Question 1

How do I set up my chamber?

Accepted Answer

Sign up at membicus.com/get-started in four steps: choose a plan, enter your chamber's details and pick your portal address (yourchamber.membicus.com), create your login, and confirm. You can't change the portal address yourself afterwards, so choose it carefully. If you need it changed, contact me. Then, as the chamber's super admin, set up three things: your logo and colors in Admin > Settings > Brand Kit, your membership plans in Admin > Settings > Plans, and Stripe on the Payments tab of Admin > Settings > General so members can pay online.

Question 2

What's included in the free trial?

Accepted Answer

The trial lasts 30 days and you don't need a credit card to start. During the trial you can send up to 100 emails a month. Sending from your own email domain is available on the Professional and Enterprise plans once your subscription starts. Add a card before the trial ends to keep going. If no card is added, the subscription cancels when the trial ends.

Question 3

Who can change my chamber's settings?

Accepted Answer

Super admins. Only they see the Settings group in the admin sidebar (General, Plans, Categories, Brand Kit and Renewal Reminders), and only they can open Settings > General, where Stripe, email, donations and embeds are set up. Admins can still manage members, events, announcements, newsletters, your website and sponsors.

Question 4

How do I connect Stripe so members can pay online?

Accepted Answer

A super admin goes to Admin > Settings > General, opens the Payments tab and clicks "Connect with Stripe". Stripe walks you through creating or connecting your account. Until Stripe is connected, other admins see a note on the Finances page asking them to contact their super admin. Payments go to your chamber's Stripe account and from there to your bank. Membicus doesn't hold your money and doesn't add a platform fee to member payments. Stripe's own processing fees apply.

Question 5

How do I add my first members?

Accepted Answer

There are four ways: Share your signup page.; Click "Add Member" on the Members page to add people one at a time.; Click "Import CSV" to bring in a spreadsheet.; Embed the signup form on your current website. The embed settings are in Admin > Settings > General, on the Integrations tab, under Website Integrations.

Question 6

Can I import my existing members?

Accepted Answer

Yes. On the Members page, click "Import CSV". Download the template, fill it in, upload it, match your columns, and check the preview before importing. Each file can have up to 1,000 rows. The import avoids duplicates: People who are already members of your chamber aren't added a second time.; A business with the same name as one you already have is linked instead of copied.; If a row fails partway, Membicus removes what it created for that row. If something can't be removed, the results tell you. Plans are matched by name. A row whose plan name doesn't match is imported without a plan. If you'd like help, send me your file.

Question 7

How do I add a member?

Accepted Answer

On the Members page, click "Add Member" and fill in the person's details, business and plan. "Send welcome email with login credentials" is ticked by default, so they get their login by email. Untick it if you'd rather tell them yourself later.

Question 8

What do the membership statuses mean?

Accepted Answer

Pending: signed up but hasn't paid yet. Members see this as "Pending Payment".; Approved: approved by an admin but not active yet.; Active: a current member.; Expired: the membership end date has passed.; Suspended: an admin has paused the membership.; Cancelled: the membership was cancelled. Online signups become Active as soon as their payment goes through.

Question 9

What happens when a membership ends?

Accepted Answer

Each night, memberships whose end date has passed on your chamber's calendar become Expired. Their business is hidden from the public directory until the member renews, and then it shows again. Members who pay by card renew automatically through Stripe. If a renewal payment fails, Stripe retries it. If the card subscription ends, the membership expires.

Question 10

How do I record a check or cash payment?

Accepted Answer

Open the member, go to their Payments tab and click "Record payment". Enter: the amount; the method: Check, Cash, Bank transfer, Card (in person) or Other; the date paid; a check number or reference; an optional note Leave "Renew membership" ticked to extend their membership for the period shown. The payment is recorded in Membicus only, and nothing is charged. If you made a mistake, click "Void" on the payment, add a reason and confirm with "Void payment". It stays in the history as Voided and no longer counts as revenue.

Question 11

Can members update their own details?

Accepted Answer

Yes. From their member dashboard, members can: edit their profile and business listing; choose which emails they receive; open their digital membership card; manage a card payment with "Manage Billing"

Question 12

How do group or corporate memberships work?

Accepted Answer

Create a plan in Admin > Settings > Plans and set Membership Type to "Group / Corporate". Set the "Included Seats", the "Max Seats" and, if extra seats cost more, the "Additional Seat Price (USD)". The primary contact holds the membership, and each person added to the group gets their own login and profile.

Question 13

How do member tags work?

