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Membership Site - advice please???

by tyson4
25 replies
Hello everybody

I'm a relative newbie, and i'm going to start my own membership site. Most of the contents is more or less sorted for the first 2 months now!

The problem I have is how to set it up? That is, is it absolutely essential to get one of these membership software which are quite expensive from the start (well expensive for a newbie)?

Or is there a way around this?

One way around it that I thought of was by using aweber (redirect member to aweber page after paying where they fill their info, then send them their weekly email with a link to the membership download page for that week. Not brilliant i know!!! Is there another way around it, which isn't very expensive????

I would really appreciate any suggestions an advice on this?

Regards
Ger
#advice #membership #site
  • Profile picture of the author Kyle Tully
    Hi Ger

    There are many ways to setup a simple membership site without any special software.

    Aweber is a brilliant option, you can either send the content direct in the email or link them to a secret page on your website.

    You can also do some very simple password protection using Wordpress, or your Cpanel account. I taught both of these in my Overnight Membership Site program and know quite a few sites (some very expensive) using only this method.

    Once you have some paying members and can see the site is going to be a success then you can invest in a membership site script, but they're mostly overkill when you're just getting started.

    Hope that helps
    Kyle
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  • Profile picture of the author Dan Ambrose
    I highly recommend the RAPID ACTION PROFITS Membership addon- It has everything you need.

    Here's the links:

    Rapid Action Profits

    http://rap-extras.com/addons/mbrshp/index.php

    Good luck with it
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  • Profile picture of the author BrainDance
    Hi There
    I have run membership sites for many years and have been thru several popular ones, so here is what my thoughts are, for what it is worth. Keep in mind, I'm not an internet marketer and that isnt my niche, but my membership sites range from 1200 to 11k.

    aMember: cost 179.00 owned license
    easy install if you know the basics of setting up a database
    Customization: several pages can be customized to suit your design
    Support: great
    Features: as many level of membership and access as you need
    built in affiliate program
    free memberships, paid, single item downloads
    built in newsletter sending
    many plugins for various other scripts if needed (such as WordPress,Joomla,4images,etc)
    Ive used this one for 5 yrs.
    amember.com

    iSubscribe by Digivendor.com: 40.00 owned license
    very basic, very clean, easy install
    protects member pages, paypal run.
    optional add on affiliate program
    I like this one, affordable and good support, both presales and post sales.

    Another is interology.com
    free and paid version (199.00)
    various features, more membership options such as member profile pages,video, integration with website, add additional pages.

    Happy trails!
    Linda
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  • Profile picture of the author RRicart
    I agree with the advice above from Kyle but I did some quick research and found this option for you - it appears to be a free membership script and the look of the demo, the site design looks pretty nice - however, I dont know how well it functions...since its free its worth a try.

    Its not an affiliate link - just pulled it from google....
    Profile Manager Basic: Free and Flexible Membership Script

    I run a membership site where I use amember and phpfox - but I know some folks who integrate a system like e107 and a membership script...maybe the script above along with e107 is a good option for what you are trying to do..
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  • Profile picture of the author UncleHQ
    Hi,

    You can pick up a script called John's Little Script For Running A Membership site for less than $50 which is good if on a budget and you don't require affiliate tracking.

    Advantages over an autoresponder are that it is a unified membership area protection script with build in protection against password sharing (you limit the amount of I.P. Addresses) and it works with the three big online retailers for collection payment and cancellation management.

    Shoot me a P.M. if that sounds interesting to you.

    Brian
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    • Profile picture of the author David-JP
      A simple method is to put wordpress into a subdirectory, and stick your content in it. Then use your cpanel to password protect it.
      Collect the orders via paypal / aweber, and email the members the single password you created with cpanel. Then change the password every month.

      If you want to automate the process more, then you can use a membership script like amember to lock up the content and handle the passwords etc..

      David
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      The Nuts and Bolts of Starting-Up and Running a Successful Membership Site
      ==Membership Academy== aMember/Wishlist Hacks and How To Videos
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      • Profile picture of the author Hesaidblissfully
        You may also want to check out Jimmy D. Brown's Membernaire. It's basically a series of tutorials on how to set up and run a membership site and deliver content via autoresponder. I don't have the product, but I listened to a videocast he did last month and it seems solid. The sales page is here (not an aff. link):

        How To Setup Your Own Membership Site in 48 Hours Or Less
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        • Profile picture of the author 440Music
          The one thing I didn't see in any of the answers that were given is how to get members. If I use amember.com do they provide membership list or do I have to get the members myself? I know program like jamola, wordpress, phpnuke, maxnuke, e107, jamroom, and many other membership programs because I've tried them all but the one common aspect of those programs is that you have to get the members yourself. So if you have to get the members your self with amamber, rapid action, and the others then why pay for a profession program until you have the members to convert.

