Membership Site into a Success Story with WishList Member

That's a wrap on the top membership site trends of 2024! Remember, the journey to success is all about engaging content, smart marketing, and listening to your members. 

And here's some good news: WishList Member makes this journey smoother. With its user-friendly platform and versatile features, you can focus on what you do best – creating and nurturing your community. 

So why wait? Check out WishList Member today and start transforming your membership site into the success story you’ve always dreamed of. Let's make 2024 your year! 

Found this blog useful? Dive into the discussion below and share how you're revolutionizing your membership site with these cutting-edge strategies – we'd love to hear your insights and experiences!

Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and LinkedIn for more tips and best practices to make the most of your new subscription business.

It's no secret that speed is a major demand for online consumers. In the age of TikTok and Amazon Prime, a fast website is non-negotiable. 

For better or worse, the simple fact is our patience died with dialup and Limewire. Now if your site takes more than a couple of seconds to load, you’re in trouble. 

No one likes waiting around. Not your visitors, not search engines, and definitely not you. 

So, we’ve loaded this blog with tips and tools on how to boost your WordPress website's speed.  

We'll walk you through why WishList Member is your go-to for a speed-optimized site and pair it with some killer tools to send your site supersonic! 

Let’s go go go!

Why Site Speed is Important

Hey, welcome to the fast lane! Let's cut the chase – speed is a make-or-break factor for your website for two main reasons:

1. Fast Loading is Critical For User Engagement

You know that frustration that sets in when you click on a site and – ugh – it's taking its sweet time? You're not alone. 

53% of mobile users will abandon a site if it takes longer than 3 seconds to load. That's over half your audience saying “thanks, but no thanks.”

Still not convinced? How about this: a one-second delay in page load time can lead to a 7% loss in conversions. Ouch! Long story short: if your website is dragging its feet, you're watching money walk out the door.

2. Speed's Impact on SEO

But it's not just your human visitors you need to worry about – search engines are picky too. Google has been using site speed as a ranking factor since 2010. If you’re late to the party, you’ll be at the end of a long line of search results. 

Think about it: faster sites create happy users, and Google is all about user experience. So, if you're wondering why your site is stuck on page 10 of search results, maybe it's time to look under the hood and get things running smoothly.

How to Measure Your WordPress Website's Speed: Know Where You Stand

Before you get to work on amping up your website's speed, you've got to know where you're starting from. It's like timing your first 5k run – you need a baseline to measure your progress.

Remember, 3 seconds is the tipping point when mobile users will abandon your site. But Google sets the number a little lower, at 2.5 seconds. 

Whatever your current speed, there’s always room for improvement. For every 100 milliseconds cut off a site’s loading time, bounce rates drop and conversion rates rise. 

So where does your site currently stand?

Here are a couple of free, go-to tools to help you figure out if your site is a hare or a tortoise:

Google PageSpeed Insights

Straight from the horse's mouth. Google's tool gives you a detailed analysis of your site's speed on both desktop and mobile. It even offers suggestions for improvement.

GTmetrix

 This is another excellent tool that goes beyond just loading time. It gives you a complete performance report and tips on things like optimizing images and leveraging browser caching.

Run these tests to get an idea of what's slowing you down. Armed with this knowledge, you can target your speed-boosting efforts where they'll have the most impact.

Basic Tips for Speeding Up WordPress – No Rocket Science Required

Before we dig deeper into how WishList Member can rev up your website, let's cover some foundational speed-boosting hacks. Consider these the low-hanging fruit – easy to implement but with an undeniable impact on your website's speed.

1. Image Optimization

Let's start simple: those pretty pictures? They're heavy. 

Use tools like ShortPixel or Smush to compress and optimize your images without sacrificing quality. 

You could cut your image size in half, making them load faster and keeping your visitors happy.

2. Caching

Browser caching stores static files locally, so returning visitors don’t have to reload the entire page. Plugins like WP Super Cache can automate this for you. 

3. Minification

Ever look at a website's code? It’s like a foreign language with extra spaces and characters. Minification strips out all the unnecessary stuff, making your site lighter and faster. 

There are several great free plugins can do this for you, so no excuses! Autoptimize is a popular option.

4. Reduce Server Requests – Choose a Sleek Theme

The more elements on a page – like scripts, images, and CSS files – the more server requests are needed to load it. 

One immediate action you can take? Choose a sleek and streamlined theme for your website. 

Many themes come packed with widgets, sliders, and flashy elements that are server request hogs. 

Opt for a theme that gives you just what you need, and nothing more. This will not only improve your site speed but also make for a cleaner, more user-friendly design. After all, when speed is the goal, less really is more.

5. Leverage Content Delivery Networks (CDNs)

Want to go global? Use a CDN like Cloudflare to distribute your content around the world. This way, a user in Australia isn’t waiting for your server in the U.S. to wake up.

6. Opt for Optimized Hosting

Think of hosting as the home of your website. Would you rather live in a sluggish, crowded apartment or a zippy, well-maintained mansion? Services like WP Engine offer specialized hosting that’s tailored for WordPress speed.

And there you have it! These are some straightforward steps you can take today to see an immediate improvement in your WordPress site's speed. 

Why WishList Member is a Speed-Savvy Choice for Membership Sites

So you've tuned up your website with some basic speed fixes. You’ve trimmed it of the unnecessary bloat. 

But running a membership site or an online course often means grappling with plugins that can put a drag on your site speed. 

Not so with WishList Member. 

For those who want to keep things zippy, WishList Member is the MVP of plugins. Let's get into it.

Regular Updates for Speed Optimization

In the dynamic world of WordPress and website performance, standing still is falling behind. That’s why WishList Member is frequently updated. 

This helps ensure that your membership site remains optimized for speed and security.

Compatibility With Speed-Optimizing Plugins

Have a favorite speed-boosting plugin or two? No problem. WishList Member gets along with your existing speed-optimizing plugins.

Whether you’re using caching solutions or image optimization tools, WishList Member aims to slide right into your existing ecosystem without throwing a wrench in the works.

Tailored Caching for Your Membership Site

WishList Member doesn't just lean on WordPress’s built-in caching; it takes it up a notch. With compatibility for persistent caching plugins like WP Super Cache, it adds another layer of speed to your site.

But while caching is great news for loading speeds, it can be a double-edged sword for membership platforms.

WishList Member has a smart solution. Caching for logged-in users can serve stale or incorrect content, disrupt personalized experiences, and even pose security risks. WishList Member has a Cookie Prefix setting which you can use to bypass caching for logged-in members.

This ensures your members get real-time, personalized content without compromising on speed or security.

Streamlining Content Creation and Membership Management

Running a membership site involves a lot of moving parts, and each additional task – whether it's content creation or member management – can potentially slow down your website. 

That’s why you need a plugin that streamlines these tasks without compromising on speed. Enter WishList Member.

WishList Member's intuitive dashboard doesn't just simplify content creation; it also minimizes the clicks and time needed for administrative tasks, contributing to a more efficient – and therefore faster – website. 

When you spend less time toggling between settings and screens, you reduce server load and increase your site’s responsiveness.

On the management side, the speed and ease of use continue to shine. Whether you're looking to add new member levels or shift existing members from one level to another, WishList Member makes it a breeze. 

The user interface is snappy, ensuring that you don't have to wait around while making these critical changes. 

Plus, the capability to perform multiple membership functions en masse means you’re not bogged down with one-by-one adjustments.

This reduces the time and server resources spent on admin tasks, indirectly contributing to a faster, more efficient website.