Accepted Answer

Add tags on a member's page, for example "Board Member" or "Committee Chair". You can then filter the Members list by tag and choose tags as the audience for an announcement or newsletter.

Question 14

What is the digital membership card?

Accepted Answer

Every member has a card in their dashboard. It shows a QR code, their member number, plan, member-since date, the date the membership is valid through, and its status. Members can "Save as Image" or "Print" it. Scanning the QR code opens a page that confirms whether the membership is current.

Question 15

What are prospects?

Accepted Answer

Prospects are people who have shown interest but aren't members yet. They come from: event ticket purchases, including checkouts people started but didn't finish; free event sign-ups; newsletter signups; people you add yourself Choose the "Prospects" filter on the Members page to see them and where each one came from. From there you can "Invite" someone to join, or "Convert" them into a member.

Question 16

How do I manage my admin team?

Accepted Answer

Open the Team page. There are three roles: Event Manager: creates and manages events and RSVPs.; Admin: full admin access except managing roles and sensitive settings.; Super Admin: everything, including settings and billing. Only super admins can "Invite Team Member", change roles or remove someone.

Question 17

How does the business directory work?

Accepted Answer

Your chamber's public directory lists your member businesses with their name, description, contact details, website, categories and logo. Visitors can search it and filter it by category, and featured businesses are listed first in their category.

Question 18

Can members edit their own business listing?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Members can update their business name, description, contact details, address, website, social links and logo from their member dashboard. Changes show in the directory straight away.

Question 19

How do I feature a business?

Accepted Answer

Go to Businesses, open the business and turn on "Featured Business". Featured businesses are listed first in their category in the directory, which makes it a good perk for higher membership tiers or sponsors.

Question 20

How do business categories work?

Accepted Answer

Manage categories from Categories in the Settings group of the admin sidebar. Each category has a name, a slug and a display order. Categories shared by every chamber on Membicus also appear in the list. Visitors use categories to filter the directory.

Question 21

What happens to a listing when a membership expires?

Accepted Answer

The business is hidden from the public directory while the membership is expired or suspended, and it shows again when the membership is renewed or reactivated.

Question 22

How do I create an event?

Accepted Answer

On the Events page, click "Create Event". Add the title, date, time, location and description, and set a Capacity if spaces are limited. Leave "This is a free event" ticked for a free event. To charge for it, untick it and add ticket types (see the next question).

Question 23

How do paid events work?

Accepted Answer

Untick "This is a free event" and add at least one ticket type. Each ticket type has its own price, and can have a separate price for non-members and a limit on how many are sold. People pay when they register, and the money goes to your chamber's Stripe account, so Stripe must be connected first. Charging only works through ticket types. Always add one to a paid event.

Question 24

Can non-members register for free events?

Accepted Answer

Yes. On a free, public event, tick "Allow non-members to register". Non-members enter their first name, last name and email, and can add a phone number. They don't need an account. They appear in your RSVP list next to members and are added to your prospects. When the event is full, its page says "This event is full."

Question 25

How does the waitlist work?

Accepted Answer

When a free event with a Capacity is full, members who register join the waitlist. When a spot opens, move the next person off the waitlist from the event's attendee list.

Question 26

Can members bring guests?

Accepted Answer

Tick "Allow members to bring guests" and set the "Maximum guests per member". Members choose how many guests they're bringing when they register. On a paid event, "Charge for guest tickets" is on by default, so each guest pays too. Turn it off if guests come free.

Question 27

How do I check people in?

Accepted Answer

On the event's page, click "Check-In". Use the scanner on that page to scan each attendee's ticket QR code, or type the ticket code. Attendees find their ticket in their dashboard and in their confirmation email.

Question 28

Can I cancel an event and tell attendees?

Accepted Answer

Yes. In the event's actions menu, choose "Cancel Event" and add a reason. Every member who registered gets a cancellation email. Non-members who signed up for a free event aren't emailed, so download the attendee list to reach them. When a member cancels their own paid registration, Membicus refunds them automatically if the event's refund policy allows it. Any other card refund is made in your Stripe dashboard.

Question 29

Can I download the attendee list?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Each event's page has a CSV export of its attendees.

Question 30

Where does the money go?

Accepted Answer

Membership dues, event tickets and donations are paid into your chamber's own Stripe account through Stripe Connect, and Stripe pays out to your bank. Membicus never holds your money and adds no platform fee to member payments.

Question 31

What payment methods can members use?

Accepted Answer

Members pay online by card through Stripe. For checks, cash, bank transfers and other offline payments, use "Record payment" on the member's Payments tab.

