How To Use LearnWorlds To Create Membership Sites

Are you ready to build a sustainable, scalable membership site using LearnWorlds?

Table of Contents

This guide explains how you can use LearnWorlds to plan, build, launch, and grow a membership site. You will find practical steps, configuration tips, membership model comparisons, content strategies, integrations, analytics, and retention techniques to help you maximize revenue and member satisfaction.

Why choose LearnWorlds for membership sites?

LearnWorlds combines course creation tools, membership management, and website building in a single platform. You can create structured learning pathways, drip content, host multimedia lessons, and manage recurring subscriptions without stitching multiple tools together. This reduces technical complexity and helps you focus on content and member experience.

Understand the membership site concept

Before you configure LearnWorlds, you should be clear about what a membership site means for your business. A membership site provides members access to gated content — such as courses, resources, community forums, live sessions, or downloadable materials — in exchange for recurring or one-time payments. Defining these elements helps you structure content, pricing, and marketing.

Plan your membership model

You need a clear model before you launch. Decide whether you will offer tiered access, a single subscription, lifetime access, or a hybrid model that mixes subscriptions and one-time purchases. Your model will determine pricing, access controls, and marketing strategies.

Membership model options

Consider how each model aligns with your goals and audience.

Model	Best for	Pros	Cons
Single Subscription	Niche communities or single-course libraries	Simple to explain and manage	Limited upsell opportunities
Tiered Memberships	Audiences with varying needs	Higher revenue potential and segmentation	More complex to manage and market
Course Bundles + Subscription	Course creators with evergreen content	Flexible monetization and upsells	Requires clear product/benefit mapping
Lifetime Access	High upfront revenue	Less churn, straightforward pricing	Lower long-term recurring revenue
Hybrid (subscriptions + products)	Businesses offering courses + coaching	Multiple revenue streams	More complex fulfillment and marketing

Define your value proposition and content pillars

Identify the primary outcomes members will achieve. Map content pillars (core topics) that will form your lessons, bonus materials, webinars, and community discussions. This helps with course creation and member onboarding messaging.

Create an account and choose a LearnWorlds plan

Start by creating a LearnWorlds account and choosing a plan that supports memberships and subscriptions. Assess the available features across plans, such as the number of active students, website builder features, subscription billing, integrations, and e-commerce capabilities. Make sure the plan you select supports Stripe or PayPal for processing recurring payments, and that it includes the customization you need for branding and member experience.

Set up your school basics

After account creation, configure the foundational settings.

School information and branding

Set your school name, logo, primary color palette, and favicon. This ensures a cohesive brand experience across your membership site. Customize emails and transactional messages with consistent tone and brand elements.

Domain and SSL

Connect a custom domain to make your membership site appear professional and trustworthy. Ensure SSL is enabled to protect member data and support secure payments.

Structure content within LearnWorlds

LearnWorlds organizes content as schools, courses, and pages. For membership sites, you will use courses or learning paths as membership content and pages/sections to present non-course resources.

Courses vs. Learning Paths vs. Pages

Courses: Use for structured lessons with modules, assessments, and certificates.
Learning Paths: Use to group multiple courses into a curriculum for higher-tier memberships.
Pages: Use to host landing pages, resource libraries, and community portals.

Use a combination depending on how you want members to consume content.

Build your membership product

A membership in LearnWorlds is a product that grants access to certain content. You create a product and link it to courses, learning paths, or pages. Configure pricing, billing cadence, trial periods, and coupon codes for promotions.

Step-by-step product creation

Create a new course or learning path for the membership content you plan to sell.
Go to the “Monetize” section and create a product for that course/path.
Choose product type: subscription, one-time purchase, or free.
Set the price, billing cycle (monthly, yearly), trial length, and trial restrictions.
Configure access rules: immediate access, drip schedule, or scheduled releases.
Add upsells, coupon codes, and promo rules as needed.

Configure content access controls

Control who sees what with LearnWorlds’ access settings.

Access methods

Product-based access: Members who purchase a product gain access to linked courses and pages.
Role-based access: Assign roles to users and restrict pages based on roles.
Private content: Mark pages or courses as private and manually enroll specific members.

Decide whether content is fully gated, partially previewable, or entirely public to attract interest.

Use drip content and release schedules

Drip content releases lessons or modules progressively to maintain engagement and reduce churn. Configure release schedules by date or relative to the user’s enrollment date. Dripping content works well for onboarding sequences, structured learning, and keeping members returning regularly.

