An Inside look at the new Squarespace Member Area
I'm sure this is a promising upgrade for many Squarespace users who have been eager to have all your stuff in one place. But you might be wondering: Is it a good option for you (or your clients)?
Read on to learn more about how Member Areas work, especially in comparison to other existing third-party platforms.
Kindly watch the video below for a STEP by STEP walkthrough
on how to set-up this feature.
What can I do in Member Areas?
1. Provide exclusive content
Member Areas allow us to share our knowledge to many eager learners, no matter their skill level. We're also not limited to video tutorials alone. We can provide content in other engaging formats like virtual workshops, 1:1 coaching, podcasts, or even newsletters.
This new feature will definitely help you create a worthwhile learning experience in a simple and user-friendly way. As a course creator myself, I find it exciting that we can already choose to build our online community within the website platform that we have grown to love.
To learn more about my recommended way on how to set-up and style your content, please watch the video above.
2. Choose fee structure
When you're setting up your members-only content, you'll be able to determine how you charge your subscribers in three ways: one-time, recurring, and free.
Member Areas can collect payments through credit card or PayPal, depending on your current payment methods for Squarespace commerce. But of course, you can also use it to host free resources as an opt-in for visitors before they're ready to invest in your other offerings. Please watch the video above to see exactly how to set this up.
3. Integrate everything seamlessly
You can think of Member Areas as an online lounge within your digital home. That means whatever tools you already have in Squarespace would also apply there just as well as the rest of your site.
For one, you can look forward to adding different pages and page collections, such as blogs or portfolios. It's even possible to offer exclusive products or discounts to your members alone. All these you can manage nicely with your other existing content.
If you're also using Squarespace to manage your email campaigns, then it would also be easier for you to manage your newsletters. Member Areas can connect to your mailing lists with ease, so you can take care of everything within Squarespace.
While your members would be automatically subscribed to their respective list, they can always opt out of it by clicking unsubscribe in the footer of your email.
The best part? All your insights could be observable in one place, whether you choose to view them in your native Squarespace dashboard or use Google Analytics.
4. Customize with style
When you have all of your content in one place, it's easier to be consistent with your branding and design. And while most learning platforms have come a long way in terms of how their UI looks, they're still not as customizable as website builders.
That's why if you're looking for more streamlined styling options, then you'll probably love the simplicity and elegance of Squarespace. It certainly goes a long way in making your premium content look less generic and more branded.
You can, for example, create a special homepage for members so they could explore your content more easily. The feature also comes with two primary navigation options depending on which version of Squarespace you are using.
Member Area notifications are customizable, which means you can definitely give your onboarding messages a more personal touch. As for those who aren't members yet, they'd be redirected to an Access Denied page that you can turn into an encouragement for them to join the fun.
5. Protect your business
Not only will the member experience be seamless—Squarespace has also seen to it that your content is 100% secure on your own website. That means no shady figure will be able to bypass your paywalls or hijack your online transactions.
Since this platform also has 24/7 customer support, you'll be able to contact them whenever you have any concerns.
6. Build your community
Lastly, Member Areas would have the basic tools you'll need to strengthen your online community. The new native feature allows you to host virtual Q&As and workshops, all while using email updates and shared event calendars to spread the word.
As someone who has both joined courses and created my own, I can say that this has personally been the most important part of my learning experience: being able to connect with like-minded individuals around the world.
How does it compare to other membership platforms?
Squarespace Member Areas have a separate pricing plan, so this means you can combine it with any Squarespace website plan. Overall, it's a straightforward way to handle a membership program on your site itself without having to rely on third-party integrations.
This isn't to say that you'd never have to consider other options for your own business any longer. Squarespace's membership add-on is still fairly basic at this time, so while it's more convenient in terms of styling and integration, it has yet to offer more advanced functions.
If you're looking for more specific tools like progress trackers, video hosting, or in-depth analytics, you might want to look into Teachable, Kajabi, or MemberSpace for a more robust set-up.
But if you're only searching for a simple yet elegant way to engage your community through your exclusive content, then you might not need to look any further than Squarespace.
If you are keen to learn more on how to avoid transaction fees or how to offer split payment options, please refer to this blog post about Workarounds for Squarespace Member Area.
Keen to learn how to address payment and style limitations of the Member Area Feature?
I have another blog post/video that walks you through my workarounds.
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