What steps should I take to start a successful membership site? Thinking of using a combination of Infusionsoft + AccessAlly.

I already have many fans/readers/customers. That's not an issue. Most membership sites I have seen are not robust enough -- they simply provide password protected access to online courses, and perhaps a forum. I want multiple sales funnels and multiple courses, but also a beautiful, fun, robust community where people make profiles, add credentials to them, and interact with each other in a variety of ways. (And can update their own credit cards and passwords, and other such automation.) Infusionsoft + AccessAlly seems to do that, but Infusionsoft is expensive and many people seem to be unhappy with it. It also takes months for training!