This article was originally published on Restrict Content Pro. 

Thinking of starting a membership business, but intimidated by the startup costs? Surprisingly, you can get a membership site up and running for less than you might think. With the right plugins and a work smarter-not-harder attitude, you can move your membership website forward without compromising your budget.

We’ve put together a few tips to help you get a membership site off the ground without breaking the bank.

The unavoidable costs

As with any digital business, there are upfront costs to consider. A membership site can’t function without a few basic things:

• A website
• Hosting for your site
• Functionality for restricting content
• A method of accepting payments
• Ability to communicate with your mailing list

At the most fundamental level, you’ll need to pay for a domain name and web hosting. Most domains are affordable, with many prices as low as $10-15 per year.

When it comes to hosting, it’s important to remember that membership sites are content-driven. This means that your members will be relying on your site’s performance to consume content and get the most out of their memberships.

In other words, reliable hosting is non-negotiable. 

Shared hosting can definitely save you money, but it’s not the best option for membership sites. It usually includes limited resources and often uses a shared IP address – meaning if one site gets blacklisted, yours will, too.

It’s also worth noting that memberships should be designed to scale, which is more difficult on shared hosting. As your site grows, you want to be able to upgrade and migrate your data and content without downtime. This process is much more seamless with cloud hosting.

Opt for an affordable managed WordPress hosting solution like Nexcess for as little as $21 a month.

The free elements

In addition to your domain and web hosting, you’ll need some kind of content management system (or CMS) to manage your website. WordPress is a great choice because it’s free and open-source. This means there are plenty of plugins available and a large community of developers that contribute to the ecosystem.

You’ll also need a WordPress theme to dictate the style and layout of your site. If you’re on a smaller budget, you can use one of the default WordPress themes available to all WordPress users, or find a startup theme on Kadence.

Finally, consider your email marketing solution. Services like Mailchimp are free to set up, with costs coming in once you exceed a certain number of emails per month. Make sure your email provider integrates with your membership site plugin, and your ecosystem should be up and functioning with minimal oversight. 

Start out on a smaller scale

One way to cut costs? Keep it simple. You’ll want to start your site on a smaller and more manageable scale. You can always grow and expand later!

For example, it’s likely you’ll have to upgrade to a paid membership plugin as your site grows. A paid plugin will offer more functionality, such as the ability to offer coupons and free trials. You could opt for a single-site license with an annual price that fits your budget.

Additionally, think about what you can do yourself and what you need to outsource. Create as much of your own content as you can. Initially, you’ll need enough content to get people to sign up. From there, you can publish new content on an ongoing basis. For example, if you conduct webinars or training courses, you could begin a membership site after just the first few webinars or courses. Then, these videos can serve as material for new members, while you continue to build a collection of content over time.

If you don’t have an advertising and marketing budget and you produce your own content, you can attract and grow an audience by posting quality free content on a regular basis. 

Some membership site owners start out giving written or video advice on their social media, or producing valuable downloads like PDF guides, checklists, and worksheets, for people to use in exchange for an email. Once someone’s on your email newsletter, you can promote the features of your membership site to attract new folks to sign up.

You could even put a few of your webinars on YouTube to get traffic flowing to your site. Then, spin those videos into a course using a tool like LearnDash in exchange for an email or as a perk to members when they sign up. 

When you smartly plan a content calendar that bundles useful features into valuable deals, you’ll be surprised how much you can offer as a one-person show. 

A budget doesn’t mean low quality

Starting with a modest membership site isn’t about cutting corners. Embrace a soft start: Working on a smaller scale can give you more one-on-one time with members. This allows you to get to know them in a meaningful way and figure out what kind of content you should produce to better market your memberships.

Take advantage of your smaller community and get to know your membership business inside and out, so you can be well-prepared for when it grows – and thrives!

Ready to explore the potential of a membership site? Try out the MemberDash demo today.