Your organization is paying for the great value membership software provides, so your website should deliver that software well. Perhaps you want to draw attention to upcoming events, or maybe it’s the end of the year and you want to make sure that members know about upcoming dues. It’s for these reasons that you want your website to be customizable. Membership websites should be able to utilize features on the home or intrapages as you see fit. If you’re a group that wants to share upcoming events at a glance, you’ll want to ensure that your calendar software can be shared on your home page.
When looking for solutions, it’s important to ask if the software works hand in hand with your website. Many solutions provide a simple website separate from its portal, limiting the value for both your group and its members.
With a modern solution, your organization doesn’t only organize their home and internal pages. You can also optimize your website to meet your needs. The most important component of this is public vs private information. Perhaps current members should view a specific calendar, contact information, and abilities on your organization’s home page. Visitors who are not logged in may see completely different contact information and abilities, geared more towards educating them on your organization and offering ways to contact the general office or sign up.
Beyond private vs public, specific members may have a different view of your website from others. Social event members may have access to specific calendars or your swim team may have unique access to reserving pool lanes.
When building a membership website, it’s important to be user friendly and aesthetically pleasing, but it’s also important to work hand in hand with your software!