How much will it cost to start and run an online membership site? |
A membership site lets you establish a community, and generate an income that is recurring. What is the cost? We break down membership site costs in this guide.
The only thing left is construct it.
As a busy creator with the smallest budget, there's one question that is particularly important: How much is the entire process likely to cost you?
Let's jump right in with the very first essential feature for any membership site Content management systems.
The Content Management System (CMS)
A content management system (CMS) refers to the software you use for building and managing your site.
There are two main forms of CMS:
1. CMS that is code-based: They have a bit of a process of learning (or need some HTML and CSS experience). That said that a code-based CMS allows you to create completely customized websites that have unique capabilities. WordPress is one of the most well-known code-based CMS.
2. CMS that does not require code: As the name suggests, these require no coding. They typically have drag-and drop editors and theme libraries that are free that make it simple and easy to create an online store or website. Examples include Squarespace as well as Wix.
Let's look over the functions and prices of three well-known CMS: WordPress, Squarespace, and Wix.
( A quick note: All of the costs listed in this piece are current at the time at the time of writing.)
WordPress
42% of the web makes use of WordPress which makes it the biggest website builder in the world.
WordPress can be described as a CMS for content (CMS) made specifically by bloggers. That means it comes with pre-built templates and other tools to help you get started with blogging. These include:
Post scheduling
Managing comments
Technical SEO
WordPress has hundreds of free themes plus a huge collection of free and paid plugins for websites that are membership-based.
In terms of creating custom membership sites, WordPress has a steeper learning curve than an no-code CMS such as Squarespace. It doesn't have a drag-and-drop user interface, and you'll need a basic HTML skills to completely personalize your website.
Do not let this put you off, however. Setting up a basic WordPress blog doesn't require super technological skills at a high level. Because WordPress is so well-known and widely used, there are plenty of no-cost resources available to assist you in learning the basics, including WPBeginner 's tutorials and guides.
How much will WordPress price?
WordPress itself is free, but you still require a fee for web hosting, a custom domain name, themes, and plugins. We'll cover those later on.
Squarespace
Squarespace is an easy-to-use website builder that requires no programming skills.
Squarespace's drag-and-drop interface has a less arduous training curve that WordPress. The simple interface comes at the expense of customization and flexibility choices. Squarespace has fewer themes as well as plugins and themes that WordPress.
To build a membership site using Squarespace, you need to add the member area . Members Areas are member-only, paid section of the website, which allows creators to monetize their content and build an online community.
How much does Squarespace cost?
Squarespace offers four different pricing plans . Prices vary from $16 up to $54 for a month. Payments are made monthly, or $12 to $40 per month paid annually.
Memberships aren't part of the normal Squarespace subscription. Member Area plans range from $9/month , with a 7% transaction fee per Member Area. The price can be as low as $35/month with a one-percent transaction charge for as many as the 10 member areas.
Wix
Wix is a code-free CMS featuring a simple drag-and-drop editor. It's simple to use and offers hundreds of free themes.
With regards to membership-based websites, Wix lags behind Squarespace and WordPress. Users can offer memberships and packages through Wix's scheduling software add-on which allows them to offer subscriptions, accept recurring payments, and sell members-only content.
But, setting up an account through Wix can be clunky as well as the overall experience for creators and members alike leave a lot to be left to be.
How much does Wix cost?
To collect recurring payments, Wix needs the use of a Business Limited ($27/month) or Business VIP ($49/month) plan.
What is the most effective CMS to create the membership-based website?
The choice is based on your financial plan, objectives, and experience in coding. But there's a reason that WordPress is the most popular CMS. While the initial learning curve for WordPress can be steep however the options for designing your own website are infinite.
For the rest of this article, we'll base the costs, tools, and requirements on using WordPress to host your membership site.
Total cost:Free to $54/month.
Domain name & website hosting
Before you are able to start getting a WordPress site up and running, you'll need two things:
A domain name
A web hosting plan
Be sure to get your domain name through an approved domain name registrar. Here are a few choices:
1. Bluehost Bluehost of the biggest web hosting companies in the world, Bluehost offers free domain registration for the first year with any hosting plan.
