Membership site (closed access)

A membership site is a site with closed access by paid membership: a person registers, pays for membership (one-off or recurring) and gets a member status with access to a private area — materials, events, community, perks. Unlike a paywall subscription site (see the “Subscription site (paywall)” service), where people pay only for access to materials, in membership content access is just a part: the main thing is status and levels with different perks. For example: the basic level — access to the area only; premium — personal consultations, closed events, partner discounts, a vote in the club. And unlike an online learning platform (see the “Online learning platform (LMS)” service), which has courses, lessons, progress and certificates, membership has no curriculum or grades — there is access and belonging. From an ordinary forum (see the “Forum and community” service), membership differs in that it builds paid membership with levels, an account and payment control, not just communication. Picture a professional club: you join, pay a fee, and get a private area, networking and partner discounts. The base price starts from 200,000 ₽ for a private area, 1–2 membership levels, a member account and a cash register; extra levels, complex perk logic and integrations are estimated separately.

• You want to turn your audience into a paid club with levels and perks, but a regular site cannot do membership and access control.
• Content, bonuses and events are scattered — in chats and on Google Drives, with no single private area and no clear “what is available at my level”.
• Membership payments and renewals are handled manually — who paid, whose access expired, who to let into the private area.
• There is no status or perks — a member does not feel part of a club and leaves as soon as the immediate benefit is gone.

• A private area with access for members only (content, files, events, bonuses)
• Membership levels with different perks: for example, basic — access to the area; premium — consultations, closed events, partner discounts
• A member account: status, level, what is available, renewal
• Membership payment: one-off or recurring (where your acquirer supports it), with access control by payment
• Registration and joining, with application moderation if needed
• A closed community and member communication (optional)
• An online cash register under the law, personal data processing under the law
• Notifications: payment, upcoming membership expiry, new materials and events

• Your audience is monetized through membership — regular income instead of one-off sales
• All closed content, events and perks in one place with access control by level
• Payments and renewals run automatically where your acquirer supports it — access opens and closes by itself
• Status and club perks keep members longer than mere access to content

• You leave a request and describe the club: levels, perks, what is inside, how payment works
• We design the private area, levels, the member account and the access logic
• We connect payment and the cash register, test and launch

• How is membership different from a paywall subscription site?

  A paywall (see the “Subscription site (paywall)” service) is paid access to content: you close articles or videos, pay and watch. In membership access is just a part; the main thing is status and levels with perks: for example, premium members get consultations, closed events, partner discounts and a vote. A paywall can be embedded into membership, but membership is about belonging to a club and perks, not just content.

• How is it different from a learning platform (LMS) and an ordinary forum?

  An LMS (see the “Online learning platform (LMS)” service) is about learning: courses, lessons, progress, certificates. A forum (see the “Forum and community” service) is about communication without paid membership. Membership is about paid access and belonging: a private area, levels, perks, payment control, without a curriculum or grades. Need to teach — that is an LMS; just to communicate — a forum; to give paid club access — membership.

• Can membership fees be charged regularly?

  Yes. Membership can be one-off or recurring (charges each period) — not every acquirer supports this, so we pick a suitable one. An online cash register is required by law. We build all of this in at launch; the possibility and renewal automation depend on your bank and fiscal solution.