Is your content protected if you don't use WordPress?

We’ve had potential customers reach out to us in the past about a solution for restricting access to members-only pages on non-WordPress sites - they might say "Can you help us build a Wix membership site?" or "We'd like to add a members-only area to our Squarespace site". Some of those creators feel like we’re holding them back and have asked why we won’t offer this solution, so we'd like to explain!

The short answer is this: it’s not that we won’t, it’s that we can’t. We value transparency here at Memberful, and we know that we can’t offer you secure members-only pages on your Wix membership site or your Squarespace membership site, so we want to let you know that.

Javascript membership site platforms are not the answer

Some membership site platforms claim to offer secure pages, but that’s just not true - as far as we know, only WordPress works. These protection methods are more of a magic trick, almost smoke and mirrors to divert users away from your members-only content and links, but not truly securing the content.

These methods often use JavaScript, a piece of code to essentially 'build a temporary gate' in front of the content, but visitors can easily disable JavaScript in their web browser settings to deactivate this gate. This mean non-members can view your content, even if it’s restricted, because this solution does not create server-side content protection.

Squarespace is brilliant for building websites but cannot guarantee content restriction © squarespace.com

In summary, if you’re looking to protect your members-only content, you should avoid JavaScript solutions. If you want to see what we mean - if you have a Wix membership site or a Squarespace membership site you might find this a little worrying! - check out 12ft.io which removes JavaScript paywalls, to help you access the article you're looking for.

Choose security over convenience

If you use WordPress and Memberful, you can rest easy knowing your gated content won’t be accessed for free, because we offer 100% secure server-side content protection.

However, that same level of security simply isn’t available through popular site builders like Squarespace and Wix. Those sites don’t provide user authentication or content protection integrations. But, if you type 'Squarespace membership site' or 'Wix membership site' into your browser, you’ll find countless membership plugins and solutions claiming to offer members-only content restriction.

In fact, one of these membership site platforms even outlines this on their site, saying “When adding a Squarespace page URL... the page will not be truly secure,” then adding that the JavaScript can easily be bypassed, admitting, “There are ways for people to disable the redirect.”

Wix will make building a website easy but cannot guarantee to protect your content © wix.com

So why do creators use site builders that can’t protect their content? In short, convenience. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to easily set up a site for your online offering, but choosing convenience over the specific needs of your membership site, isn’t fair to your audience.

When you use an insecure membership site platform such as a Wix membership site or a Squarespace membership site, it's easy for people to download or access your gated content without paying for it. So you’re not only losing out on revenue, you're being unfair to your dedicated and loyal audience members by making them pay for content that can be accessed for free by anyone who can disable JavaScript.

If you still don’t want to use WordPress

We stand by the fact that WordPress works best for membership sites, but we get that it isn’t a perfect fit for everyone.

So, if you’re using a non-WordPress builder and thinking of a building a Squarespace membership site or something similar with Wix, Weebly, or Leadpages, your best best for safely and securely sharing your content is through a paid email newsletter or a gated discussion forum.

As far as we know, only Wordpress can protect your members-only content © wordpress.com

Again, if you’re interested in restricting access to certain pages or links for members only, may we suggest a quick and basic WordPress site? Because a membership site with WordPress is your only safe bet for securing members-only content.