In Conclusion: 

So now you’re up to speed on all you need to know! From grasping the essential role of a speed-optimized site in both user engagement and SEO, to implementing basic yet impactful fixes, we've covered it all. 

And for those running membership sites or online courses, WishList Member stands out as an invaluable ally for maintaining a brisk and seamless user experience.

Speed isn't just a nice-to-have; it's a must-have. A faster website doesn't just please your visitors; it also offers you a competitive edge in search engine rankings. 

Every second counts, and now you're armed with the knowledge and tools to make each one work in your favor.

Ready to shift into high gear? Get WishList Member today and supercharge your WordPress membership site's speed and performance!

Apply these tips and tricks, invest in WishList Member, and watch your site transition from laggy to lightning-fast. Happy speeding! 

Got any tips to share with the WishList Member community? Let us know in the comments section below.

Found this blog useful? Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and LinkedIn for more tips and best practices to make the most of your membership site.

Imagine logging into a platform and immediately finding everything you need, right at your fingertips. It's a great strategy for boosting member engagement and retention on your membership site. Your Member Dashboard page is a powerful tool that can transform the member experience from ‘meh' to ‘marvelous.'

But what if you could go a step further? What if you could offer a personalized dashboard that feels like it was crafted just for each member?

That's where WishList Member's Dashboard comes into play. Acting as a fully customizable dashboard, it offers you the chance to deliver an unparalleled, tailor-made experience for every user, every time they log in.

Intrigued? Stick around. In this comprehensive guide, you'll discover how to make the most of the Member Dashboard page to create a captivating dashboard that exceeds your members' expectations.

Let's dash to it!

Creating a Member Dashboard Page

Why Does Your Member Dashboard Page Matter?

Your Member Dashboard is more than just a ‘nice-to-have.' It's an absolute game-changer for both you and your members.

Here's why:

Improved User Experience

Who doesn't love an easy-peasy interface? A dashboard takes the headache out of navigating your site.

All the essentials – account settings, special articles, you name it – are right at their fingertips. Which leads to…

Increased Engagement

When people find it easy to use your site, they tend to use it more. It makes them want to dig deeper. Remove the frustrations, and they'll spend more time clicking, exploring, and interacting with your content. And the more they do, the more they feel like a part of your community.

Reduced Support Costs

Dashboards are also money-savers. Think of it as a ‘DIY Help Desk' where members find what they need without calling for backup.

This frees up time for your support team, so they can focus on the big issues. Fewer hours spent on support = more time to grow your community!

Improved Retention

Keeping your members is important. After all, retention is between five-seven times cheaper than acquisition.

A great dashboard adds value to their experience and gives them more reasons to stick around. When renewal time comes, they're more likely to stay if they find your site helpful and engaging.

Using our Member Dashboard After Login page, you can create a dashboard that's custom-fit for each membership level. This boosts member satisfaction and sets your site apart.

The Role of WishList Member's After Login Page

The After Login Page is like your site's personal greeter. It's the first thing your members will see each time they log in. You want to make that ‘hello' count, right?

Here, you can flex your creative muscles and tailor the page to give your members a snazzier dashboard experience. Add quick links, important messages, or that secret sauce that makes your community unique.

After Login Page Overview

And don't think it's one-size-fits-all; that’s not how we roll. You can set a Global Default After Login page or – even better – craft individual pages for different membership levels.

High-rolling VIP members? Give them the five-star treatment! Newbies? Guide them through their first steps in your community. The choice is all yours!

For more in-depth details on settings and configurations, we’ve got a whole article dedicated to just that. But for now, we’re zeroing in on how you can turn this After Login Page into a dynamo Member Dashboard.

Essential Elements for a Highly Effective Member Dashboard Page

What elements should you focus on to make sure it's not just functional but also member-friendly? Let's jump right into the key components you'll want to include.

Clear Links

We're talking about those crucial buttons or links that guide your members to their next adventure on your site. You know, that direct route to the latest webinar, the coolest forum discussion, or even the new merchandise shop.

Make those links crystal clear and easy to find. No one likes playing “Where's Waldo?” when they're looking for essential resources.

Account Area

Members should be able to update their profile, switch out that two-year-old profile picture, change their password, and manage their email settings all without needing a decoder ring.

Ensure that the account area is straightforward, easy-to-navigate, and offers everything they need to keep their membership details up-to-date.

Any Provided Extras

Have some bonus content like ebooks, exclusive videos, or special webinars? Don’t hide those goodies. Give them a spotlight on the dashboard. Trust us, your members will appreciate the extra value you’re packing into their experience.

Access to Support

Say a member can't access a feature or forgets how to find something. They'll need immediate help, and you want to be there for them.

Insert quick links to customer service, FAQs, or even live chat support. Make solving problems a breeze, and you'll have members singing your praises.

Personalizing Dashboards Based on Membership Level

One-size-fits-all might work for some things, but when it comes to member dashboards, personalization is key.

Especially if you're running a site with different membership tiers, you'll want to greet each member with an After Login page that's relevant to their level. So, let's look into how to customize these experiences using WishList Member.

Setting Up Custom Redirects

Alright, you've got a basic After Login page that serves all your members, and that's a great start! But you've got different membership levels, and they all deserve their special welcome.

With WishList Member, you can set different After Login pages based on membership levels, and it's not even complicated.

1. Head to the WishList Member menu, then click on Setup.
2. Find the membership level you want to customize and click on it.
3. Click on the Additional Settings tab.
4. You'll spot options for Custom After Registration Redirect and Custom After Logout Redirect. Toggle the option you wish to customize and a Configure button will appear.
5. Click on Configure and add your desired custom message.

And just like that, you're on your way to delivering a highly personalized member experience. You can direct your high-tier members to exclusive content or your mid-tier members to a selection of educational resources. It's all up to you.

Pro Tip: Need to make sure your redirects are flawless?

Mastering WordPress redirects with WishList Member can be a game-changer for boosting engagement and loyalty. Get started by reading our guide: “How to Master WordPress Redirect Pages with WishList Member.“

The Best Practices & Common Pitfalls of Crafting the Ultimate Member Dashboard

By now, you should be well on your way to creating an amazing member dashboard. But, wait up! There are some super important dos and don'ts to keep in mind to make sure you really hit the mark.

Smart Moves for a Stellar Dashboard

• Make it Look Good: An eye-catching dashboard is a joy to use. Go for high-quality graphics and a polished look.
• Embrace the White Space: Like pauses in a conversation, white space can make all the difference. It helps your members easily find what they're looking for.
• Direct and Doable Calls-to-Action: Be explicit about what steps you want members to take. A button that says “Update Account Info” is way better than something vague like “Go Here.”
• Thumbs Up for Mobile Users: With people logging in from their smartphones, making your dashboard mobile-friendly isn't optional; it's a must.

Mistakes to Steer Clear Of

• Misreading User Needs: Listen, a dashboard isn't about showing off how much information you can cram into one page. It's about what your members need. So, spend some time understanding what resources and features they're actually interested in.
• Information Overload: A dashboard packed with too much stuff is like a messy bedroom – overwhelming and stressful. Keep things streamlined, focusing on what's most essential for the member.
• Jargon Jumble: Technical language or jargon just adds a layer of fuzziness. Stick to words that anyone can understand, especially when labeling buttons or calls-to-action.
• Style Whiplash: Keep your dashboard visually in line with your overall site. Consistency isn't boring; it makes things comfy and familiar.
• Skipping the Test Drive: Before the big launch, get some of your members to take the dashboard for a spin. Collect feedback to smooth out any bumps in the road.

