Finding The Right Features For Your Membership Site

By Author: Marilyn Spicer
Total Articles: 1
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A lot of people just starting off with a new online business have no idea about how and whether to use membership software. Many entrepreneurs with something to sell take the easy way out and simply add their products to online mega-stores and copy-paste the widget code on their own sites. However, these people are missing out big-time, because a member-only section is one of the most powerful tools in a webmaster's toolkit to help monetize content and members.

There are many obvious benefits, including instant payments to the seller's own bank account and not having to pay the online mega-store a cut of the sales along with additional monthly or annual fees. Other advantages include powerful member management and the ability to integrate multiple payment providers and other scripts such as affiliate programs. It can also be used for managing email lists and sending newsletters.

One of the main benefits or desired features in membership software is the ability to add an unlimited number of items and subscription levels. Members can choose which level to subscribe to, since each one may offer different types of ...
... content or a differing amount of content than other levels. Some levels may even offer incremental content, where subscribers can be billed on a daily or weekly basis.

The choices in terms of payment processors are unlimited. When using a third-party online store, the choice is usually limited to credit cards and one or two other payment gateways. However, this tool allows for virtually unlimited integration of all processors and different kinds of payment systems, including mobile phones and COD if there are products that need to be delivered.

It makes things a lot easier if the content delivery mechanism (as in CMS) and other scripts used to attract and track visitors can be integrated with the member areas. For instance, if an affiliate program and CMS are integrated with the member log-in system, referred visitors seeking a specific product can be sent to their own special landing page. A free preview is available on this page, and members can log in to the member area to see the full product, while visitors can sign up to become new members and gain access to the content.

The administration of the whole thing also becomes more flexible for webmasters. The most common method is for the admin control panel to be accessible online on the web server. The admin can log in securely using a simple web browser and manage users, change passwords, send out notifications or newsletters, view reports, etc.

The control panel can alternatively be managed from a local computer. The actual password-protected member area is still online and installed as a script directly on the web server. Only the admin part of the tool is installed locally, and connects to the server using a secure FTP connection for sending commands and uploading and downloading data.

Choosing and installing the right membership software will not only create all the benefits described above, but will also make the site and the company or individual behind it look more professional. It goes without saying that the content needs to be original, exclusive and interesting or useful enough to attract and retain members. Once it reaches this level, the site will take on a life of its own as more and more members sign up and the revenue starts growing exponentially.

Making your website correct from the start is very important, you need powerful membership software that can make your site look professional. That means with WordPress or just standard html. Make sure you do your search before you get your WordPress membership software. See http://www.MembersGear.com.