What to Know About Squarespace Member Areas
Squarespace member areas are a fantastic way to add exclusivity + income to your website in a completely digital way. While some business owners use Squarespace member areas to offer customers/clients extra information or downloads for an additional price, other business owners use member areas as their entire business model (think stock photo memberships, etc…)
Regardless of your business model, it’s likely that you will consider adding a member area to your website eventually—and, when you do, here is what you should know.
What is a member area?
A member area on your website is a page or set of pages (usually password-protected) that can only be accessed by signed up and/or paid members of your website.
These exclusive pages can contain a variety of content, from downloads and videos to exclusive blog posts—the sky is truly the limit!
How can I use a member area?
Again, let me reiterate that there are really no limits when it comes to creative ways to use a member area.
Squarespace member areas can contain anything from exclusive links to private Zoom meetings to behind-the-scenes photos of your creative process.
As aforementioned, some business owners use member areas as a way for their clients and customers to “level up,” in their relationship with said business, while others use it as their entire business model.
If you are a copywriting coach, you might use the member area on your Squarespace website to provide an exclusive content calendar or writing prompts to your clients.
If you provide in-person services, you could use this section of your website to allow for priority booking or discount codes.
If you are a fitness coach, you could even provide virtual classes on your members-only page!
Or you could host gated videos to your 6-part online course. The opportunities are endless!
It’s important to remember that you should be advertising your membership options on the main (non-exclusive) pages of your site so all visitors can be encouraged to sign up.
What features are available?
Membership options for visitors to your site can be free, paid, or a combination of both. In addition, you can choose to charge a recurring fee (such as $5 every month,) or a one-time (lifetime) membership fee.
These are the features included with ALL Squarespace member areas plans:
Free, one-time, or recurring fee structure. This allows you the freedom to choose which type of payment you want to accept from members, depending on what you are offering in your members-only area.
Seamless and secure member experience. You can rest assured that members’ login and payment information will remain confidential.
Member management. You can manually add or modify members’ plans in order to offer free memberships to contest winners or upgrades through customer service.
Integrated analytics. This allows you to keep track of your membership area’s performance and conversion rates.
Members can pay with PayPal or credit card. This flexibility accommodates a variety of payment options, making the process easier for users signing up.
24/7 customer support. If you run into a problem, Squarespace offers round-the-clock support to get solutions fast.
Squarespace Extensions to manage your business. This is a great add-on that comes with any members area plan, allowing you to gain more insight into your website and manage your business with confidence.
It’s important to remember that, while all plans offer these bulleted features, different membership plans come with different capabilities and fees—which I’ll go over in the next section.
How much does it cost?
There are three levels of Squarespace member areas plans: Starter, Core, and Pro. (It’s important to remember that pricing is in addition to your regular Squarespace plan!) These are the differences between each:
Starter Plan
This plan starts at $9 per month, and allows for one member area. The transaction fee for each membership bought is considerable at 7%, but this plan does allow for unlimited members, the removal of ads/Squarespace branding, and discounts/promotions.
Core Plan
This plan starts at $18 per month, and allows for three member areas. The transaction fee for each membership bought is a little lower at 4%, and this plan also allows for unlimited members, the removal of ads/Squarespace branding, and discounts/promotions.
Pro Plan
Lastly, this plan starts at $35 per month, and allows for ten member areas. The transaction fee for each membership bought is only 1%! This plan allows for unlimited members, the removal of ads/Squarespace branding, and discounts/promotions.
FAQs
Can I use Member Areas with any Squarespace website plan?
YES! You can use Squarespace member areas regardless of your website plan level—even the most basic level offers this integration.
Do Member Areas integrate with Squarespace Email Campaigns?
Yes, but it’s important to remember that these areas ONLY integrate with Squarespace email campaigns—not other platforms, like MailChimp, Convertkit, or Constant Contact.
Can I protect everything on my website?
Yes, you can protect every page on your website—but it’s not advisable. Take it from me, a Squarespace and Showit website designer—you will want at least one page on your website to be freely accessible to visitors in order to promote your members area!
Can I create Member Areas but not charge a fee to users?
Yes. You can create a free membership level option.
Can I use Member Areas with a non-Squarespace website?
No. You can only use Squarespace member areas with Squarespace websites.
Maybe you’re ready to take your website to the next level by adding a members area. Or, perhaps you don’t have a website yet, and you’re ready to create one that offers this unique feature to visitors!
Whatever your position, I encourage you to work with a Squarespace and Showit website designer in order to create a fantastic experience for your visitors that keep them coming back!
Feel free to check out my services here in order to learn more about me, my process, and my work. If you think we might be a great match for creating the website of your dreams, don’t hesitate to reach out! I can’t wait to hear from you.
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