Sooo… What happens next?

Nailing your Member Dashboard and After Login Page is awesome, but guess what? WishList Member doesn't stop there. Let's dig into some other awesome features that'll make managing your community easier and frankly way more fun.

Get to Know Your Members Better

Who is signing up for your salsa dancing course or your mystery book club? Find out by using custom registration forms, and ask some fun questions to get to know the fabulous folk joining your community.

And oh, all that precious info? Safeguarded, thanks to GDPR compliance. Rest easy knowing you're doing right by your members and the law.

Keep Your Members Engaged through Email Notifications

Email notifications aren't just a nice touch; they're a way to keep your community engaged and informed. From new content alerts to membership renewals, keep your members in the know.

WishList Member integrates seamlessly with popular email service providers and third party CRMS so you can send targeted, relevant emails out to your members.

And remember, you're the boss here – you set the permissions and decide who sees what.

Your All-Seeing Admin Dashboard

You wouldn't drive without a speedometer, would you? The admin dashboard gives you a panoramic view of all the action.

Real-time stats are just a click away, giving you insights into membership trends, content popularity, and more.

Quick & Easy Course Creation with CourseCure

Online courses can be a game-changer for your membership site. CourseCure makes it a breeze to get your courses up and running.

No tech wizardry needed – just a few simple steps and you're good to go! Add quizzes, interactive content, and even gamification elements to keep your learners hooked till the very end.

Conclusion

A well-designed member dashboard can truly be the heart of your membership site, making members feel at home while giving them quick access to all the good stuff. With WishList Member, crafting this crucial page is easier than tying your shoes.

Well-organized links, user-friendly settings, and a whole bunch of personalization options make it the go-to tool for boosting member satisfaction and engagement.

So get started with WishList Member today and you'll be able to confidently control your members' experience on your site. WishList Member is designed to make it easy to customize and configure your site to your exact needs. And if you need help along the way, our customer success team is on hand to help you make the most of our extensive features.

Got any questions about creating a membership dashboard? Want to share your tips and best practices with the WishList Member community? Leave a comment below!

And if you want more revenue-boosting tips and best practices for your membership site, don't forget to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and LinkedIn.

We’ll show you the easiest way to create a website with membership login.

Building a website with a member login feature can seem daunting, especially if you're not well-versed in coding.

But thanks to the versatility of WordPress and the availability of powerful plugins like WishList Member, it’s more accessible than ever.

Whether you’re looking to create a sense of community, protect premium content, or monetize your platform, this step-by-step guide will empower you to create a fully functional membership site tailored to your needs.

No passwords or secret codes needed to create a sleek, branded login page like the one below. Just read on!

Why Having a Login Page is Useful

Creating a website with a membership login isn’t just a neat feature—it offers a wealth of benefits that can transform your online business. Let’s delve into why it’s so beneficial:

1. Access Control: A login page helps control access to your website’s content. Only registered members can log in and view exclusive content, ensuring your premium content is protected.

2. Personalization: Membership logins allow you to offer personalized user experiences. Knowing who your users are enables you to tailor content, recommendations, and interfaces to individual users, enhancing their experience on your site.

3. Community Building: A login page can create a sense of community. Users feel more connected when they are part of a membership group, which can increase user engagement and loyalty.

4. User Data Collection: Having a login page gives you access to valuable user data. You can track user behavior, preferences, and interactions, which can inform your marketing strategies and content creation.

5. Monetization Opportunities: If you’re running a subscription-based business, a membership login is a must. It allows you to set up tiered membership levels, offer exclusive content or benefits, and generate recurring revenue.

Incorporating a login page on your website offers a strategic advantage, whether your aim is to create an engaged community, offer personalized experiences, or protect and monetize your valuable content.

How Login Pages Work in WordPress

Before we delve into the process of creating a login page, it’s helpful to understand how they operate within the WordPress ecosystem.

1. Default Login Page: WordPress comes with a default login page, typically accessed by appending ‘/wp-admin’ or ‘/wp-login.php’ to your site’s URL. This page provides access to the backend of your WordPress site for all users with the appropriate credentials, whether they’re administrators, editors, or subscribers.

2. User Roles and Capabilities: When a user logs in through the WordPress login page, they’re granted access based on their role. WordPress includes several predefined roles (such as Administrator, Editor, Author, Contributor, and Subscriber), each with its set of capabilities.

3. Custom Login Pages: While the default login page is functional, it’s often desirable to create a custom login page to provide a more seamless, branded experience for your users. 

With a custom login page, you can control the design and functionality and integrate it into your site’s theme.

4. Membership Plugins: To transform your WordPress site into a membership or subscription site with tiered access levels, you’ll need a WordPress membership plugin. 

These plugins work alongside the WordPress login system, restricting content access based on the user’s membership level and offering features such as payment handling, subscription management, and more.

How to Create a Site With Member Login

The easiest way to create a login page for paying subscribers on your WordPress website is with a membership site plugin.

Best of all, you don’t need to know any code to create a beautiful, branded login page for your members.

We’ll show you how it’s done with WishList Member.

WishList Member is a powerful membership plugin for WordPress, allowing you to create a membership site with ease. 

With its user-friendly interface, you can set up various membership levels, protect content, and provide exclusive access, all without any coding knowledge. 

WishList Member also Seamlessly integrates with popular payment gateways. It’s an ideal solution for those looking to build a professional membership site quickly and effortlessly.

Step 1: Install WishList Member 

Purchase and Download

Visit the official WishList Member website, choose your desired plan, and purchase it. Once completed, download the plugin's zip file.

Upload the Plugin to WordPress

 Navigate to your WordPress dashboard, then go to Plugins > Add New > Upload Plugin. Select the downloaded zip file and click Install Now.

Activate the Plugin

After installation, click the Activate Plugin button to make WishList Member functional on your site.

Step 2: Follow the Setup Wizard

Go to WishList Member > Setup > Getting Started. From there you’ll be guided through a simple setup process that will walk you through the key configurations of your new membership site including:

• Enabling your license key to authenticate your purchase
• Creating a membership level
• Enabling integrations with payment gateways and your email provider
• Creating a registration page for free users
• Setting up a sales page for new, paying subscribers

The process is designed to be as quick and easy as possible, setting you up with a configured membership site in minutes.

Step 3: Create Your Login Page

Now you have everything you need to create a login page for your members!

Option 1: Classic WordPress Login

At this stage, the default login page for your membership site is a simple, functional, WordPress branded form. Like this:

You can view the WordPress login form for your site by adding /wp-admin or /wp-login.php to the end of your site's URL.

But if you want a sleek, branded login page that’s in keeping with the rest of your site you’ll want to punt for option 2. 

Option 2: Customize Your Login Page

With WishList Member, creating a beautiful, branded login for your site is a cin

From your WordPress dashboard, go to WishList Member > Advanced Options > Logins and click the Styling tab.

Click the WordPress Login Page Styling slider to enable customization.

Below, you'll find various templates that make tailoring the WordPress login form swift and effortless. Choose a template that best matches your brand to get started.

Keep in mind, if you make modifications in this area, the system will also update the WordPress “Lost your Password” page to ensure a consistent look and feel.

Then click the Login Form tab. There you can …

• Upload your logo
• Change the alignment, width, background color of the box on your login form
• Adjust the text color, size and border thickness of the fields in your login form
• Change the color and dimensions of the login button.

If you don't have a logo yet, give Fiverr's try-before-you-buy logo generator a shot. In just a few clicks, you can get a professional looking logo that communicates your brand message.