2. Domain.com : This is an ideal option when you're seeking to buy an individual domain name, but without website hosting services.
3. GoDaddy GoDaddy is among of the most famous domain name registry companies. Choose from a wide variety of well-known domain names as well as TLDs.
4. HostGator : HostGator offers a domain name search, domain management, as well as shared hosting for websites.
Prices for domain names vary based upon factors like whether or not it was owned before (i.e. it was purchased it from someone else) as well as the type of top-level domain (TLD) it's registered under.
The highest-level domain (TLD) can be described as the ending of your URL, like .com, .org, .net or .biz.
There are also TLDs that correspond to specific countries, such as .uk (United Kingdom) and .dk (Denmark). These are country code top-level domains, also known as ccTLDs .
If you can, choose .com as the TLD.
Here's why:
The cost may be higher than other less well-known TLD however .com is among the most reliable and least spammy domain name extensions. Utilizing .com can make your website appear more credible to your customers as well as the search engines.
People -- especially within the U.S. -- are more acquainted to .com domain names than any other, and most likely, they'll instantly input .com into their address bar when they see your site's name.
An open .com domain purchased from a domain registry cost about $10-20 initially, after which prices usually rise .
Once you have the domain name the website will require an address to reside. This is where the website hosting service plays a role. Beware: Many web hosts provide a bargain price upfront, then significantly raise them in the second year.
There's two kinds of WordPress website hosting : Shared hosting and managed hosting.
A lot of domain name registrars provide shared hosting for websites.
A hosting account with Bluehost shared hosting costs $2.75/month and includes a free domain name. SiteGround provides more than two million domains, and shared hosting begins with $4.99/mo, discounted from $14.99/mo.
The cost of shared hosting is lower than managed hosting however, you only get what you pay for. These hosts often overcrowd servers, meaning your website might be placed on the same server with 500+ other sites. This can lead to delays, issues with performance and sometimes even the possibility of crashes.
Managed hosting for WordPress websites is usually designed and managed by committed WordPress experts to ensure that your site runs as quickly and as securely as it can.
As an example, WordPress websites don't automatically include SSL encryption. SSL is a must-have for online stores to protect your customers' data protected. The majority of managed hosting providers offer free SSL certificates.
Furthermore, managed hosting manages several of the technical challenges that come with managing an WordPress site, from dealing with caching to ensuring that the site is up and running and loading speed when the peak of traffic.
Managed hosting is more expensive than shared hosting but the benefits and support for customers will be worth the price. Plans offered by industry-leading Kinsta begin at just $30 per month.
Total cost:
Domain name:$10-20 for the first year.
Hosting for websites:$2.75 to $30/month.
Membership site plugins
With WordPress as well as the domain name, as well as hosting for your website, you've got the bare bones of a web site. To add membership website functions and features, you need at least at the very least one WordPress plugin.
One of the most well-known ways of selling anything via WordPress is to use the WooCommerce plugin.
With over 5 million installations active, WooCommerce is the the world's top E-commerce payment system that's open-source.
WooCommerce and WordPress are each free. However, if you wish to offer memberships, you need a separate membership plugin, WooCommerce Memberships .
WooCommerce Memberships lets you build invitation-only member areas that include exclusive content. It also lets you offer various levels of subscription, and offer drip content to members as time passes. This plugin costs at $199 per year.
MemberPress is yet another premium membership plugin for WordPress.
You get full control on your membership site, by allowing you to pick your own processing provider, the integrations, as well as WordPress plugins.
As of the date of this at the time of writing, MemberPress plans are on sale. These plans generally cost $279-599/year, depending on the plan.
Total cost:$129 to $599/year.
Design and development of websites
Once you've chosen an hosting company and a membership plugin for your site, you're now ready to start setting up your membership account in WordPress.
It involves that you install WordPress on your website, choosing and setting up any additional plugins, then identifying and installing the ideal theme.
