Case Study for a MemberPress Migration Recovery
👉 This case study highlights how MemberFix rescued WOWintl.org from a broken migration, restored member trust, and set the foundation for long-term growth.
About WOWintl.org
Word of Wellness International (WOWintl) is a volunteer-driven organization formed in August 2022 to stand up against lockdowns and vaccine mandates in Melbourne, Australia—the city widely known as the “most locked down city in the world.” The group is passionate about restoring health, freedom, and community resilience, and has grown into a hub for members seeking trustworthy information and resources.
The Challenge
WOWintl initially launched its membership program on a SaaS platform. However, the system quickly caused severe problems as members ended up with multiple subscriptions for the same plan and they were being overcharged 2-3 times per year instead of once.
To gain better control and flexibility, WOWintl decided to migrate to WordPress and MemberPress in early 2025. Unfortunately, the original development team lacked experience with membership platforms. The result was a broken system that left members frustrated:
- Customers still had duplicate subscriptions in Stripe, leading to billing errors.
- Subscriptions were not mapped correctly to MemberPress, so users couldn’t access protected content.
- Memberships were set up as one-time payments instead of recurring subscriptions.
- 75–80% of members never logged in to the new site, which had been live for months.
- Members never received onboarding emails about their new accounts.
- The site had no SMTP configuration, meaning critical emails were bouncing.
- The frontend suffered from broken layouts and unnecessary custom coding.
At this point, WOWintl had invested significant funds into development, but the site was not functioning as intended. That’s when Delia (co-director) turned to ChatGPT for help—who referred MemberFix for the Membership Migration Recovery.
What we did:
After an initial consultation call, our team identified the key problem areas and mapped out a 50-hour rescue plan.
1. Immediate Member Access
We temporarily modified MemberPress rules so that any logged-in user could access protected content. This gave members instant relief while we worked on backend fixes.
2. Stripe Subscription Audit & Repair
Since no backup list of subscriptions existed, we exported all subscription data from Stripe into a CSV and analyzed it across multiple categories:
- Members with multiple active subscriptions
- Subscriptions with incorrect expiration dates
- Invoices stuck in draft mode
- Subscriptions marked as canceled (though members never canceled)
We cleaned up this data, fixed subscription errors directly in Stripe, and re-imported subscriptions and transactions into MemberPress. Once complete, all memberships synced properly, and normal access rules were restored.
3. SMTP Configuration
To solve email deliverability issues, we implemented a proper SMTP solution. We recommended AuthSMTP for its reliability and affordability, though we also provided free alternatives like Brevo and MailRelay. This ensured account notifications and transactional emails were reaching members’ inboxes.
4. User Login Recovery & Engagement
Instead of forcing a mass password reset, we:
- Extracted a list of users who had never logged in.
- Imported the list into FluentCRM, tagging them for tracking.
- Sent a custom re-engagement email campaign to measure opens, clicks, and logins.
The results were immediate: within one hour, 18 members successfully logged in and began consuming content.
5. Plugin & Performance Audit
We performed a full site audit and discovered:
- Dozens of unused plugins left behind during development.
- PHP errors causing unnecessary slowdowns.
- Inefficient custom code that was not needed.
We removed unused plugins, patched errors, and optimized performance, leaving the site lighter, faster, and more stable.
The Results
- All subscription and billing issues were resolved.
- Members regained proper access to content tied to their active memberships.
- Email deliverability was fully restored with a reliable SMTP service.
- Login reactivation drove immediate member engagement.
- The site was cleaned up, optimized, and future-proofed.
- The project was completed 5 hours under the initial 50-hour estimate, with additional improvements included at no extra cost.
Ongoing Partnership
WOWintl was so satisfied with the turnaround that they enrolled in a MemberFix Lite Care Plan, ensuring continued support, improvements, and new feature development each month.
Key Takeaways
- SaaS platforms can be limiting for complex membership sites—WordPress + MemberPress is often the more flexible, reliable choice.
- Migration projects require deep knowledge of Stripe, subscriptions, and membership logic—general developers often underestimate the complexity.
- Proper email deliverability (SMTP) and user re-engagement strategies are crucial for membership retention.
- A thorough audit and cleanup can dramatically improve performance and reduce technical debt.
Video Testimonial from the co-director
MemberFix is a SWAT Team :muscle:
