The s2Member® plugin for WordPres is very powerful membership management system. With this hack we can do it even better. This hack will allow you to create dripping schedule to hide content of the post for some s2Member® level(s) for certain period of time after publishing, and then to release to all.
Why this goal can not be achieved with existing tools?
Pro version of s2Member® has a function to drip content, but it is limited to a timestamps established based on the level registration, meaning when a member gains access to Level 1 or Level 2. This brings in limitation since the levels are not independent from each other, and Level 2 members would usually have access to level 1 content too.
Custom capabilities (ccap) are very powerful since they allow the site admin to assign content and protect it in various contents, while using only one level. One member can then access a "general cooking class", a "cake decorating class" and a "confectionary class" as each content can be assigned a specific ccap. The problem is that this would be an all or nothing situation, and dripping content for all those classes, at the same time, is not possible with the basic set up. So we needed a way to track the time of creating of a post, no matter the level of user, of purchase time or of a specific product.
How this hack works: You set the hack to hide content of post (which belong to some/several/all categories) for 5 days for all the free members and non-logged visitors. It is easy to implement, with just one file to edit. You will have "step by step" explanation in the document. Then write a post. It will be seen for all paid members immediately. Free members, when they try to read it, will get a message (you set it too) to go to "sign up" page to unlock it. After 5 days everyone can see this post. Newer posts still will be hidden to whom is need. Older posts will be shown to everyone (but other rules may apply, like s2Member® level limitations). You do nothing more, just write posts, and hack handles them, automatically, shows and hides depend of who looks at certain post.
Note that this is "post wide" solution. To hide content inside posts can use s2Member® conditions. Sure, can use them and hack simultaneously, to set your needs. This tool multiplies the features of s2Member® to give the admin a lot more flexibility than the basic plugin function can offer. Moreover, there is a ways to extend hack's functions to make it much more flexible and powerful.
Flexibility of this tool is done by some PHP coding. If you don’t want to think about PHP codes, or can not deal with it at all, there is a plugin, named “KC s2M Drip Playlists“, which do similar jobs and may help you.
Disclaimer: I am in no way associated with s2Member®, Webshark or the development team of s2Member®.
Purchase Options:
Kit - installation guide, code etc. - 15 USD
Kit + installation and some customization - 35 USD
Kit + installation and heavy customization - 60+ USD
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Does this hack hide the post entirely? Or, just the content?
Currently, the s2Member shortcode (placing it within the post) will hide the content, but the title still shows in our feeds/feature sliders. Then, if a member is blocked from the dripped content, all they see is an empty/blank post page.
Our goal is to hide the post from free members for 180 days. And, allow paid members to access posts immediately. (But, when I say hide the post, we don’t want the a link or title of that post to show up anywhere. The free members shouldn’t even know it’s available.)
This hack works by ccaps and [s2If shortcodes], so it works inside the post/page content. To hide the post “entirely” is difficult… Possible workaround is to hide the content (with this hack or other way), and to change the post name to (example) “Locked post”, when must not be seen (if this is a free member before 180th day). Still the slug may need more magic… Would this way be possible for you? Needs custom code, most likely will need to create another plugin.
Thanks for clarifying, Krum. I’m finding it hard to find any membership plugin offer this feature I’m looking for.
I’m not so sure I understand your suggestion: “Possible workaround is to hide the content (with this hack or other way), and to change the post name to (example) “Locked post”, when must not be seen (if this is a free member before 180th day). Still the slug may need more magic… Would this way be possible for you?”
We don’t want the post just locked or have content hidden. We want the post entirely hidden (content and title) from any feeds for free members for 180days after post date.
If that’s something you could do, we’d be interested in hiring your services to code it. What would it cost?
It’s difficult for a membership plugin to do this… Problem is that it depends of the theme too. I will need to do a research, will contact you about this.
But let me explain what I mean about workaround: With conditional shortcodes can hide the content. With additional code may hide the title. So who is not allowed to see the post, will see only a generic title like “Locked post” (because of the additional code) and if he can reach the post will see a message like “This content is locked for you” (because of conditionals). So people may see, that there exists a post, but will not see the title and content. Anyway, still better is to do research first…