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How to produce a subscription based Wordpress plugin

by Marchan
7 replies
Hi,

I'm planning for the development of a new Wordpress plugin. It will be licensed on a subscription basis, with recurring billing over 1,3,6, or 12 months. The number of installations will also be controlled - depending on which package is licensed.

I'd like to release it as a cheap WSO (to give back to this fine community), then maybe go to Clickbank with it later, but it turns out that creating the software is the easy part... I have no clue what to do next! Talk about biting off more than one can chew!

I am a real newbie, so I have a lot of questions for anyone who is willing to help. Even a single answer to any question would be gratefully received
  1. Can a subscription based product be offered as a WSO? Can the WSO infrastructure handle recurring billing?
  2. Should I offer affiliates a one-off payment, or must I offer a percentage of the recurring bill?
  3. Is there a service that will automate license management, such as expiry, upgrades, price changes, etc?
  4. If I release on WSO then Clickbank: is there a single service that could manage both price structures - or should I just treat them as separate products?
  5. I keep hearing Commission Junction might be better than Clickbank for software - is that true? Is there an even better option? What about Paypal Pro?
  6. What features will I absolutely need to put on my product website?
  7. Should I drive traffic to my site - or directly to the (e.g.) Clickbank sales page?
  8. I want to maintain my own email list. Should I go straight for Aweber, and make sure the shopping cart integrates with it?
I need to talk with someone. If you have experience of setting up this type of software I'd love to hear from you about the pitfalls and opportunities.

Thanks and best regards,
Mars
#billing #plugin #producing #recurring #recurring or subscription #wordpress
  • Profile picture of the author onSubie
    Why the subscription billing?

    Is it because the plugin needs to change and update frequently to keep up with interfaces and technology?

    Or will the recurring fee give access to a memebr site with support and services?
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    • Profile picture of the author Marchan
      Originally Posted by onSubie View Post

      Why the subscription billing?

      Is it because the plugin needs to change and update frequently to keep up with interfaces and technology?
      Hi, yes this is the main reason - the software needs to interface with several social media APIs and I foresee having to update the software frequently to keep up.

      Is it against the GPL to create a subscription based WP plugin? If so, the alternative would be to bump the price...

      Mars
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  • Profile picture of the author onSubie
    It is not against the GPL to use use subscription billing.

    Although the GPL issue seems to be blowing up with Wordpress again....

    WordPress.org Bans Themeforest Members from WordCamp


    In your case, since the software needs frequent updating, you could charge for access to a member area where the latest version can be downloaded.

    That way anyone with an "unauthorized" copy would find it not working after several changes and updates. Without being a paid subscriber, they would not have access to the download area for the latest version.

    I use some WP plugins that are activated by a license key. I'm not sure how that works- there are probably a number of solutions.

    The problem with that is if the licensing system goes down, all the paid users lose their WP Plugin.

    The tighter you manage access to your plugin the more end-user support you will need to provide.
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    • Profile picture of the author Marchan
      Originally Posted by onSubie View Post

      I use some WP plugins that are activated by a license key. I'm not sure how that works- there are probably a number of solutions.
      I'll ask the developer about these.

      Originally Posted by onSubie View Post

      The problem with that is if the licensing system goes down, all the paid users lose their WP Plugin.
      Yeah I was concerned about that. It's a big responsibility.

      Originally Posted by onSubie View Post

      The tighter you manage access to your plugin the more end-user support you will need to provide.
      Was concerned about that too. Need to check costs and options with the developer again.

      Originally Posted by onSubie View Post

      In your case, since the software needs frequent updating, you could charge for access to a member area where the latest version can be downloaded.

      That way anyone with an "unauthorized" copy would find it not working after several changes and updates. Without being a paid subscriber, they would not have access to the download area for the latest version.
      Brilliant idea. Might avoid some of the other issues above, too.

      Thank you!
      Mars
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  • Profile picture of the author mpettigr
    Regarding license management, we use PHPMyLicense to encode and license our $2000 lead distribution system. Its a great product and very easy to use.

    It can also automatically deactivate a license whenever a customer makes a chargeback or you make refunds.

    We use it ourselves. Here it is and you can try out the demo: PHPMyLicense License Manager System

    Best Wishes,

    Mike
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    • Profile picture of the author Marchan
      Thank you Mike - seems like an excellent product!

      I'll check to see if it can limit the number of plugin installations according to which package is purchased.

      Mars
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  • Profile picture of the author MightyWarrior
    That's nice, but PHPMyLicense coding looks way too easy to break, imo!
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