The Biggest Problem With Membership Software

11 replies
As a programmer, I am always looking to better my code.

I am getting started on a new membership site software that I intend to use for myself, and will probably end up giving away to Warriors.

The goal is to build an easy to use application with the ability to easily add third party plugins. That way I don't have to be the only one building onto it. If I later decide to make it commercial, it would be easy for others to develop addons.

Now, I have not used too many other people's membership applications, so I don't know the good, the bad, and the ugly. That's why I am coming to you.

What would you love to see changed in the software you are currently using?
#biggest #membership #problem #software
  • Profile picture of the author Jared Alberghini
    2 words : OPEN SOURCE

    That's what I would change...

    - Jared
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  • Profile picture of the author ScottRaven
    I think the software should be easily transferred to a new owner for a site.

    What I mean is that I have flipped 2 membership sites recently and made pretty decent return on my investment. The only problem is that the new owner has to basically bribe the current paying members into canceling their membership subscriptions in Paypal with me and starting them with him.

    As you can imagine, unless the bribe is a big one; most subscribers may think twice about changing over to a new owner.

    If the subscription management is built into the script and it bills their Paypal account directly each month, then it is easier to move a database over to the new owner...even if he must purchase the underlying software first.

    Did any of that make sense? I hope so. LOL

    Thanks,

    Scott
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    • Profile picture of the author Johnny Slater
      While a nice idea Scott I don't believe it is possible. PayPal subscriptions are created once, not every time the member is billed. The initial charge tells PayPal who to send the money to and it will look at that every time it charges a new billing cycle.

      There is no easy way to transfer a site using PayPal subscriptions without having members resubscribe. Trust me, if it was something that could be handled by the script itself then all of us would have already had it coded into our products.

      The limits are placed and imposed by PayPal and there currently is no easy way to handle situations where you want to transfer ownership of a membership site to a new owner.

      Originally Posted by ScottRaven View Post

      I think the software should be easily transferred to a new owner for a site.

      What I mean is that I have flipped 2 membership sites recently and made pretty decent return on my investment. The only problem is that the new owner has to basically bribe the current paying members into canceling their membership subscriptions in Paypal with me and starting them with him.

      As you can imagine, unless the bribe is a big one; most subscribers may think twice about changing over to a new owner.

      If the subscription management is built into the script and it bills their Paypal account directly each month, then it is easier to move a database over to the new owner...even if he must purchase the underlying software first.

      Did any of that make sense? I hope so. LOL

      Thanks,

      Scott
      Signature

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      • Profile picture of the author Kirk Ward
        Originally Posted by Johnny Slater View Post

        While a nice idea Scott I don't believe it is possible. PayPal subscriptions are created once, not every time the member is billed. The initial charge tells PayPal who to send the money to and it will look at that every time it charges a new billing cycle.

        There is no easy way to transfer a site using PayPal subscriptions without having members resubscribe. Trust me, if it was something that could be handled by the script itself then all of us would have already had it coded into our products.

        The limits are placed and imposed by PayPal and there currently is no easy way to handle situations where you want to transfer ownership of a membership site to a new owner.
        One thought about transferring a membership site and not requiring members to re-subscribe, is to incorporate the business, open a bank account in the corporations name, and then, when you are ready to flip the site, you merely sell the corporation, bank account and all. After you have distributed the assets (cash) in a proper manner, of course.

        Kirk
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        "We are not here to sell a parcel of boilers and vats, but the potentiality of growing rich beyond the dreams of avarice."

        Dr. Samuel Johnson (Presiding at the sale of Thrales brewery, London, 1781)
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  • Profile picture of the author TheRichJerksNet
    Well since I code my own sites from scratch the only thing I can tell you is this .. Stay Away From Open Source Code. I would not allow others to create plugins and etc for the site, this is where the hackers come in and especially when you are dealing with membership type sites that have logins, personal information, members emails, and etc...

