WordPress is the most commonly used website software in the world. It powers 27% of websites on the internet, and for good reason – it’s free, it’s flexible, and it’s extremely easy to use. It’s hands-down the most popular platform for building websites.
WordPress is also a great platform for building membership websites. Here’s why:
1) Content Focused
WordPress is all about content at it’s core. From it’s data model to the content editor, everything revolves around great content management.
Most membership websites deliver content in some form or another – articles, videos, courses, tutorials, etc. WordPress offers membership websites the tools and infrastructure to create and mange great content. This includes:
- User friendly content editing
- Flexible categorization of content
- SEO optimized out-of-the-box
2) Flexible
One of the major downsides of most membership platforms is flexibility. In other words, most platforms come with a defined set of features and functionality that you’re confined to.
WordPress on the other hand, is arguably the most flexible software on the planet. It’s open source and packed with plugins, which means it’s free to use and wide-open for developers to contribute to. This is a major factor in why it’s had so much success and growth over the years.
Some Key Benefits
- Open Source (100% Free to use)
- Thousands of Plugins (modules of code for specific functionality)
- Specific Plugins for Membership functionality
- Constantly Growing
- Faster Development Time
- Easy to Implement and Test New Functionality
3) Light & Fast
Speed is an important factor in a solid membership experience. Page load times can drastically influence your conversion rates and bottom line, especially for larger sites.
WordPress is extremely light and fast in this regard. The platform comes with a simple set of powerful functions and a very light database – no bloat or un-needed code. Additionally, the core team is always making improvement to optimize performance on the front and back-end.
4) Widely Supported
Getting help and support for membership sites is an important requirement, especially for smaller teams with less technical proficiency. A lot of membership platforms limit their support to business hours via email and/or propriety knowledge bases. When in reality, membership sites run 24/7 with issues arising at any moment.
WordPress offers one of the largest developer communities. You can troubleshoot most issues by Googling a term or visiting a Stacked Overflow forum. Furthermore, there are plenty of developers and companies world-wide that are familiar with WordPress to help troubleshoot. So you’ll always have options when it comes to help and support.
Summary
WordPress continues to gain traction in the membership space. If you haven’t tried it out yet you should certainly give it a spin. It will likely be more flexible [and affordable] than your current platform.
If you need help building your membership site or re-designing a current site, feel free to contact us for a Free Project Quote.