Here is an example of a customized WordPress login page, complete with logo.

Not happy with any of the backgrounds from the template selection? No problem! Select a color to appear in your background image or upload an entirely new image of your own under the Background tab. 

You can use a site like Unsplash to source high-quality royalty-free images. If you want to get more fancy with your design,

Option 3: Use the WishList Member Login Form Mergecode

Don’t worry! There is no coding necessary with this option. The Wishlist Member login form mergecode can be inserted into any page on your website within a text block. 

Simply copy and paste one of the following options into your text editor and a login form will appear on your page:

• Standard login form mergecode:
  [wlm_loginform]
• Login form mergecode with AJAX error message:
  [wlm_loginform ajax_login=1]

No matter which of these options you choose, this is how your login form will appear on your page:

The standard login form merge code will redirect failed login attempts to the WordPress login page (or your customized login page if you followed option 2)

The login form mergecode with AJAX error message will keep users on the same page if their login attempt fails, and display the error message above the login form:

Whichever option your choose, using a mergecode to add a login form within pages on your site is a great way to optimize the user experience for your existing members, and make casual visitors aware of your membership program.

Boost Your Members' Experience With Social Logins

So now you have a beautiful login page of your very own, there's one last thing you can do to really put the cherry on your login page cake – Social Logins!

WishList Member now supports the ability for your members to log in using their Facebook, LinkedIn, X (formerly Twitter), and/or WordPress.com accounts.

This saves your members from having to remember their login details each time they log in!

Social logins are fast becoming people's preferred way to access membership and subscription sites, and now you can offer this option on your membership site with WishList Member.

Read our guide to adding Social Logins to your membership site.

Summary

Creating a website with member login functionality opens the door to a ton of benefits such as access control, personalized user experiences, community building, and monetization opportunities. 

In this guide, we walked you through the process of using WordPress and the powerful WishList Member plugin to create your own membership site without coding. 

From understanding how login pages work in WordPress to installing WishList Member and customizing your login page, we covered all you need to get started. 

Ready to provide an exclusive and engaging experience for your community? Sign up for WishList Member today and transform your online presence.

But a well-structured website is essential if you aspire to run a successful dog-walking business independently.

Well, do we have some good news for you!

The world’s most commonly used content management system, WordPress, when paired with a cost-effective and user-friendly tool like WishList Member, can help you realize your dog-walking business dreams.

In this blog post, we'll guide you on transforming a basic WordPress website into a fully fledged, professional platform for your dog-walking business. 

So, fasten your shoelaces, and let's embark on this exciting journey!

What You Need

If you're new to building websites, you’re probably getting tangled up in research about what’s the best way to go about it. 

Well, we’ve got the low down on exactly what you need to build a professional website where your clients can manage their bookings and payments.

And all you need are four primary tools:

WordPress 

This robust and intuitive platform will form the backbone of your online presence. 

WordPress offers a vast selection of themes and plugins, equipping you with all the necessary tools to craft a visually appealing and highly functional website.

WishList Member

If you're considering a tool to streamline your membership site, look no further than WishList Member. 

This comprehensive and user-friendly plugin integrates seamlessly with WordPress. It provides all the necessary features to create a members-only section on your page, and manage membership tiers and subscriptions effectively. 

Zapier

When it comes to automating tasks and streamlining your workflows, Zapier is a game-changer. 

This powerful and intelligent tool connects with a multitude of apps, facilitating smooth and efficient processes. 

Whether you're looking to synchronize data between different platforms or automate repetitive tasks, Zapier is your go-to solution. 

Later, we’ll show you one specific way to use Zapier for your dog-walking business. 

Calendly

Calendly excels as the perfect assistant for your dog-walking business, managing appointments with precision and convenience. 

This accessible and adaptable tool takes the stress out of scheduling, allowing you to focus more on your furry clients. 

With real-time availability tracking, it ensures you never double-book or miss an appointment.

Its automatic reminders keep you and your human clients on the same page, and its effortless rescheduling feature handles any unexpected changes with ease. 

Delivers a hassle-free scheduling experience to your clients, and set the stage for their satisfaction and your business's success.

Later in the blog, we'll guide you through how to set up each of them. 

Launching Your Dog Walking Website With WordPress

Now, let's delve into how to start your dog-walking business using WordPress in four simple steps.

Step 1: Set Up WordPress

WordPress is a powerful content management system (CMS) that powers over 40% of all websites worldwide. 

A CMS is just a platform through which you can upload and manage things like users, written copy, images, and any other content on your website. 

With a CMS you can create and control your website without having to know any code. That’s right zero coding skills necessary! 

Here's why WordPress is the go-to CMS for aspiring dog walkers planning to start an online venture:

Ease of use: If you're more familiar with dogs than digital technology, that's perfectly fine. WordPress simplifies the site creation process, making it easy for beginners to build a site using a visual editor.

Professional templates: With a pre-made theme you can create a professional-looking website in no time. Many of these themes are free, too.

Cost-effectiveness: Starting a new business often implies working within a tight budget. WordPress is free! 

All you need to do is buy a domain and hosting provider, which is a fraction of the cost of services like Wix and Squarespace. We’ll go over how to do that now!

Purchase a Domain Name & Hosting Service

Get set up with a web host (a web host connects your site to the internet).

Many hosting providers offer package deals, providing a domain name and taking care of the setup process for you. For a high-quality and affordable host that's beginner-friendly. Our star choice is DreamHost.

DreamHost, recommended by the WordPress team, is reliable and offers plans as low as $2.95 per month. 

This includes a free domain for the first year, added security features like a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificate, and they will even install WordPress for you.

Choosing a Theme:

If you're not particularly tech-savvy, we suggest selecting a WordPress theme. You'll be surprised at the wide array of industry-specific themes available.

One example is the free WordPress theme Pet Business by Theme Palace.

Step 2: Install WishList Member

Once your WordPress site and theme are set up, it's time to install the WishList Member tool on your new dog walking website. 

WishList Member is a WordPress plugin that enables you to create a members area on your website. Here are just some of the things you can offer on your website with WishList Member:

• Allow pet owners to schedule and pay for ongoing or one-off dog walking services
• Set up recurring billing for your regular clients
• Offer membership tiers depending on what kind of services your clients want
• Sell online courses and consultations such as dog and puppy training tips. 
• Offer 1:1 dog training consultations
• Provide premium content related to pet ownership or adoption
• And more!

Setting Up WishList Member

Here’s a video showing you exactly how to install and activate WishList Member in WordPress:

Once you’ve done that, you'll need to set up your membership tiers.

Here’s how to do that:

Schedule Walkies With Calendly & Zapier

So, you're rocking it with your dog walking website, and you've got Wishlist Member up and running. That's pawsome! 

But are you tired of the constant back-and-forth trying to schedule appointments? Wish there was a way to spend less time managing calendars and more time playing fetch? We've got just the treat for you!

Calendly lets your clients book their dog's next adventure with you through your website. Your clients can pick a time, pay for the service, and boom, it's walkies time! 

To integrate Calendly with WishList Member, you’ll need to use Zapier, a tool that lets different apps share data and automates processes between them.