          So my question is does amember provide a membership list you can draw from?

          TBones
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          • Profile picture of the author Hesaidblissfully
            Originally Posted by 440Music View Post

            The one thing I didn't see in any of the answers that were given is how to get members. If I use amember.com do they provide membership list or do I have to get the members myself? I know program like jamola, wordpress, phpnuke, maxnuke, e107, jamroom, and many other membership programs because I've tried them all but the one common aspect of those programs is that you have to get the members yourself. So if you have to get the members your self with amamber, rapid action, and the others then why pay for a profession program until you have the members to convert.

            So my question is does amember provide a membership list you can draw from?

            TBones
            You'd still have to get members yourself. You do this by driving targeted traffic to your membership website and converting them into members (there are tons of posts here on generating traffic and sales conversion). The reason you pay for the script is because you still have to have the INFRASTRUCTURE of the site in place before you have actual members. Otherwise they'd be pretty ticked off when they sign up for the site, only to find out it doesn't work.
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          • Profile picture of the author Glenn Grundberg
            Originally Posted by 440Music View Post

            The one thing I didn't see in any of the answers that were given is how to get members. If I use amember.com do they provide membership list or do I have to get the members myself? I know program like jamola, wordpress, phpnuke, maxnuke, e107, jamroom, and many other membership programs because I've tried them all but the one common aspect of those programs is that you have to get the members yourself. So if you have to get the members your self with amamber, rapid action, and the others then why pay for a profession program until you have the members to convert.

            So my question is does amember provide a membership list you can draw from?

            TBones
            ROFLMAO

            Sorry.
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            • Profile picture of the author Chris Lockwood
              Originally Posted by Glenn Grundberg View Post

              ROFLMAO

              Sorry.
              Glenn, why are you laughing? When I bought amember, they recruited the first 50,000 members for me. That's why they have to charge almost $200 for the script.

              I do have to admit that I'm getting tired of paying for all the memberships on subjects that don't interest me, just because my name keeps being drawn from their member pool.
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              Comprehensive membership site training
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          • Profile picture of the author Kim Standerline
            Huh,

            Is this chappie for real

            Originally Posted by 440Music View Post

            The one thing I didn't see in any of the answers that were given is how to get members. If I use amember.com do they provide membership list or do I have to get the members myself? I know program like jamola, wordpress, phpnuke, maxnuke, e107, jamroom, and many other membership programs because I've tried them all but the one common aspect of those programs is that you have to get the members yourself. So if you have to get the members your self with amamber, rapid action, and the others then why pay for a profession program until you have the members to convert.

            So my question is does amember provide a membership list you can draw from?

            TBones
            Signature
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          • Profile picture of the author RRicart
            Originally Posted by 440Music View Post

            The one thing I didn't see in any of the answers that were given is how to get members. If I use amember.com do they provide membership list or do I have to get the members myself? I know program like jamola, wordpress, phpnuke, maxnuke, e107, jamroom, and many other membership programs because I've tried them all but the one common aspect of those programs is that you have to get the members yourself. So if you have to get the members your self with amamber, rapid action, and the others then why pay for a profession program until you have the members to convert.

            So my question is does amember provide a membership list you can draw from?

            TBones
            Hi Tbones,

            Amember is a membership script, they provide you the software necessary to manage a membership site - its your sole responsibility to grow a list. Its really not that difficult, if you have a good product, then word of mouth will carry you, viral marketing is a good method to grow a membership site in a particular niche, and also use other methods of marketing to grow that list, once you have a decent size list, create your membership site, use social network marketing techniques, article marketing, - there are hundreds of resources.....perform a search in the forum and you'll learn how to get those members...
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      • Profile picture of the author Chris Lockwood
        Originally Posted by David-JP View Post

        A simple method is to put wordpress into a subdirectory, and stick your content in it. Then use your cpanel to password protect it.
        Collect the orders via paypal / aweber, and email the members the single password you created with cpanel. Then change the password every month.
        That works, but it sucks. It does nothing to keep people from "sharing" the password, and for the honest members, it's a hassle to have to look for that email every month (which may get lost), rather than being able to choose your own password.

        That method will also generate a lot more support hassles regarding passwords. This reason alone is worth the price of a script.
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  • Profile picture of the author samstephens
    Another thing to keep in mind when selecting membership software: how long will it last for you?

    Are you going to grow out of it quickly?

    And if so, do you really want the nightmare of moving from one solution to a better one a few months down the track?


    In the far majority of cases, you're probably better off just saving up your money, and then when you've got enough, buy the solution you really want.