Design your membership site layout

A strong UX will reduce confusion and increase retention. Use LearnWorlds’ site builder to create a navigation structure that highlights core sections: Dashboard, Courses/Programs, Community, Resources, Events, Support, and Account.

Homepage and dashboard considerations

Your homepage should communicate key benefits and entice conversions. The member dashboard should provide quick access to active content, progress tracking, upcoming events, and community notifications. Prioritize clarity and reduce clicks to critical features.

Create engaging course content

Content quality is central to member satisfaction. Use a mix of formats — video, audio, downloadable PDFs, quizzes, and interactive elements — to cater to different learning styles.

Video best practices

Keep videos concise (5–15 minutes) for focused learning.
Use clear visuals and captions for accessibility.
Host videos via LearnWorlds’ interactive video features to add chaptering, overlays, or in-video questions.

Assessments and certificates

Add quizzes and assignments to measure progress. Offer certificates for milestones or course completion to increase perceived value and provide social proof.

Build community features

A strong community increases retention by creating peer accountability and ongoing value. LearnWorlds offers community pages or integrates with third-party tools for forums and private groups.

Community options

Built-in community pages: Keep members on your platform for better data and engagement metrics.
External integrations (Slack, Discord, Facebook Groups): Use when members prefer those environments, but accept that engagement data will be off-platform.

Provide clear community guidelines and designate moderators to maintain quality.

Integrate payments and billing

To accept subscriptions, connect a payment processor. LearnWorlds supports Stripe and PayPal for recurring billing in most plans. Ensure currency settings, tax handling, and billing descriptor information are properly configured.

Handling taxes and invoicing

You must comply with tax laws for digital products and services. Enable tax collection where required and add configured invoices or receipts. If you operate internationally, consider adding VAT handling for EU customers or integrating with services that manage tax.

Automations and onboarding funnels

Automate welcome emails, onboarding sequences, and reminders to reduce manual work and increase conversions. Integrate your email service provider or use LearnWorlds’ built-in email automation to send targeted messages based on user activity, progress, or subscription status.

Examples of automation flows

New member welcome + orientation module access
Trial expiration reminders + upgrade incentives
Inactive member re-engagement with content recommendations
Certification completion announcements and social sharing prompts

Use coupons, trials, and promotions strategically

Coupons and trials lower the barrier to enrollment but must be balanced to preserve perceived value. Short, targeted trials and discount codes for specific segments tend to perform better than broad, permanent discounts.

How To Use LearnWorlds To Create Membership Sites

Upselling and cross-selling

Increase lifetime value by offering higher-tier plans, coaching sessions, course bundles, or one-off workshops. Present relevant upsells at logical points — after completing a module, at trial conversion, or during annual renewals.

Track performance with analytics

Monitor engagement, churn, revenue, and course completion rates. LearnWorlds provides analytics that show who is engaging with content and where drop-offs occur. Use this data to iterate on content, pricing, and onboarding processes.

Key metrics to track

Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR)
Churn rate (monthly and annual)
Average Revenue Per User (ARPU)
Course completion rate and average time to completion
Active member ratio and daily/weekly engagement
Conversion rate from trial to paid

Improve retention with content and community strategies

Retaining members is essential for sustainable revenue. Provide regular content updates, live Q&A sessions, member-only events, and reward systems that encourage continued participation.

Retention tactics

Create a content calendar with recurring releases
Host monthly live calls or workshops
Highlight member achievements and testimonials
Offer loyalty discounts at renewal time
Use drip sequences to re-engage dormant members

Use certification and badges for motivation

Offer certificates and digital badges for course completion or competency achievements. These provide tangible value and encourage members to complete courses and remain active.

Set up support and help resources

Offer clear support channels: knowledge base, FAQs, contact form, or live chat. Document common issues like login problems, billing questions, and how to access content. A well-documented help center reduces support tickets and improves member satisfaction.

Legal and compliance considerations

You must manage terms of service, privacy policy, and refund policy. Ensure these documents are visible and agree to them during signup. If you collect personal data, follow GDPR or applicable privacy regulations and provide clear opt-in/opt-out mechanisms.

SEO and discoverability

Although membership content is gated, public pages and landing pages should be optimized for search engines. Use keyword-rich headlines, meta descriptions, structured data, and blog content to attract organic traffic. Design landing pages that convert with clear benefits and social proof.

Integrations to extend functionality

LearnWorlds supports integrations with email marketing tools (Mailchimp, ActiveCampaign), CRMs, Zapier for automation, webinar platforms, and analytics tools. Choose integrations that help you automate workflows and understand member behavior.