Here’s how it’s done:

1. Create a Zapier Account: Sign up for Zapier. The free plan should suffice for starters, but you may want to consider upgrading if you require more advanced features or higher usage.
2. Create a Calendly Account: If you haven't already done got one, create a Calendly account!
3. Connect Calendly to Zapier: In your Zapier account, click on Make a Zap to start a new Zap. Under Choose App & Event search for and select Calendly as your trigger app.
   Choose the trigger event, which might be Invitee Created or Invitee Canceled depending on your needs.
   Click Continue and then Sign in to Calendly to connect your Calendly account to Zapier.
4. Set up the Calendly Trigger: Follow the prompts to set up the Calendly trigger. For example, if you want a new Wishlist Member user to be created whenever someone books an appointment, you'd choose the Invitee Created trigger.
5. Choose Wishlist Member as your Action App: In the Do this… step of creating your Zap, search for and select Wishlist Member as your action app. You'll need to connect your Wishlist Member account to Zapier by following the prompts.
6. Set up the Wishlist Member Action: Depending on your specific needs, you may want to create a new user in Wishlist Member or update an existing user. Follow the prompts to set up the action.
7. Test Your Zap: Once everything is set up, it's a good idea to test your Zap to make sure it works correctly. Click the Test & Continue button. If everything works correctly, you'll see a Test Successful message.
8. Turn On Your Zap: Finally, don't forget to turn on your Zap! It won't work unless it's turned on.

Step 4: Start Marketing Your New Dog Walking Website!

Before you can walk the walk, you’ve got to talk the talk! Get the word out there about your new business.

Create business accounts on major social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram, post about your daily walks, engage with potential clients, and network with other local businesses to extend your reach.

Focus on spreading the word in areas where dog owners hang out. It could be leaving posters at veterinary surgeries or flyering dog parks.

Given the nature of your business, it’s important to focus your marketing efforts locally. Use hashtags with your location on social media, add your business to Google Maps via Google My Business. 

Conclusion

In conclusion, if you're an animal lover looking to embark on a new career or side gig, dog walking can be a great way to profit from your passion.

Whether you crave adventure in wild or cozy cuddles with domestic companions, there's a rewarding animal career waiting to be discovered.

Using WordPress and WishList Member, you can showcase your services and create a seamless experience for clients to subscribe to your services.

To recap, here are four steps for launching a dog walking website using WordPress:

• Set up WordPress.
• Install WishList Member and build your membership site.
• Integrate WishList Member with Calendly via Zapier
• Promote your new dog walking website.

You’re now armed with all the knowledge you need to get your dog walking business up and running online.

All that’s left is to let your love for dogs and passion for the outdoors shine through your new website. 

Remember, one of the keys to running a successful business is excellent customer service. Go the extra mile for your clients (and their furry friends) and you'll be on your way to building a successful dog walking business in no time.

So, what are you waiting for? Strap on those walking shoes, round up some pups, and start your dog walking website today!

Got any questions about starting a website for your small business? Reach out to our support team.

If you liked this article, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and LinkedIn.

One of the major reasons you’ll love using Thrive Themes is that everything was built with design and sales in mind. All of their templates, user interfaces, etc. are beautifully designed and the page templates included in Thrive Architect (you get over 300+ of them) are all expertly created to convert.

WishList Member currently offers direct integration with the following:
Thrive Apprentice
Thrive Architect
Thrive Automator

Thrive Apprentice + WishList Member Integration

WishList Member works out of the box with Thrive Apprentice. Thrive Apprentice is a learning management system (LMS) similar to CourseCure, LearnDash, and LifterLMS.

Thrive Apprentice will help you deliver your digital, online courses in a stylish way.

The integration with WishList Member means that you can set protection for specific courses within Thrive Apprentice that can only be viewed if a member has been granted access using levels in WishList Member.

In other words, you can use your WishList Member memberships to protect your courses. And automatically grant access!

You can read our full documentation about using the Thrive Apprentice integration here.

Thrive Architect + WishList Member Integration

As mentioned above, Thrive Architect is a powerful, marketing oriented page builder. It works similar to other page builders like Elementor, but where Elementor is more design focused, Thrive Architect focuses around speed and conversion ability.

By default, you’ll get a range of blocks/elements that will help you with conversions. Countdowns, trust badges, and delayed content reveal options to name a few.

Of course, it also features all of the regular elements you’ll need to build your pages.

With all that being said, don’t think this is ONLY for building landing or sales pages.

Thrive Architect can be used across your entire membership site to build all of your necessary pages.

Conditionally Show and Hide Thrive Architect Elements with WishList Member

And it’s even better now that there is direct integration with WishList Member. This integration allows you to easily set protection and access for elements within Thrive Architect. Content can be set to only be viewable by specific membership levels. You can also set content to only be viewed by members who are not in a selected level.

Use Cases for the Thrive Architect + WishList Member Integration

To help you jumpstart using this integration to the fullest, here are some use cases. This list is NOT exhaustive at all…

• Targeted Upgrade Offers: Show an upsell or upgrade offer only to those members who it applies to.
• Deliver Bonus Content: Add bonus content to your courses or lessons that only shows for those who bought a membership that included it.
• Teaser Content: Leave your page itself unprotected so people can see some of the content, but protect the rest of the content using this feature. Entices people to sign up.
• Dynamic Members Dashboard: Show only the content/courses they have purchased on their member homepage.
• Booking Link: Put a calendar booking embed inside a protected element so that only your top-tier members can schedule a call with you. Or sell individually.

These are just some ideas to get you thinking in the right direction about this.

Ultimately, you will come up with more ideas and ways to use this feature that is specific to your membership site and niche.

You can learn more by checking the full documentation here.

Thrive Automator + WishList Member Integration

Finally, you can now use WishList Member inside of Thrive Automator!

Thrive Automator is a ‘secret weapon’ you can use to do an unnumbered amount of things with. That’s not very descript and you’ll see some examples below to help clarify. Essentially, we’re talking about Zapier inside of WordPress.

Here’s some things you could automate:

• Add a customer to your mailing list after they receive a certain membership
• Create a new WordPress account with a WishList membership level when an incoming webhook is received (opens the door to all external systems)
• Unlock more content for your members when they complete a course
• Display bonus content after completing certain tasks or sections of content
• Award points when someone comments on a lesson or forum…

The surface really isn’t even being scratched with these examples.

You can check out our full documentation here for Thrive Automator + WishList Member.

So, no matter what niche you’re in, using the Thrive Suite inside your membership site is like having an unfair advantage over everyone else not using these sales-optimized tools.

There you have it, we hope you love this latest integration between Thrive Themes and WishList Member.

However, before you create your membership site on Wix you should consider the following.

1. Do I want to commit to Wix forever?
2. How can I move away from Wix without losing my content and subscribers?
3. Does Wix offer the level of customizability I need?
4. Will I get charged more and more as my membership site and business grows?

Now, I’m completely biased since I’m the CMO at a WordPress Membership plugin company – that is usually a lot cheaper than Wix.

In fact, we’ve begun doing case studies with some of our most successful customers who have said they started on platforms like Wix and others but eventually had to move due to some limitation.

In that process, they ended up losing subscribers because it’s nearly impossible to move credit card data these days and they couldn’t get everyone to resubscribe. Let alone the confusion of having two sites for a period of time.

Needless to say, everyone we’ve spoken to says they wished they started on the right platform for them.

What Functionality Does Your Membership Site Need?

The first thing you need to do is sit down and list out all of the functionality that you want/need for your membership website. For example, here are some features our customers use:

• Payment integration with Stripe, PayPal, or Authorize.net
• Drip content delivery so members get access to new content over time
• Membership tiers with different content or access levels
• Access to exclusive forums or groups
• Downloadable resources like PDFs, eBooks, etc.
• Integration with other applications like MailChimp, Zapier, Google Analytics, etc.