    This way you won't have headaches down the track.

    I've worked with clients who move to DLGuard memberships after using other systems for awhile. It's never simple, so it's a good idea to make the best decision you can when starting out.

    cheers
    Sam
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    • Profile picture of the author Johnny Slater
      Sam is right. Converting from a free or low cost method to a more powerful membership solution can be a nightmare.

      You can always see people saying use this free program, or this free script works great but, honestly, they are only good if you don't plan on any kind of growth for your site.

      Once you have outgrown that free program then you will start looking for a paid option that offers more features for you and more benefits for your customers. Then the nightmare starts. Transferring members from one script or way of running a membership to another can be like pulling teeth.

      I've had customers who ended up going through 3 different paid solutions trying to transfer a membership site from using a free script to one that had more options. It took him over a month to get everything worked out and he ended up losing about half of his current member base because of the headaches involved with the switch.

      Plan ahead and know what you want the site to become later on. It's much easier to set up something now that will grow with you than it is to try to move to another option later on.

      Originally Posted by samstephens View Post

      Another thing to keep in mind when selecting membership software: how long will it last for you?

      Are you going to grow out of it quickly?

      And if so, do you really want the nightmare of moving from one solution to a better one a few months down the track?


      In the far majority of cases, you're probably better off just saving up your money, and then when you've got enough, buy the solution you really want.

      This way you won't have headaches down the track.

      I've worked with clients who move to DLGuard memberships after using other systems for awhile. It's never simple, so it's a good idea to make the best decision you can when starting out.

      cheers
      Sam
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      • Profile picture of the author David-JP
        When I bought amember, they recruited the first 50,000 members for me. That's why they have to charge almost $200 for the script.

        I do have to admit that I'm getting tired of paying for all the memberships on subjects that don't interest me, just because my name keeps being drawn from their member pool.
        Can you explain in more detail how they did this for you? I've been working on amember sites for a few years and never heard of this before.

        David
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        ==Membership Academy== aMember/Wishlist Hacks and How To Videos
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  • Profile picture of the author Jared Alberghini
    aweber or a customized WP membership seems to be the best, top 2 options I have read about... unless you want to create your own membership script/site yourself.

    - Jared
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  • Profile picture of the author Jeffery
    Sam and Johnny are spot on!

    Some of my own membership sites use Sam and Johnny's Web Applications. Primairly, I install aMember integrated into Joomla or Wordpress for my clients.

    Planning your business is essential and advanced planning is mandatory. Internet business evolves daily and it is wise to plan ahead. Choose a membership application wherein the developer evolves with the internet. Both Sam and Johnny do that very well IMHO.

    Joomla 1.6 will include multiple membership levels. I believe 1.6 is still moths away. It may make aMember and other scripts obsolete in regards to multiple membership levels. However, aMember's integration with specific Web Applications for Affiliates is hard to beat.

    The downside is aMember is going to be difficult to integrate with the mentioned applications if you have no experience with installations. There are many advanced install routines that make a real difference.

    From some who does it for a living I hope this helps.

    Jeffery 100% :-)
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    • Profile picture of the author David-JP
      If joomla 1.6 includes levels, that will be a big advance, and help eliminate having to use the very annoying JACL plugin. I still think you would need to either have a payment plugin or integration with amember in order to control payments/access.

      David
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      The Nuts and Bolts of Starting-Up and Running a Successful Membership Site
      ==Membership Academy== aMember/Wishlist Hacks and How To Videos
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      • Profile picture of the author Jeffery
        Originally Posted by David-JP View Post

        If joomla 1.6 includes levels, that will be a big advance, and help eliminate having to use the very annoying JACL plugin. I still think you would need to either have a payment plugin or integration with amember in order to control payments/access.

        David
        Agreed. As you already know we will have to wait and see what is under the hood. From my understanding the multiple levels of membership will include PayPal as a minimum. That is the core concept for multiple levels of membership.

        In the beginning I think it will be great for new sites, but existing sites already using aMember should not migrate.

        Jeffery 100% :-)
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  • Profile picture of the author sequincer
    Agreed,Aweber is really a fantastic software,if your going to do what you say.
    it's really popular too,there a reason it has a T.r of 297
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  • Profile picture of the author NormanSP
    I am looking to build my list and will use Aweber simply because I see lots of successful sites use it and also there are a lot of step by step video's to get me started. all important to a newbie like me.
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  • Profile picture of the author Raymond Edeh
    Banned
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  • Profile picture of the author jrsencio
    start out simple, easy and with less complications... wp-member.com has a solution for you which I believe sells at $27... single site license....

    upgrade to more expensive solutions with more bells and whistles when the need arises
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