Question 32

How do refunds work?

Accepted Answer

Card refunds are made in your Stripe dashboard. The one exception is when a member cancels their own paid event registration: Membicus refunds them automatically if the event's refund policy allows it. For a payment you recorded yourself, click "Void" on it in the member's Payments tab.

Question 33

Where do I see payments and revenue?

Accepted Answer

The Finances page shows your most recent payments. To download all of them, use the "Export" menu on the Members page and choose All Payments (CSV). The Reports page shows revenue over time, and its "Board Report" button makes a PDF for your board.

Question 34

What are surcharges?

Accepted Answer

Surcharges are extra fees for a group of members, for example a marketing fund charged to members tagged Sponsor. You set them up on the Surcharges tab of the Finances page: Choose who pays with a Target Tag: Board Member, Committee Chair, Sponsor or VIP.; Choose how often it bills: Annual, Monthly or One-time.; For Annual and Monthly surcharges, set the "Billing Anchor Month" and "Billing Anchor Day". Surcharges are switched on per chamber. If you don't see the tab, ask me.

Question 35

How does automatic renewal work?

Accepted Answer

Members who pay by card have a Stripe subscription that renews at the end of each period. If a payment fails, Stripe retries it. Members can update their card at any time from "Manage Billing" in their dashboard.

Question 36

How do I send an announcement?

Accepted Answer

Go to Announcements and click "New Announcement". Write your message and choose the audience: a ready-made group: All Active Members, All Members (Including Expired), Expired Members Only, New Members (Last 30 days) or Expiring Soon (Next 30 days); or a custom audience by status and tags, with the option to include newsletter subscribers who aren't members Choose where it appears with "Show in Feed", "Show on your public website" and "Pin Announcement". Then "Save as Draft" or "Save & Send Now".

Question 37

How many emails can I send?

Accepted Answer

Each plan includes a monthly email allowance, shown on the Pricing page. Announcements and newsletters count toward it. During the free trial the limit is 100 emails a month. If you send from your own email domain, those emails don't count against the allowance.

Question 38

Can I send from my own email domain?

Accepted Answer

Yes, on the Professional and Enterprise plans once your subscription has started. Go to Admin > Settings > General, open the Email tab and choose "Custom Provider". Membicus sends through Resend, so you'll need a Resend account with your domain verified. Enter your "Resend API Key" and "From Email Address" there.

Question 39

What emails does Membicus send automatically?

Accepted Answer

Welcome emails to new members; Event registration confirmations; Waitlist emails; Event cancellation notices to registered members; Donation receipts; New member alerts to your admins Most of them use the logo and header colors from your Brand Kit.

Question 40

How do I change the look of my emails?

Accepted Answer

Super admins go to Admin > Settings > Brand Kit. The Email tab sets the email header's background and text colors and the email footer. The header image itself is on the Logos tab.

Question 41

How do I build a newsletter?

Accepted Answer

Go to Newsletters and start a new one. Give it an internal title and a subject line, then add sections. The preview beside the editor shows how it will look in an inbox, and your work saves automatically.

Question 42

What sections can I add?

Accepted Answer

Click "Add Section" and choose from eight types: Hero, Article, Text Block, Upcoming Events, Business Spotlight, Sponsors, Button and Divider. Each section has its own settings. Use the arrows to move sections up or down, and the trash icon to remove one.

Question 43

How does the Upcoming Events section work?

Accepted Answer

It pulls your upcoming events when the newsletter is sent, not when you write it, so a newsletter written days ahead still shows the latest events. Choose how many to show: 3, 5, 8 or 10.

Question 44

How does the Business Spotlight section work?

Accepted Answer

Search for member businesses and pick the ones to feature. Their name, logo and description come from your directory.

Question 45

How does the newsletter Sponsors section work?

Accepted Answer

Add the sponsor names, logos and links in the section itself. It is separate from the Sponsors page, so changes there don't change past or future newsletters.

Question 46

How do I send a newsletter?

Accepted Answer

Click "Send" to open the send page. It shows how many people will receive it and how much of your email allowance is left. Click "Send Newsletter Now" to send. Until you do, the newsletter stays in your list as a draft.

Question 47

Can I reuse a newsletter?

Accepted Answer

Yes. In the newsletter list, open the ⋯ menu on any newsletter and choose "Duplicate". You get a new draft with the same sections, ready to edit for your next issue.

Question 48

Who receives a newsletter?

Accepted Answer

Choose the audience the same way as for announcements: a ready-made group, or a custom audience by status and tags, with the option to include newsletter subscribers who aren't members. The send page shows how many people will receive it before you send.