    Build it from scratch and from the ground up.. Keep full control over the code yourself because this only helps protect your customers.

    James
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  • Profile picture of the author Mike Hill
    The sales process...

    All other membership scripts ask for Name, Email, Addresss, etc.... before the sale is taken place from PayPal. A lot of abandonment takes place at this juncture. You should have yours get the sale processed directly from the "Click Here To Buy" button on the sales page and then be redirected to the sign-up upon successful PayPal payment.

    I'm sure other marketers will agree on this point!

    Mike Hill
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    • Profile picture of the author Johnny Slater
      Mike, there are scripts like BFM that let you choose to take payment before or after signup. I haven't tested the effects of one over the other but I'm sure there are others who have.

      Originally Posted by Mike Hill View Post

      The sales process...

      All other membership scripts ask for Name, Email, Addresss, etc.... before the sale is taken place from PayPal. A lot of abandonment takes place at this juncture. You should have yours get the sale processed directly from the "Click Here To Buy" button on the sales page and then be redirected to the sign-up upon successful PayPal payment.

      I'm sure other marketers will agree on this point!

      Mike Hill
      Signature

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  • Profile picture of the author Bigsofty
    Open source has always caused me problems. I'd rather pay for a decent solution - also open source stuff forever needs updating, promptly breaking each and every customisation you ever made (including the ones you forgot about)

    Also the support generally sucks big time. You end up begging for help on some geeky forum where people politely tell you to quit complaining because it's FREE!!!

    Well sorry but my time is NOT free and I can't be asked to spend hours trying to figure out what on a commerical script would probably be a button push.


    B.
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  • Profile picture of the author Chris Ramsey
    Wow, lots of good responses in such a short time!

    So right now it sounds like the biggest problem is user experience. I can relate to that 100%. In every web application I develop, that is the number one point of focus for me. Some of my clients don't see eye to eye with me on that, but those are the ones who won't be making money for too long either.

    Social networking inside the suite would be a definite plus. I was just thinking the other day how I would love to take an online class with someone and be able to talk (easily) with the other students. This is a big area I intend on spending time on.

    From what I hear, it sounds like this forum would be a great place to find willing testers on both fronts, users and owners. It will be a while until I have something I'd be willing to release to the public, but if anyone wants to volunteer ahead of time to be a guinea pig, I'd love to take your name down.

    Also, to those who discard the open source idea, as a programmer open source is a goldmine of information. It's how many of us learned what we know. I have yet to build an app that has gone open source, and I don't intend for this one to. While I love the idea behind it, I just don't want the responsibility that comes with it.
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  • Profile picture of the author BIG Mike
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    • Profile picture of the author Chris Ramsey
      Originally Posted by BIG Mike View Post

      A far better way is often to provide a simple API and then actively collaborate with select developers. It's far less hassle than the full open source route and enhances the value of the original product tremendously.
      This is similar to what I'm planning on doing. I recently built another CMS that I plan on using the same methods from. While the API is extremely simple, it allows for very easy integration of external PHP.
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  • Profile picture of the author Kirk Ward
    Originally Posted by scheda View Post

    As a programmer, I am always looking to better my code.

    I am getting started on a new membership site software that I intend to use for myself, and will probably end up giving away to Warriors.

    The goal is to build an easy to use application with the ability to easily add third party plugins. That way I don't have to be the only one building onto it. If I later decide to make it commercial, it would be easy for others to develop addons.

    Now, I have not used too many other people's membership applications, so I don't know the good, the bad, and the ugly. That's why I am coming to you.

    What would you love to see changed in the software you are currently using?
    I think you would a popular feature to be for the application to handle remote membership sites (different domains and IP addresses) as well as allowed you to manage membership sites for others ... basically create membership sites as a product.

    Kirk
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    "We are not here to sell a parcel of boilers and vats, but the potentiality of growing rich beyond the dreams of avarice."

    Dr. Samuel Johnson (Presiding at the sale of Thrales brewery, London, 1781)
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