Once you know all of the features you need, you can begin to research which platform will be the best fit. Wix does have some membership functionality, but it may not be as robust as you need.

For example, Wix has limited payment providers and limited storage.

So, if you need to offer a lot of content or have many members, Wix may not be the best option.

Additionally, Wix is not as flexible when it comes to customizations. So, if you need to really customize the look and feel of your membership site, Wix may not be the best platform.

How Much Do You Have to Invest Upfront in Your Membership Site?

Another important consideration is how much you have to invest upfront in your membership site. Wix does have a free plan, but it has limited storage bandwidth, and most importantly it puts ads on your website.

The free plan simply doesn't make sense.

This means you'll need to spend at least some amount of money in order to get a website without ads and with unlimited bandwidth.

Wix advertises their pricing at the annual price. Meaning, the $39/m VIP plan is actually $47/m paid month-to-month. Just a point of consideration that to get savings, you might have to pay upfront for an entire year.

Additionally, as your membership site grows you will need to upgrade your Wix plan in order to accommodate more subscribers and more content. So, there's a potential that your costs could go up over time as your membership site grows.

That however isn't any different with running a WordPress based membership site with a robust system like WishList Member. Now, we don't have “confusing” pricing like Wix (author's opinion only), but you will have to purchase web hosting which can range from $2/month to $100+/month.

Starting out, you can go with cheaper shared hosting from a company like Siteground.

The bottom line is that it's important to consider how much you have to spend upfront as well as ongoing costs when choosing a platform for your membership website.

Do You Plan to Grow Your Membership Site?

Another important consideration is whether or not you plan to grow your membership site. If you're just starting out, it's hard to know exactly how successful your membership site will be.

However, if you have big plans for your membership site, then you need to make sure the platform you choose can accommodate that growth.

A very real fact is that you may only want this to be a side source of income. Not replace your full-time income. If that's the case, having an advanced system like WishList Member may NOT be the right fit.

There's nothing wrong with that.

We don't want you to overspend on features you're not using or plan on using any time soon. That would be a waste of your money.

On the other hand, if you do have big plans and dreams for your membership site, then choosing a platform like WishList Member is probably best to start on from day 1 versus migrating down the road and potentially losing subscribers/members.

Wix vs. WishList Member

So, which platform should you choose for your membership website? Wix or WishList Member?

To answer that question, it really depends on what you need and want for your membership site.

Wix is an all-in-one platform that makes it easy to get started immediately at the cost of customizability and complete control. It is probably costlier in the long-run. Finally, it's “Online Program” feature which lets you sell courses is pretty cookie-cutter.

WishList Member on the other hand has a higher learning-curve. Lets you customize everything you want. Has recently been made easier to use in v3.0. Is a WordPress plugin which means it integrates with a lot of other WordPress plugins and can be extended.

Additionally, with WishList Member you can not only sell courses but also create a true membership site experience where people login and can access a variety of items included in the membership such as courses, live calls, recordings, downloads, forums, etc.

So, it really just depends on what is important to you for your membership website.

Related Questions:

Do membership sites make money?

Yes, membership sites can make money. In order to make money with a membership site, you will need to charge people for access to your content.

There are several ways you can do this such as charging a monthly fee, yearly fee, or per content item (such as a video, course, or PDF).

What makes a good membership site?

A good membership site is one that provides consistent, long-term value to its members and is easy to use. Additionally, a good membership site will have a mix of content types (such as video, audio, and written) to appeal to different learning styles.

How can I create my first membership site?

The best way to create your first membership site is to start with a platform like WishList Member which will give you the flexibility and control you need to build the exact site you want.

We've put together a full guide which you can check out here for step-by-step details.

Hey, John Morris with WishList Products, and in this video, I'm going to be showing you how to use Zapier to help you facilitate free registrations on your membership site. Now, one thing I want to point out before I get started is that this isn't required. You can always come into WishList Member and create a free level and allow people to register for it. And you can use the shortcode creator here on the dashboard page. And if you come over short under Shortcodes, you have registration forms.

And when you create your free level, you can just select that level here, embed the shortcode into a page and that will create a registration form. But that does have a number of fields that are required. And you may want to shorten that down or you may just want it where someone subscribes to, say, your mailing list, you want them automatically added to a free level on your site. And so Zapier can help us facilitate that. OK, so first off, I want to cover a little setup here.

So we'll see here that I am on the member’s tab in WishList Member. I'm on a level I've done a search on a level called demo. I have no members in that right now. And then I'm over here on AWeber and I've created this demo subscriber over here called Demo Guy. And we're going to use this then to set up our Zap and we'll see how that then transfers through into our membership site.

OK, so that's just a little bit of setup. You don't have to do this with AWeber, it can be with any autoresponder that you have. You could use the if you're using Elementor, you could use the form element that they have and use the Webhook functionality. This could be from a payment provider. So there are lots of options. But I do want to show you this subscriber to free level setup because that is a common thing that people like to do.

All right. So there's our setup. So now, when we come in, we're going to create our Zap. And I'm going you should see something like this when you first create your Zap and you want to find whatever app you're using as your trigger. In this case, I'm going to be using AWeber. OK, so I'll select AWeber. And then under the trigger event, I'm going to select “New Subscriber” and then we’ll hit continue.

It will ask me what account I have one AWeber account, so we'll select that. Again here, select that specific account, and then we'll come in here to list. Now I may need to regenerate this because I just created that demo list here, so let's just see if that shows up here, OK? And you can see it right here. So we'll select demos and then we want to go to “Status.” So, you know, unsubscribed unconfirmed, but of course, we want subscribed here.

So we'll select that and hit continue. So basically what’s going to happen is when someone becomes fully subscribed to, in my case, this Demo's list, then that's when this Zap will be triggered. And so we can go ahead and hit test trigger here. And you'll see here that it brought in my demo guy that I set up. OK, so that shows us that we have that contact and now we can hit continue, and then the next thing we need to do is we need to connect it to our WishList Member site.

Now, one thing you may need to check here is if we come over here under “Setup” and we're going to go into the integrations section here and we're going to go under the “Other Services” tab. And under “Other Services”, you will see Zapier listed here. And if we open that up, then it's going to give us an API key specific for Zapier. So when you're over here creating the Zap and we look for WishList Member here, then you may need to initially set up your WishList Member site.

Now, I have mine already set up, so it's showing in here, but you may need to walk through a little bit of setup and what you need in order to do that, as I said, is in this section right here, the WishList Member URL and the Zapier API Key. So Zapier will walk you through that and getting that setup. But again, in this case, I just want to make sure that this is set up here.

All right. So now we have our WishList Member account or WishList Member site that we're going to connect to. Click “Choose an event” in here. Then we want to do “Add or Update member,” because we are going to assume that this is someone who doesn't already exist on our site. And so if we just go straight in adding a member to the level, we're not going be able to do that because they're not a member yet on our sites, we'll do “Add or Update member,” and hit continue and then we'll choose an account.

And so I have a number of them in here. I'm just going to use my student portal and that will check to make sure that that is connected. Once it's connected, we can go ahead and hit continue. And that will take us to this setup action piece. Now, this is the part where Zapier comes into play because, again, as I mentioned, you can always use the WishList Member registration form, the Shortcodes that I showed you, but there's a number of required fields on there that you're not able to remove because we do need that data.