Common integration use cases

Send course completion data to your CRM
Trigger email sequences based on user actions
Create calendar events for scheduled live sessions
Sync payment data with accounting software

Live events, webinars, and coaching

Offer live training and coaching as part of memberships to add high-touch value. Integrate webinar platforms or use embedded live streams. Schedule events and notify members with calendar invites and reminders automatically.

Pricing strategy and testing

Select price points based on value delivered, competitor research, and customer willingness to pay. Test pricing with A/B experiments: different price levels, trial lengths, or feature combinations. Monitor conversion and churn to determine the optimal price.

Security and user privacy

Ensure your LearnWorlds site uses SSL and strong password policies. Offer two-factor authentication if available and regularly review access rules for staff and administrators. Limit access to billing data and member personal information.

Troubleshooting common issues

You will encounter technical and user problems — payment failures, access problems, or video playback issues. Provide clear troubleshooting steps and a system for escalating technical issues to LearnWorlds support when necessary.

Typical problems and fixes

Payment not processing: Check payment gateway settings and currency compatibility.
Member cannot access content: Verify product enrollment and access rules.
Video playback issues: Confirm video encoding and hosting settings; test across devices.
Email delivery failures: Check SPF/DKIM settings and email provider reputation.

Migrating existing content and members

If you have content and members on another platform, plan a migration strategy. Export course materials, user lists, and payment histories. Communicate clearly with members about migration timelines and any actions they must take, such as re-enrolling or updating payment methods.

Templates and sample workflows

Use templates for onboarding, course outlines, and email sequences to speed up setup. Create standard operating procedures for content publishing, quality review, and member support to maintain consistency as your program scales.

Best practices checklist

Use this checklist to ensure a thorough setup and professional experience.

Area	Task
Planning	Define value proposition and target member persona
Content	Create modular lessons, assessments, and certificates
Product Setup	Configure products, pricing, trials, and coupons
Access Control	Set up product-based and role-based access
UX	Design dashboard and navigation for clarity
Payments	Connect Stripe/PayPal and configure taxes
Community	Launch and moderate member community
Automation	Build onboarding and retention email flows
Analytics	Track MRR, churn, ARPU, and completion rates
Support	Create help resources and support channels
Legal	Publish TOS, privacy policy, and refund policy
Security	Enable SSL and enforce secure access policies

Measuring success and iterating

After launch, measure member behavior and financial metrics weekly and monthly. Use member feedback to refine content, adjust pricing, and introduce new features. Continuous iteration based on data will help you scale sustainably.

Example membership site structures

Here are three example structures to illustrate how you might architect your site in LearnWorlds.

Example A: Niche course library (single subscription)

Single subscription product granting access to 20+ courses
Monthly content release: 1 new course per month
Community forum for peer support
Quarterly live Q&A with the course instructor

Example B: Tiered professional membership

Basic: access to 10 courses + community
Pro: access to all courses + monthly workshops + certificate
Elite: includes Pro benefits + monthly 1:1 coaching
Drip content and exclusive webinars for Pro and Elite tiers

Example C: Hybrid product + coaching

One-time purchase of flagship course + optional monthly membership for ongoing support
Membership grants access to resource library, office hours, and new templates
Use upsells to convert course buyers into members

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

You will likely have common questions during setup. Below are concise answers to typical queries.

Can LearnWorlds handle recurring subscriptions?

Yes. LearnWorlds supports subscriptions with Stripe/PayPal integration, offering monthly and yearly billing cycles, trials, and coupon codes.

Can I offer both courses and community on the same site?

Yes. You can host courses, community pages, and resource libraries on the same LearnWorlds site and control access via products and roles.

How do I manage member cancellations and refunds?

Define a clear refund policy and implement automated notifications for cancellations. Process refunds through your payment gateway and update member access manually or via automation.

Is it possible to migrate members from another platform?

Yes, but you should export member data and course content carefully. Coordinate with LearnWorlds support and communicate with members during the transition.

Final checklist before launch

Confirm you have completed these essential tasks before going live:

Finalized membership model and pricing
Branded site and connected custom domain
Configured payment gateway and tax settings
Created core courses, resources, and community structure
Built onboarding and trial conversion automations
Set up analytics tracking and reporting
Published legal documents and support resources

Conclusion

You can use LearnWorlds to create a polished, effective membership site by combining thoughtful planning, quality content, automation, and community building. Focus on delivering consistent value, monitoring performance, and iterating based on member feedback. With the right setup, you can grow a reliable recurring revenue stream while offering members a meaningful learning experience.