Question 49

How do I start accepting donations?

Accepted Answer

Donations are switched on per chamber. If you don't see a Donations tab on the Finances page, ask me. Then, in Admin > Settings > General, open the Donations tab and turn on "Enable Donations". Your donation page is at yourchamber.membicus.com/donate.

Question 50

How do donation campaigns work?

Accepted Answer

On the Finances page, open the Donations tab and click "Campaigns". Each campaign has a goal, start and end dates, and a description.

Question 51

Do donors get a receipt?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Donors get a receipt email after a one-time donation, and after the first payment of a monthly or yearly gift. If you add your organization's EIN in the donation settings, the receipt also shows the EIN and states that no goods or services were provided in exchange.

Question 52

Can donors give every month or every year?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Donors choose one-time, monthly or yearly. Recurring gifts run as Stripe subscriptions. Donors who want to change or stop one contact your chamber.

Question 53

Where do I see donations?

Accepted Answer

The Donations tab on the Finances page shows Total Raised, This Month, This Year and Recurring Donors, plus your 50 most recent donations. Your complete history, including every recurring payment, is in your Stripe dashboard.

Question 54

What is the Site Builder?

Accepted Answer

The Site Builder makes your chamber's public website at yourchamber.membicus.com. It uses your Membicus data, so your events, directory, news and sponsors stay current on their own. Open it from Website in the admin sidebar. Admins and super admins can edit it. It works best on a laptop or desktop.

Question 55

How do I choose a theme?

Accepted Answer

There are four themes: Heritage: serif headlines and ruled lists, formal and long-established.; Modern: big type and bold color.; Civic: dense and practical, for chambers with a lot to say.; Community: rounded, warm and photo-led. Your colors come from your Brand Kit. For fonts, choose "Use the theme's font" or "Use my Brand Kit fonts". Civic and Community are on the Professional and Enterprise plans.

Question 56

How do I add and arrange sections?

Accepted Answer

Click "Add section" and pick from 13 sections: Hero, Upcoming events, News, Member businesses, Newest members, Sponsors, Member story, Text, Photo gallery, Featured links, Call to action, Membership plans and Newsletter signup. Drag sections to reorder them. Each section has a Content tab and a Style tab, and you can hide a section without deleting it. A page can have up to 20 sections.

Question 57

What does the News section show?

Accepted Answer

Your announcements that have "Show on your public website" turned on.

Question 58

How do I publish my website?

Accepted Answer

Your changes save as a draft automatically. Use the desktop and phone previews to check them, then click "Publish". Nothing changes on your live site until you publish. To go back to an earlier version, open Version history. Restoring a version puts it in your draft, so you can check it before publishing again.

Question 59

Can I add more pages?

Accepted Answer

Yes, on the Professional and Enterprise plans. Click "Add page" and give it a title and an address. You can have up to 10 pages besides your homepage. Each page publishes on its own, but your homepage must be published first.

Question 60

How do I change the website menu?

Accepted Answer

On the Menu card, click "Edit menu". You can show up to 7 links and drag them into order. Directory, Events, Offers and Donate always stay in the list. Hiding one crosses it out, and its button shows it again.; Your own pages can be added or taken out. Pages you take out move to "Not in the menu". Log In and Join Now always show.

Question 61

How do I add photos and my logo?

Accepted Answer

Upload photos from the sections that use them, such as Hero, Photo gallery and Member story. Everything you upload is kept in "Your photos" so you can reuse it. On the Logo card, choose your Brand Kit logo or upload a different one for the header and the footer.

Question 62

Which website features need the Professional or Enterprise plan?

Accepted Answer

On Starter you get the full homepage editor with the Heritage and Modern themes and the core sections. Professional and Enterprise add: the Civic and Community themes; the Sponsors, Newest members, Photo gallery and Member story sections; photo and custom-color backgrounds and custom button colors; up to 10 extra pages These show as locked on Starter.

Question 63

Can I keep my current website instead?

Accepted Answer

Yes. You can embed your directory, events, announcements, signup form and newsletter signup on your current website. See Embeds.

Question 64

How do I add sponsors?

Accepted Answer

Open Sponsors in the admin sidebar. Click "Add tier" to create levels such as Gold or Silver, then "Add sponsor" to enter: name, logo and website; tier; an optional linked member business; optional start and end dates

How can I help?

Getting started

Members

Business directory

Events

Payments and billing

Email and announcements

Newsletters

Donations

Your website

Sponsors

Embeds

Reports

Account and security

Can't find your answer?