Here with Zapier. We can sort we can help to fill in that data with some of the existing data that we get from the subscription. So, for example, username, instead of having the user create their own username, we can just come in here and use their email address if we want. And then, of course, under email address, we would use email address as well. Now, “Update user if existing.” What this is going to do is if the email address already exists on the WishList Member site that we're adding them to is just going to update their information with the information that we receive here instead of returning an error and not allowing them to be registered.

Now, the main thing is the Membership Level. It'll add the Membership Level that we're going to select later, but it will also update their other information, like their name and so forth. So just keep that in mind. If they're entering that information, you probably always want the latest information anyway. So that's probably just fine. Under password, you can either, if you want to specify a common password, you sure can. But anybody who goes to the Zap is going to get that same password.

Instead, it's probably best to leave this blank. And it says, “If not specified, WishList Member will auto-generate generate a random password.” That's probably what you want. Next, we can come here under full name, and again we can use our data from AWeber. So there's the name and then we can split first name and last name and AWeber already does that for us. So we'll see first name here and then last name, if we come under show options, we'll see last name there as well.

Next is the level. So this is where we'll come in here and we'll scroll down a little bit and we'll find our demo level again, whatever level you want to add them to, we'll go ahead and select that. Transaction ID, in this particular case, that really doesn't apply. But if you were using this with a payment provider, you'd probably want to pass through the transaction ID here and then send an auto-generated email. So this is whether or not to send an email to the user that comes through this.

The new member, send them a welcome email, the one that is that you have set up already in WishList Member for the particular Membership Level that you're adding them to. Now, if you're generating passwords, if you're auto-generating the password back up here, then you're going to want to send this email. Otherwise, they're not going to know what their password is. So we'll set that to true.

Here's some other information you can add if you have it. So phone numbers, address, etc. and that's pretty much it, that will get all the information over.

And all you've actually collected from the user is their name and their email address. But you're able to come in here and pass all the information you need to WishList Member to create a full registration. So we'll go ahead and continue here now and that will load. And it's basically showing us what it's going to do. And then we'll hit “Test and Review” and that's going to actually send it over and it will tell us if it was created or not.

And so it says a member was set to WishList Member right now. So we'll come back over here under our demo level here, will redo the search. And now you can see Demo Guy exists here under this Membership Level has access to the demo level that we wanted.

And so, again, that's how you can use Zapier to help you facilitate free registrations on your site. In this case from an autoresponder, it could be on Elementor, Divi, or whatever form, anything that allows you to send a Webhook, etc. You can run that through Zapier and allow you to do this kind of thing. So that's the setup. Once you're all done, you would just you would just come in here, turn on your Zap. And now anybody who subscribes to that mailing list that I selected will be automatically added to that level over in WishList Member and you're all set to go.

So hopefully that spark some ideas for you. That's the fun with Zapier. There are all sorts of fun things that you can do with this, and it makes it really useful to be able to do some creative things with your marketing and how you run your site and so forth. And of course, as always, if you don't have a copy of WishList Member, you can head over to WishList Member.com in order to learn more about the product. All right.

That's it. Thanks for watching. We'll talk to you next time.

Hello everyone, and welcome. In today's video, I'm going to show you how to create a landing page using Divi's premade layouts. 

So let's dove in and let me show you how to do that. So over here, I'm in my WordPress admin dashboard. So the first thing we need to do is to download the images that we need for our website. So, of course, the different types of membership websites. So you need to decide what your membership website is and then download the images that you need.

So I use a few relative free websites. So let's head over here and take a look at some of the sites that I use. So the first one here is Pixabay, this is really good. All the images here are royalty-free, which means you can use them as much as you want without any licensing issues. All right. So let's say our membership website is about cooking so we can just search for cooking images here and then choose the image that works with this design.

So I want to go with this one here, because I like the fact that over here I have a space where I can add my call to action and a brief description of what my website is about. So this is what you need to do to choose the right images for your website. So I'm going to go ahead and click this and download the right size. So I'm going to come over here. You can see it says Free Download. Now, the size that I normally go with for my hero images is 1920×1280.

So I'm going to go ahead and download it and then just click download, OK? I also need to look for other images that complement this. So I'm just going to come over here and see what else I can use so I may want to use some of these for my background. So I'm going to go with it, see what works here. All right. Let's go with this one here. So I've downloaded. OK, so these are the two main images that I'm going to use for my site.

So now back over here to our main website, we need to go to “Media” and click on “Add New”. So now we just need to add those two images to come over here to “Choose file”. And in my downloads, these are the two images from the open that upload and I'm going to add the other one. OK, so these are the two images that I need for my website. Now let's go ahead and create the landing page for our membership site.

OK, so now it's a matter of just adding a brand new page. I'm going to click here and “Add New.” Now I'm just gonna call my page “Landing one.” But of course, this could work as your main landing page. So it's up to you how you're going to have this. You can have people point to a specific landing page or you can have it as the main page of your website. So let's just call this “Landing One”. All right. So now I'm going to go ahead and click on “Use Divi Builder.”

All right. So for this design, I'm not going to build from scratch because I need to save a lot of time. So I'm going to click here where it says, “Choose a premade layout.” And we have a lot of premade layouts here. So you can see here all these designs are amazing. Now, I want to tell you something very important here. A lot of times when people look at these premade layouts, they're looking at them for that specific function.

But what people don't realize is you can pretty much use any premade layout here. All you have to do is to change the content. And this will work fine. So that's what we're going to do here. So as you can see here, we have all these different layouts. So I will just go ahead and choose whatever layout that I need for my landing page and then use that as the main page. So I'm going to browse through here and see if something catches my eye.

I like this one here. In fact, this is food recipes. This could actually work very well. So, in fact, let's just go ahead and use this one here. So I'm going to click on “Use This Layout.” So what's going to happen now is all the elements of this page are going to be loaded onto my page. And then all I have to do is to go in, and change the design, change the colors and change the contents that's on this page.

So it's very, very easy to use and very easy to set up. Now, when it comes to the loading time here, it depends with the internet connection, but usually it's pretty fast. OK, so it looks like everything is going well. And I have this checkmark now. So the page will refresh and show you everything on this page. So as you can see here, we have different elements for our page. So now let's start working on our site.

All right. So the first thing we need to do here is to go into my section settings here, go to background so we can see here. This is where they added the image. So we want to add our own image. So what you need to do is to click on the image tab, delete this one here, and then click on the plus button. And now we need to find our image that we added earlier on. So I'm going to scroll down here and this is the one, “Upload an image.”

And now you can see our image has been added and it looks beautiful. All right. So now that we have this, I'm going to save that. Next, we need to go in and customize this information here and make it ours. So let's start here with this top part. OK, so this we're going to rename this to our website. So I'm going to say “Cooking School.” There we go. And then here, I'm just gonna leave this text as it is.

But I want to show you something quickly here in case you want to use different fonts for your design. So I want to go to the to the design tab and making sure I click here on this brush tool. It's gonna take me to my Heading 1 here so I can change this font now to something that I, you know, that I really like. And I'm going to go with Montserrat and there you go. You can see that this now has changed and this is how you update your landing page element.

All right. So with that, I'm going to save I'm going to also come here to the paragraph text, click on design text, and then I'm going to go ahead and change this as well. Now, I can see here the size is a bit too big, I can just, you know, drag it down a bit to about 22 and save now a featured recipe here. I really don't need this. So another way to work with this is to go ahead and delete what you don't need so much and highlight over here and then delete it like that.

Now you can see it's gone and this is how you customize an already created premade layout with Divi. All right. So now I'm going to work on this button here. So I'm going to click here on this gear icon and let's work on the colors. So here on the button, you can see “Use custom styles for button” is already activated. So all I have to do now is to come over here and change my colors. So I've changed my color here.

