Are you looking to offer subscriptions to your audience members or want to start monetizing your content by selling subscriptions?
The subscription economy is only growing and will continue the same trend in the near future. In fact, it is estimated that the subscription economy will grow to $1.5 trillion by 2025. This means if you’re a content creator or have a passion for creating online courses, it’s best to start as soon as possible.
There are lots of subscription platforms available that let creators monetize their passion in different ways. In this article, we’ll cover some of the best subscription platforms that creators can use to start monetizing their content.
#1. Kajabi
Kajabi is a professional subscription platform that lets you set up a full-fledged membership site according to your brand’s unique aesthetics.
For starters, Kajabi lets you manage all aspects of your subscription business from a single place. This means you can create a custom-looking site, add premium content, and create membership subscriptions, all using a single tool. It also lets you set up various subscription products, including online courses, premium communities, paid podcasts, as well as coaching classes. This way, businesses have a wide range of options when it comes to monetizing content or offering subscription products to their target audiences.
A COMPLETE STEP-BY-STEP CHEATSHEET
TO CREATING, LAUNCHING & GROWING A SUCCESSFUL MEMBERSHIP WEBSITE
Kajabi also offers extensive pricing options for your subscription products, such as setting up weekly, monthly, or yearly recurring subscriptions. You can encourage users to join your membership site or paid community by offering free trial periods. Kajabi payment options and subscription tracking features make it possible for you to manage payments on your subscription site without having to use other 3rd party services.
In addition to all of these great features, Kajabi also lets you set up marketing funnels, email marketing campaigns, and affiliate marketing. This way, you can create, sell, and promote your subscription products using just one tool. It’s a huge time-saver and a cost-effective way for businesses to start a full-fledged subscription business without worrying about integrating multiple services or tools.
While Kajabi’s pricing is expensive, it’s the perfect solution for creators who want to manage all aspects of their business using a subscription platform.
#2. Teachable
Teachable is a subscription platform that makes it very easy for creators to start selling online courses and memberships.
Using an intuitive interface, creators can easily create subscription products, including online courses, coaching classes, training programs, and memberships. This means you can quickly start monetizing premium content and start selling subscriptions to your audience after getting started with the platform, even if you’re not very tech-savvy.
Teachable also features a dedicated website builder that lets you create and host your website on a responsive, secure, and optimized subscription platform. This way, you don’t need to worry about the technicalities of creating and managing your brand’s subscription site.
The major advantage of using Teachable for Creators is its dedicated marketplace. This not only lets you quickly start selling your subscription product, such as an online course but is a great way to reach a wider audience and boost sales for your business. Instead of having to find your target audience, all you need to do is create subscription-based products and start selling them on the marketplace. However, selling on the marketplace directly also means Teachable will take 30% of each sale made through their marketplace platform.
Additionally, Teachable comes pre-built with advanced features like automatic EU tax collection and built-in payment processing functionality. If your target audience is from the EU, you can automatically deduct taxes that need to be submitted later so your subscription site is fully GDPR compliant. The built-in payment processing features also make it possible to accept payments from your subscribers using a native payment system so you don’t have to integrate popular payment gateways such as Stripe and PayPal.
Teachable is a great option for creators who want to quickly get started with selling online courses, especially if their target audience is based in the EU.
#3. Podia
Podia is a dedicated membership and subscription platform that’s very user-friendly and offers powerful functionality for setting up a subscription site.
The highlight feature of Podia is that it’s very easy to use, even if it’s your first time or you aren’t very tech-savvy. Within a few minutes, you can set up subscription plans and start selling to your target audience. This is a great feature to have, especially for creators who don’t want to waste time in setting up the platform.
With Podia, you can create multiple types of subscription products, including online courses, downloadable products, coaching sessions, online webinars, and a premium community. This lets you diversify your product offering so it’s easier to cater to all types of audiences, including the ones who are just looking to join a paid online community.
While the built-in payment options are as detailed as some other subscription platforms, they work great for offering monthly or yearly subscription options to your audience. Podia is the ideal solution for creators who are looking for an affordable but powerful subscription platform that’s also very simple to use.
#4. Subbly
Subbly is a popular subscription platform that offers all the functionality you need to set up a full-fledged professional-looking subscription site.
The major selling point of Subbly is its “one-off” solution for creators who want to start selling subscriptions. This means you don’t have to worry about integrating other services or using tools to run and manage subscriptions; everything is done within the Subbly platform.
Using Subbly, you can quickly get started with creating an online store with subscription products, easily manage your subscribers, and analyze how well your subscription products are performing, all from a central place.
Subbly is a great subscription platform choice for creators who want to use a single dedicated subscription management platform to start selling online courses or set up a subscription online.
#5. LearnWorlds
Launched back in 2014, LearnWorlds is a reputable online course platform that’s designed with creators or people with a passion for teaching in mind.
While LearnWorlds lets you set up online courses exactly how you want to, you also have a wide range of features for creating highly engaging quizzes for your students. This not only helps offer an enhanced learning experience but also encourages more users to join your subscription site.
In addition to this, LearnWorlds also fully integrates with some of the most popular payment methods, including PayPal, Stripe, and 2Checkout. This way, creators don’t have to worry about how they’re going to accept payments from their learners or subscribers.
LearnWorlds is recommended for creators who want to start selling highly professional online courses to their target audiences.
#6. Memberful
Unlike other dedicated subscription platforms mentioned in our list, Memberful is a plugin that can be used to turn your ordinary-looking site into a full-fledged subscription platform within a few minutes.
Memberful can integrate with your existing WordPress or WooCommerce site so you can start selling online courses, premium online community access, as well as digital downloadable products directly from your own site.
The major advantage of using Memberful is the wide range of integration options you get with WordPress. This means it’s possible to add any type of functionality to your subscription platform with third-party WordPress plugins and tools.
Memberful is worth considering if you’re looking to use your existing WordPress site to start selling subscription products.
#7. Wild Apricot
Wild Apricot is a subscription and membership site platform that’s designed with nonprofit businesses and charities in mind.
The cloud-based subscription platform is very easy to use for setting up subscription-based products and managing subscribers using a single platform. It also seamlessly integrates with most email and payment services so it’s easier for creators to accept payments and cater to their audiences.
While the overall design layout of Wild Apricot isn’t as modern as most other subscription platforms in our list, it’s still a solid option for creators who are looking to run non-profit subscription sites.
#8. BuddyBoss
Similar to Memberful, BuddyBoss is another WordPress subscription plugin that lets you create and sell subscription-based products from your own site.
BuddyBoss is very intuitive when it comes to setting up a professional membership site. You can quickly set up online forums or private communities using the WordPress dashboard.
BuddyBoss is a solid option for creators who want a fairly simple-to-use WordPress plugin for setting up subscriptions on their own website.
#9 – WooCommerce Subscriptions
WooCommerce Subscriptions is a powerful extension that allows website owners to set up and manage recurring subscription products on their WooCommerce-powered website. It is a convenient and flexible solution for businesses selling products or services on a subscription basis. With this extension, website owners can easily create subscription-based products, offer different billing intervals, and manage recurring payments seamlessly.
One of the key features of WooCommerce Subscriptions is its ability to create and sell subscription products. Website owners can create multiple subscription options for customers to choose from, such as monthly, quarterly, or annually. They can also customize the pricing and availability of these products. For example, they can offer a discount for customers who subscribe to a longer billing interval or restrict certain subscription options to specific customer groups.
WooCommerce Subscriptions also offers a range of management tools for website owners to effectively manage their subscription products. They can view and manage active subscriptions and easily cancel or modify subscriptions when necessary. The extension also provides detailed reports and analytics on subscription sales, allowing website owners to gain insights into their subscription business and make informed decisions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What are the best subscription platforms for creators in 2023?
A: The best subscription platforms for creators in 2023 include Hosting Solutions, WordPress LMS, BuddyBoss, LifterLMS, and LearnDash.
Q: How can I integrate my content on these platforms?
A: These platforms provide integration options so that you can easily connect and share your content.
Q: Do these platforms support video subscriptions?
A: Yes, these platforms support video subscriptions, allowing you to monetize your video content.
Q: Are there any free subscription platforms available for creators?
A: Yes, some of the mentioned platforms offer free plans with limited features for creators who are just starting out.
Q: Can I create and sell digital products on these platforms?
A: Yes, most of these platforms allow creators to create and sell digital products to their audience.
Q: How can these platforms help creators in the content creation process?
A: These platforms provide tools and features that streamline and simplify content creation for creators.
Q: Is there a specific platform that focuses on building communities for creators?
A: Yes, Mighty Network is a popular community platform for creators that offers various features to foster engagement and interaction among community members.
Q: Can I monetize my content through newsletters on these platforms?
A: Yes, you can monetize your content by offering exclusive content or premium subscriptions through newsletters on these platforms.
Q: What are some other top community platforms for creators in 2023?
A: Apart from the mentioned platforms, there are several other community platforms for creators, such as Brand 2023, Platform of 2023, and Top 10 Community Platforms.
Q: How can I build my brand as a content creator using these platforms?
Conclusion
With so many subscription platforms available and to choose from, it can be hard for creators to decide on the one that’s best suited for them.
It’s important to consider your brand’s unique goals, budgets, and target audience when choosing between subscription platforms.
Creators who are looking for a fairly simple and easy-to-use subscription platform can go for Subbly or Teachable. On the other hand, if you need more advanced functionality like marketing features and integrated payment options, subscription platforms like Kajabi and Podia will work the best for you.
Do you have any questions on how to choose the best subscription platform? Let us know in the comments box below.