Some of the best websites for finding a web developer are:
WordPress has a library of over 4000 themes however, not all theme is built to work on a membership website. Web designers can create a unique membership theme with custom features for your website.
The development and the installation of a custom WordPress theme can be cost-prohibitive. Prices will vary based on options you'd like to incorporate as well as the expertise of the developer, however, they could range from $1500 to $6000.
If you're not able to afford the funds to invest in the creation of a unique style, there's a wide selection of ready-made WordPress membership themes to choose from. These could vary from around $40 up to almost $400 and are available with varying levels of customization and support.
Total cost:From $44 for a premade theme to $6000+ for a custom-designed and built WordPress website.
Marketing tools and other add-ons
Okay, you've got all of the tools that you require to create your membership site. However, you're missing the most vital part the puzzle: your customers.
MailChimp has a free service to businesses that are growing with up to 2000 contacts. Plans that are paid start at $10/month and go up to Essentials to $299/month for the Premium plan.
Drip is a different marketing automation tool with an integrated WordPress plugin . Their email marketing platform makes spreading the public about your site's membership easy. Plans begin at just $19/month with basic features. You can also add as high as 500 subscribers.
Cost total:Free to $299/month for mail marketing.
Social media is another great method to spread people talking about your subscription. In fact, one survey revealed that marketers from small businesses identified social media as the best strategy for building brand awareness and gaining new customers.
Take Buffer as an example. Buffer allows you to schedule your posts ahead of time, so it's not necessary to remain in the loop with your posting schedule every day.
It is possible to reply and analyze social media posts through Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Buffer also has analytics tools that evaluate your performance on social media.
In the trial version of Buffer You can create as many as three profiles to social media, and set up up to 10 posts ahead of time. The paid plans cost $15 per month.
Now that you know everything that go into building an online membership website on WordPress, let's add it all up -- and determine if there's a better option. (Spoiler warning: there is.)
What is the cost of the cost of a website membership?
Here are all of the expenditures we've discussed to date:
CMSFree for up to $50/month ($648/year).
Name of domain:$10 to $20 for the first year.
Hosting for websites:$2.75 to $30/month ($33 to $360 annually).
Members Site plugins:$199 to $599/year.
WordPress themes:$44 to $6000+.
Marketing via email:Free to $299/month ($3588/year).
They vary in such a way that it's hard to come up with the total. As a ballpark, the annual cost for running a membership site with WordPress will vary between $242 and $5000. (That's not counting one-time costs such as a custom or pre-made theme.)
Hosting a membership site with WordPress can cost you valuable time and money beyond setup and hosting expenses, too.
One-third of customers are likely to quit a brand that they love in the wake of just one unpleasant interaction, and 92% will completely abandon the brand following more than three bad experiences.
What's an alternative?
An all-in-one membership platform like .
Have a look around the membership website Mallika Malhotra Expert in branding and photographer, built with 's site editor:
Mallika designed her site to fit her brand and design without purchasing the WordPress website theme, or hiring an internet designer to create it.
also lets you:
You can sell as many membership tiers as you want Each with its own perks, content, and prices.
Accept credit card payments easily with Stripe and PayPal.
A whole lot of...
Instead of trying to coordinate expensive instruments that do not work with each other, you can manage it all from one platform. Try it out for yourself by create a free account and build your membership community today.
A membership site does not require a lot of effort
While figuring out the cost of constructing an online membership website can seem like an unsolvable maze. At a minimum you'll need to budget for:
Content management systems to build and manage your website
A domain name that fits your brand
A web hosting service that can handle the technical burden of a site for membership
Plugins that add membership functionality to your site
A membership site theme or design
Marketing and marketing services that help spread the word about your membership
Phew. It's quite a bit to take in the prices, and they vary so much that it's hard to calculate an accurate budget.
There's no need for it to be complicated. With , you get all of the tools you need to create, run, and sell your membership site at a single annual or monthly fee. If you're looking to get started We're here to assist you .