I paid last week and still cannot log in
Your website has a members-only area with guidance, templates, recorded webinars, the journal archive and discussion forums. Members have a website login that is separate from the membership database. When someone renews, a staff member updates their website account, when they get round to it. When someone lapses, their account should be switched off, and often is not.
So a member who paid last week emails to say she cannot download the guidance she needs for a client meeting today. Meanwhile, someone who lapsed two years ago is still reading the journal archive. Student members can see content meant for full members, because grade-specific access was too fiddly to set up. The website team and the membership team each think the other is responsible.
Why access and membership disagree
The website and the membership database were set up separately, and nothing keeps them in step.
- Website logins are separate accounts, created and removed by hand.
- Renewals and lapses do not update website access.
- Grade-specific access is hard to manage, so it is skipped.
- Members have several logins: website, forum, webinar platform, CPD record.
- Password resets and lockouts land on the membership team.
- Nobody knows who has access to what.
The root cause is two sources of truth about who is a member.
What mismatched access costs
Paid-up members who cannot reach resources feel short-changed, often at the moment they need the benefit most. Lapsed members who keep access have less reason to renew, and content that is meant to be a membership benefit is effectively free.
The membership team spends time on login problems. Members juggling several passwords use the resources less, which undermines the value they see in membership. And because nobody can say who has access to what, it is hard to answer a simple question from council about how many members actually use the guidance the body spends so much effort producing.
How we build status-based access
- Members sign in once with their membership account, and the website, forum, webinar recordings and CPD record accept that sign-in.
- Access is checked against current status and grade from the membership record at sign-in, and refreshed regularly.
- When a member renews, access returns within minutes; when a member lapses, access ends according to your grace period.
- Content is tagged with the grades that can see it, so grade-specific resources work without staff managing lists.
- Members who try to reach content they cannot access see a clear message: renew, upgrade or contact the team.
- On WordPress or similar sites, we connect membership to the site's user roles, or build the connection if your membership system has no plugin.
- A report shows who accessed which resources, which helps you see what members value.
| Member situation | Access |
|---|---|
| Renewed today | Full access within minutes |
| Lapsed, within grace period | Access continues until the grace period ends |
| Lapsed after grace period | Members-only content locked, renew message shown |
| Student grade | Student resources only |
Your rules decide who sees what. Access follows the membership record so nobody has to keep lists in step.
Member access afterwards
A member renews on her phone, then opens the guidance she needs a few minutes later. A lapsed member who tries to read the archive sees a friendly message with a renewal link. Student members see resources designed for them. The membership team stops resetting website passwords.
Reports on resource use show which guidance and recordings members rely on, which informs what to produce next. The website team and the membership team stop passing access queries between them, because there is only one place access comes from.
Recognise these access problems?
- Paid-up members are locked out after renewing.
- Lapsed members still have access.
- Members have several logins for different resources.
- Grade-specific content is not restricted.
- Login problems land on the membership team.