How a 2,500-member association unified its public website and legacy AMS into one member experience.
Overview
The client is a regional professional association with roughly 2,500 members — a mix of organizations and individuals — supported by an eight-person team with no in-house developer.
For years, its public website and Association Management System operated as two separate products. They used different design patterns, different navigation, and different domains. Members could start on the association website and suddenly be redirected into an unfamiliar AMS interface to register for an event or access account information.
Plavno rebuilt the member-facing experience on Wix Studio while keeping the existing AMS as the operational system of record. The result was a single, consistent experience across public content, events, membership access, and the private member area — without forcing the association to replace the systems its finance and membership teams already relied on.
2,500 members across organizations and individuals
+34% event registrations after launch
50% fewer "where do I find…" support calls
100% of website content now updated in-house
No in-house developer required for routine content or event updates
Membership status, tier, and expiration synchronized with the website
Automated access control for member-only content

Members repeatedly described the public website and the member portal as two different sites. Event registration was one of the most visible points of friction: a visitor could browse an event on the association website, click to register, and suddenly land on a third-party AMS domain with a different interface and navigation structure. A meaningful share of users abandoned the process before completing registration.
The internal team also depended on an outside contractor for routine website management. Publishing a new event or making certain content changes required developer involvement because the team had no practical way to manage those updates independently.
The website also had no direct understanding of membership status. It could not automatically determine whether a visitor was currently a member, which membership tier they held, when their membership expired, or whether access to protected content should remain active. These decisions were handled manually, creating inconsistent access rules and additional support work.
Individually, these issues were relatively small, but together they created daily friction for thousands of members.

The goal was to connect the website and existing AMS into one seamless experience without replacing the legacy system. Key requirements included:
Two-way REST API synchronization with the AMS
Syncing membership status, tier, and expiration
Automated access to member-only content
Keeping the AMS as the system of record
Simplifying event registration and reducing data re-entry
Creating an easy-to-manage events system
Maintaining a consistent experience across public and private areas
The events calendar also required list and calendar views, filters by type and region, and featured events.

Solution
Plavno created a unified journey from the public website to the private member dashboard, connecting Wix Members with the existing AMS through a two-way REST API. Membership data, gated access, events, registration flows, personalized content, and renewal reminders are now synchronized and automated, reducing manual work for staff and creating a smoother experience for members.
Unified public website and member experience
Two-way AMS integration through REST API
Live membership status synchronization
Membership tier and expiration tracking
Automated gated-content access
Custom events calendar
Calendar/list toggle
Event type and region filters
CMS-controlled featured event
Pre-filled AMS registration links
Personalized member homepage
Upcoming-events module
Automatic membership renewal reminder
Fully staff-managed website content
Member Login & Access: Members authenticate through the website, while synchronized AMS data determines current membership status and access level.
Member-Only Content: Access to gated content is automatically opened or closed based on membership status and tier.
Event Discovery: Members browse events using calendar or list view and filter by event type or region.
Event Registration: Registration remains inside the AMS, but the member enters the process with existing information pre-filled.
Membership Renewal: A renewal reminder appears automatically 30 days before expiration.
Staff Event Publishing: Association staff create and update event information directly in the CMS and can promote a featured event without developer involvement.
Lean association team with no in-house developer
Approximately 2,500 organizational and individual members
Low-maintenance content workflows
Automatic membership synchronization
Minimal manual access administration
Staff-managed event publishing
Reduced reliance on external contractors
Continuity with the existing AMS
AMS retained as the operational backbone
Website positioned as the unified member-facing layer
Architecture Overview
Experience Layer: Wix Studio provides the primary website and member-facing interface under one consistent design system.
Member Layer: Wix Members supports the authenticated website experience and private member areas.
Integration Layer: Velo and REST API connections synchronize membership information between Wix and the legacy AMS.
Data Layer: Wix Data stores and manages website-side event information and content required for the member experience.
Events Layer: The custom event interface supports calendar/list views, event-type filters, regional filters, and CMS-managed featured events.
AMS Layer: The existing Association Management System remains the system of record for membership operations and event registrations.

Value
Making separate systems feel like one consistent member product.
The public website and private member experience follow one visual and navigational system.
Access decisions are based on synchronized AMS membership data rather than manual administration.
Existing member information is carried into registration instead of being entered again.
Routine content and event publishing can be handled directly by the association team.
Benchmarks
Supporting a 2,500-member association without adding an internal development team.
The experience supports both individual and organizational memberships.
Membership information remains connected to the website while the AMS stays the system of record.
Membership expiration automatically changes access to protected content.
100% of website content can now be maintained by association staff.
Data Protection
Membership-aware access without duplicating the AMS operational model
Protected website content is controlled using synchronized membership status and tier information.
When membership expires, associated gated-content access closes automatically.
The AMS continues to hold the association’s core membership and registration operations instead of introducing a second competing record system.
Innovative Experience
Unified member portals for organizations running a legacy AMS alongside a public website.
Delivery Crew
High-performing developers for growing companies

Eugene Katovich
Sales Manager
Plavno connects public websites, member experiences, events, and existing AMS platforms without forcing associations to replace the systems their operations already depend on.
Talk to an ExpertCompetitive Ability
From AMS membership data to a unified association website and member portal
Sync Membership Data
Membership status, tier, and expiration date are synchronized from the AMS.
Personalize Access
The website uses membership data to determine gated-content access and personalized member information.
Discover & Register
Members find events through the new calendar and continue into pre-filled AMS registration.
Manage In-House
Association staff update events and website content directly without developer involvement.
Less member friction and significantly less operational dependency on external developers
Event registrations increased by 34% in the first two quarters after launch.
“Where do I find…” calls to the association office dropped by half.
100% of website content is now maintained directly by association staff.
The public website and membership portal now operate as one connected experience rather than two separate products.
Member-only content access now updates automatically based on synchronized membership status and expiration data, eliminating manual access management for association staff.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Find answers to your common concerns
No. The existing AMS remained the system of record for membership and registration operations.
A two-way REST API integration synchronized membership status, tier, and expiration information.
Event registrations increased by 34%, navigation-related support calls fell by 50%, and the association team took full control of website content updates.
Yes. The custom event experience is managed through the CMS by the association team.
Yes. Gated-content access is tied to synchronized membership status.
Yes. Registration remained in the AMS, but member information was pre-filled to reduce unnecessary data entry.
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