And I also need to do the same to the border. And now you can see my color has changed. But you know a way to make this. I don't really like that color. So I'm going to change my text color here to white. And I'm also going to make it bold because I really want to stand out. So I'm going to come over here. And now you can see it's bold and I'm also going to increase the size and scroll back to the top here and adjust our size.

So we want our button nice and big. So we're going to go with 20 here. So I really like the way it's looking now. And these are minor tweaks that we can do to our design to make it look like our own design. So as you can see, I've saved a lot of time. I didn't have to come up with a layout that I need for this page. This is working really well for me. All right. So now I can save this.

Oh, in fact, you know what, I've said make this so we can change this text here to “Memberships. OK, so this call to action will take them to the memberships page. And over here on the link, this is where you can add your button URL to that main landing page, which has all the pricing options. All right. So now I'm going to save this. Now, moving on. You can see we have training recipes.

Now, to be honest, I don't really like this training recipes thing because this is a membership website. So it's nothing to do with training memberships. So what we need to do here is to talk about perhaps maybe the benefits of signing up for this membership. So let's transform this into the benefits. OK, so I'm going to come over here to the main title and I'm just going to rename this and call this “Benefits.” OK, let's change the font and come back over here.

And this is Heading 2 and I'm just going to choose Montserrat, and we're going to make it all caps and the size is a bit too big. Let's bring this down a little bit about, say, 24, and we're going to make this bold. And let's change the color as well, and we're going to add a bit of letter spacing too. There we go. So I really like sometimes when I'm deciding to use letter spacing. Right. So now that I have this, I'm going to change to bold.

And now that's looking really, really nice. OK, so I'm going to save that. And now it's time to change this content over here. So I'm going to replace this with blurbs. So let's see here. So here this is a blurb. But of course, the way it's structured is not how ideally I would like to have this. So let's not use our Lorem text. So I want to search for Lorem 2. So I really like using this because this gives me my dummy text that I need to use for my site.

So now I'm going to replace this like that. And so this is where your benefit one would go. OK. And for our text here, we might need to go in and customize a little bit. Now, over here you can either have an image or you can have an icon. So it's up to you how you want to design this. But normally I would go with icons. So I'm going to come over here to image an icon and “Activate” use icon.

So here now I can choose the icon that I need for benefit one. So maybe. I can go with that. Now, let me stylize this and make it look the way I want, so I'm going to start here with benefit one and this is heading three, as you can see. Let's change our font here to keep everything consistent. We're going to make it all caps. Actually, no. Right. Let's leave it like that. Change our color here and let's make it bold because we really want this to stand out.

OK, so benefit one. Now we need to adjust the paragraph text as well. So it's fine here as Monsterrat, but we need to increase the size a little bit. So let's go with that perhaps 16. Right. So, OK, I like 16, but now as I'm looking at this, I really don't like the way the size of the icon, so I may want to go in and make it slightly smaller. All right. So let's make adjustments to our icon here.

All right. So to make adjustments to our icon, we need to come over here and then you can either use a circle on the icon here. This is also quite cool. So let's try that and see how this looks. OK, so now this is our circle, and then we can also change the color of our icon that's inside that circle. And now I need to adjust the size. So here we go, icon font size.

We can reduce that a little bit to about, say, 30, and I'm happy with that, I'm going to save this. Now, I want to also save a lot of time here, redesigning this all the time here. So I'm going to delete this, delete the other one here and then just duplicate this a few times and drag this into position like that. And like that. OK, so now we have our benefits page all sorted. So next, I'm going to come over here and work on this little line.

So I'm going to come over here to design and change that line color and save. OK, so now we have our main hero, part of our website, and then over here we have the benefits of using the site. Now, don't forget, you need to come over here and change the icons themselves because, of course, you don't want this to be the same icon. So let's go with this one here. Save that. I'm going to change the other one.

Come to “Image” and “Icon” and this one here is going to be right, let's go with this camera here, OK, and save. All right. So moving on, here is a part where we can have a bit more information about the course itself. So let's go in and make a few adjustments here as well. So I'm going to use some Lorem text here just to save me a lot of time. So I'm just going to copy the heading parts.

Then I'm going to come over here to design and I'm going to target this text here and this is H2 and I notice that I'm using this brush tool. It's very, very handy. So I'm going to come over here and change to Montserrat and look how beautiful that looks. Now, next, I'm going to come over here to paragraph text. Same, I'm going to change this to Montserrat and the size. I may want to reduce this a little bit, maybe 18 or better.

OK, and then finally, we have this button here. And for consistency sake, I'm going to change the button color here, as we did before. And now that looks much better. And all I have to do now is make this font bold. Great. So now this part here is looking, OK, I'm going to save this and let's find out where that image is. OK, so I've just deleted the image, so now we can go ahead and save. Now this stock pics we don't really need that, so all we have to do is to delete it.

And here we have a call to action. So, again, we can decide to either have it or maybe even remove it altogether. So I'm going to keep it. But let me just delete what else I don't need here. So this here can go. And the newsletter. Do we really need the newsletter? I don't think so. So let's delete the newsletter as well. OK, great. So now let's just work on this and pretty much we're almost done.

So I'm going to go in here now and change this background image. Now, remember, we downloaded two images. So now it's time to find our other image, which is this one right here, upload an image. But what are we going to do now is we're going to do something slightly different here. We don't really want this image really showing like that. So let's add an effect to this. So I'm going to come over here “Add whites” come back to the image and we are going to add a blending mode.

Which is called “Lighton,” and then all we have to do now is to go back over here to our image and drag the slider down just to reveal that image in the background just ever so slightly, just like that. Right. I think that looks great. Now I'm going to save this. And then all I have to do now is to come over here and make adjustments to this call to action. So let me start here with this title.

So next, I'm going to come over here to design and I'm going to target this and change my font to Montserrat, reduce the size a little bit because it's a bit too much. There we go, so I'll go with 26 and I'm also going to change the color here, maybe go with a much darker color like that and then save. And then next need to target this paragraph text here and also change the text to Montserrat. So go ahead and select that and reduce the size as well.

There we go. I think that's that's looking very nice now. Finally, I need to work on the button here so I can just go over here to the button and click here on my module settings and I can leave it as “Learn More” but you can change it to whatever you want. And also you have your link here. I'm just gonna add a blank one. And now it's time to go to “Design Button” and let's change our colors one more time.

So our button text is going to be white, so it stands out on the background. And then over here I just need to change. The colors of the button and make it bold, so over here, I'm going to change this to Bold and now you can see that this is looking really, really nice. OK, so all I have to do now is to save and pretty much we all have our landing page for our cooking membership website.

So as you can see, this was a really straightforward to do. I know this could take a bit of time, but surely if you were to start this from scratch, you would spend even more time. So as you can see, I didn't need to worry about all the mobile views, because if we take a look at this website, everything is all optimized because of the premade layout. So let's switch over here and see what it looks like on a mobile device.

As you can see here, everything is in place, it's laid out correctly. And this works beautifully on pretty much any type of screen. So let's go over here to the phone. And again, if I scroll back here to the phone, you can see everything is nice. It's easy to read and it is great on all mobile devices. So this layout design here can be used pretty much on any type of website. So I'm going to have this available for you to download and use.

But be aware that this only works with Divi, so it only works with Divi. You do need to have Divi installed for you to use this premade layout. All right, guys, that's all I have for you in today's video. Thank you very much for watching. And I'll see you in the next video. Take care.