Membership sites are a really helpful tool for small business owners or bloggers. It's a way of bringing in new people but also interacting with your existing customers so they become more loyal to you. As an agency, you can probably see all the benefits your clients could get from incorporating a members-only section to their website, but the problem is that some business owners don’t see it… yet.

Gating content and pages can be used in many ways and can benefit all kinds of businesses. However, subscription-based membership can offer the biggest opportunity since the subscription economy grew more than 435% from 2012 to 2020.

Here we’ll explore how using membership for your next project or with an existing one can benefit your client.

WHAT IS A MEMBERSHIP WEBSITE?

A membership website is a site that contains content that is gated and only accessible to registered members. This protected content can be accessed via a fee (usually a paid subscription) or free signup. By becoming a member, you gain access to exclusive content or a specific website area.

There are wide use cases for membership ranging from:

• Members-only blog
• Members-only video course
• Members-only podcast
• Members-only coaching
• Employee portal
• Exclusive eCommerce section
• Members-only store

Membership can also be used to restrict access to certain parts of a website for partners or internal personnel. This is particularly useful if you wish to create an employee dashboard or a partner dashboard where they could log in to access information.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF USING MEMBERSHIPS ON A WEBSITE?

The benefits of adding memberships to your clients’ websites are multiple, but for your clients to adopt it on their website they will need to clearly see how they can gain from it.

Adding members-only pages to a website is a way to provide exclusive content to users and make them feel special. It’s also a great way to collect email addresses, create a community, and build a list of subscribers for email marketing.

Here are the most significant benefits of implementing membership to a website:

1. Increase revenue

Membership is a way to increase revenue on your website by giving users access to exclusive content or features they can only get by paying a monthly or annual fee. These can range from online courses to exclusive content or discounts.

According to the Online Membership Industry Report making more money and having stable recurring revenue is the number one reason business owners adopt a subscription-based membership on their website.

Your next Yoga studio client could, for example, decide to offer an online course to their members in exchange for a monthly fee to expand their revenue stream and gain more customers.

Your client could also use memberships to collect more information about their client base, like their email address, for a long-term strategy and engage with them via emails, for example. 

Additionally, a membership program can help you gather valuable data about your users' preferences and habits, improving the site and making it more appealing to potential members. Overall, adding a membership feature to your client's website can be a great way to boost their bottom line.

2. Improve customers loyalty

Offering customers and potential customers exclusive benefits and content via a membership will encourage them to stay loyal and keep coming back for more. The most successful websites offering gated content have a variety of benefits for different levels of membership. For example, a basic level of membership might include access to a blog or newsletter, while a higher level might include access to exclusive content, discounts, and early access to new products or services.

There are several ways that members-only content can improve customer loyalty. First, it can provide them exclusive access to certain content or features that they would not be able to access otherwise. This can make them feel special and appreciated and more likely to stick around. Second, it can give them a sense of belonging to a community or group, making them feel more invested in the brand. Finally, it can provide them with a sense of VIP status, making them feel more valued and appreciated. All of these factors can contribute to increased loyalty and satisfaction among customers.

When done right, members-only content can be a powerful tool for building brand equity. It can help to create a unique and differentiated brand identity that customers will remember and appreciate. By providing a more exclusive and intimate experience, members-only content can also help to foster a sense of loyalty and connection between the brand and its customers. In a world where customers have so many choices, members-only content can be a key differentiator that helps a brand stand out from the crowd.

3. Learn more about the customers

Using membership on a website can help to learn more about customers. By tracking their activity and understanding their preferences, you can gain valuable insights into who your customers are and what they want.

This information can be used to improve the customer experience on your website and make targeted marketing decisions. It can also be used to create content that will bring them value and help sailing.

Additionally, creating a community of customers can serve in the long term since the members build trust and kindliness toward the company making them more likely to be receptive to offers and future products.

4. Manage employees & clients

Another aspect membership can bring to a website is the ability to add an employee or client portal. Each of these portals can be useful in managing these different groups. 

For example, a yoga studio could decide to create a gated page where all employees could see their schedule and all the different announcements and information they need. The same yoga studio could also create a page where its clients could see the program of the various monthly lessons and register to join one.

With ZING's membership, managing who gets access to certain pages is straightforward. Simply use the manual member approval to select only the clients or employees' accounts you want. Getting started with ZING Membership only requires a few steps.

A WORD ABOUT ZING MEMBERSHIPS

ZING's Membership offering allows you to create fully customized gated pages. Those members-only sections of a ZING website can be accessed via a paid subscription (requires ZING Member Pages - PRO) or for free. The use cases are wide including:

• Online communities 
• Educational hubs
• Professional services
• Internal initiatives for private groups or organizations
• Lead generation sites
• Event calendars & event registration
• Blogs & Newsletters

With ZING’s Membership, your clients can start gaining from all the benefits above while keeping all the advantages from their ZING website.

FINAL THOUGHTS

For many people, the benefits of using membership on a website for a business can seem unclear. Whether building a new website for a client or working on an existing one, having a members-only section could bring immense benefits. Your clients could benefit by increasing their revenue stream, improving their customers' loyalty, learning more about their clients, and managing their employees and clients directly from their website.

To set up membership on your site simply send ZING Support an email at support@zing-work.com and the team will enable it for you.