--- title: How membership works sidebarTitle: Introduction description: >- Your membership is a subscription to your whole portal. See how price, onboarding, discounts, Private offerings and your subscriber list fit together, and where each one lives. audience: luminary feature: membership-pricing type: introduction availability: live last_verified: '2026-10-14' keywords: - membership - portal subscription - subscribers - members only - private offerings - recurring revenue - patreon alternative url: 'https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/membership/introduction' --- # How membership works > Your membership is a subscription to your whole portal. See how price, onboarding, discounts, Private offerings and your subscriber list fit together, and where each one lives. Your membership is a subscription to your portal. People pay you monthly, yearly or once, and in return they become your subscribers: they get everything you've set to Private, plus anything you include for them at a subscriber price. In the dashboard, the membership is called My Portal wherever you choose what something applies to, for example when you create a promo code. **Warning:** Private on an offering means _"Only subscribers can access"_. It doesn't mean hidden, only you, or invite-only. If you want something hidden from your portal but open to anyone you send the link to, use Unlisted. See [What Private means](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/membership/private-means-subscribers-only). ## The pieces, and where they live Membership settings are spread across a few screens. This is the whole map. | Piece | What it decides | Where | | ----------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Price | Tiers or a range, monthly, yearly or one-time, fixed length | [Business → Pricing](https://portal.bringsoul.life/settings/pricing), Pricing tab | | Membership refund policy | Refund rules for subscriptions only | [Business → Pricing](https://portal.bringsoul.life/settings/pricing), Refund policy card | | Pre-subscription form and FAQ | What people answer before they pay, and your membership FAQ | [Business → Onboarding](https://portal.bringsoul.life/settings/onboarding) | | Discounts and free trials | Promo codes for My Portal | [Business → Pricing](https://portal.bringsoul.life/settings/pricing?tab=promotions), Promotions tab | | What subscribers get | Offerings set to Private, subscriber prices, Subscribers Only sections | Each offering's Visibility, and [My Portal → Design](https://portal.bringsoul.life/portal) → Sections | | The Join card | Whether visitors see your Membership section | [My Portal → Design](https://portal.bringsoul.life/portal) → Sections → Membership | | Welcome | The email or form sent when someone subscribes | [Business → Customers & Subscribers](https://portal.bringsoul.life/business/customers), automations | | Your subscribers | Who's active, who left, cancelling, inviting | [Business → Customers & Subscribers](https://portal.bringsoul.life/business/customers) | | Numbers | Active subscribers, churn, recurring revenue | [Business → Analytics](https://portal.bringsoul.life/business/analytics) | ## A subscriber's journey **Step 1: They find your portal** Visitors see your Public offerings and the Membership section's Join card. Private offerings either don't show or ask them to subscribe, depending on the offering. **Step 2: They choose a price** On your pricing page, `bringsoul.life/portal//pricing` (titled Join <your portal name>'s space), they pick a plan or slide to an amount, monthly or yearly, and click Continue. If they aren't signed in, they create an account next (Create Your Account). **Step 3: They answer your form** If you attached a pre-subscription form in [Onboarding](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/onboarding), they see *"A few questions from <your portal name>"* and click Continue to Payment. **Step 4: They pay and become a subscriber** On the Subscribe page they can enter a code under Have a promo code?, then pay with Subscribe · $X / month (or Start N-Day Free Trial with a trial code). They land on *"Welcome to <your portal name>'s space"*. They appear under Active subscribers in [Customers & Subscribers](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/customers-and-subscribers), and your [welcome email](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/settings/welcome-new-subscribers) goes out if you set one up. **Step 5: They get your Private offerings** Everything set to Private opens up for them, and Subscribers Only sections appear on your portal. **Step 6: They leave** When they cancel, or you cancel for them, they move to Past subscribers and lose access straight away. Some things they already joined stay with them; see [when a subscription ends](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/membership/private-means-subscribers-only#when-a-subscription-ends). A fixed-length membership ends on its own. ## Setting it up, in order **Step 1: Set your price** [Tiers](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/membership-pricing), a [free or pay-what-you-can range](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/free-or-pay-what-you-can), or a [fixed-length program](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/fixed-length-membership). **Step 2: Decide what members get** Set the offerings that are part of the membership to Private, and give priced items a subscriber price. See [What Private means](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/membership/private-means-subscribers-only). **Step 3: Prepare onboarding** Add a [pre-subscription form and FAQ](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/onboarding), and a [welcome email](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/settings/welcome-new-subscribers). **Step 4: Show the Join card** Turn on the Membership section in [My Portal → Design](https://portal.bringsoul.life/portal). **Step 5: Launch** Share your pricing page, with a [launch discount](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/membership/discount-your-membership) or [free trial](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/free-trial) if you like. Moving from another platform? [Invite your members](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/migrate-members). ## Guides - [What Private means](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/membership/private-means-subscribers-only): Private is subscribers only. What that does on each kind of offering. - [Set up a membership with tiers](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/membership-pricing): Up to five prices, monthly and yearly. - [Free or pay-what-you-can](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/free-or-pay-what-you-can): A sliding scale, or a free membership. - [Offer a free trial](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/free-trial): Days free before the first payment. - [Fixed-length membership](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/fixed-length-membership): A program that ends, or one payment for access. - [Change your price](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/pricing/change-your-membership-price): Who the new price affects. - [Onboarding: form and FAQ](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/onboarding): What people answer and read before they pay. - [Discount your membership](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/membership/discount-your-membership): Launch offers, founding rates and yearly nudges. - [Bring members from another platform](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/migrate-members): Invite existing members to subscribe. - [Manage subscribers](https://help.bringsoul.life/luminaries/business/customers-and-subscribers): Active and past subscribers, cancelling and exporting.