Restricting premium content to paid members is the basic requirement for running a membership website. This way, you can keep a few sections of your website private while others are available to the public.
If you're powering your website with WordPress, you can easily restrict content with the Ultimate member plugin; you can restrict content based on selective sections, pages, or posts.
In this article, we’ll go through the process step-by-step to restrict content using the Ultimate Member plugin.
What Does Ultimate Member Plugin Offer?
Ultimate Member is an easy-to-install and easy-to-use WordPress plugin that allows you to restrict content by users' roles or their logged-in status.
You can easily limit your audience’s access depending on the type of role they have on your website. When a non-registered user tries to access these restricted pages, the plugin will redirect them to the login or any other selected page first.
Download: Ultimate Member Plugin
How to Install the Ultimate Member Plugin
Here's how you can install plugins from the WordPress plugins directory.
1. Go to Dashboard > Plugins > Add New Plugin.
2. Search for ultimate member in the WordPress plugins directory. Install and Activate the plugin.
How to Restrict Content With Ultimate Member
Follow the steps below to restrict content with the Ultimate Member plugin.
1. Go to Dashboard > Ultimate Member > Settings.
2. Go to Access from the list of tabs.
3. Select the content you wish to restrict here. You can choose from posts, pages, categories, etc.
4. Click save changes.
How to Restrict a Page on Your Site
Here's how to restrict a specific page to show only to registered users.
1. Go to Dashboard > Pages > All pages.
2. Click on the edit for one of the pages where you want to restrict access.
3. To restrict, scroll down and check the box for restrict access to this content.
4. Select only logged-in users as we want to display the page only to registered users.
5. Assign user role as a subscriber.
6. To redirect the visitors to the new page, go to the Where should users be redirected to? section and choose the login page from available options.
7. Update the page after setting the restrictions.
Whenever a nonregistered user tries to access this page, they will be automatically redirected to the login page.
When a logged-out or new visitor attempts to log in to your website to access restricted content, they'll see an error message.
How to Restrict a Blog Post on Your Website
Here's how to restrict posts on your website.
1. Go to Dashboard > Posts > All posts.
2. From the list of posts, select the post you wish to restrict.
3. Scroll down to the Content Restriction section for a blog post you wish to restrict. Set restrictions the same way you did for the individual pages above.
With the restriction option enabled, unauthorized users won't access specific posts without your permission.
How to Approve Register Users Manually on Your Website
With manual approval turned on, subscription status for all members will go to pending first even after paying the charges. You can approve their accounts after confirming the payment.
To manually approve users on your website, you need to set up an admin review area first. Here's how to do that,
1. Navigate to the WordPress dashboard and then click on Ultimate Member > User Roles.
2. Select Subscriber from the list and click edit.
3. You can change the registration status by selecting Require Admin Review in the registration options.
4. Click on Update Role.
Let’s look at an alternative way to assign roles to users via email.
1. In your WordPress dashboard, click on Ultimate Member > User Roles.
2. Click Subscriber.
3. Scroll down to see the registration options. Set the registration status to the Required Email Activation.
4. You can also personalize emails by entering a custom message.
5. Click Update Role after making the changes.
The next step is to enable email notification so that when someone registers on your site, you know they're awaiting approval.
How to Enable Email Notification for the Admin
Follow the below steps to enable email notification for the admin to approve the registrations.
1. Go to Dashboard > Settings > Email.
2. Click on the settings (gear) icon next to the Account Needs Review Notification.
3. Enable the Account Needs Review Notification and click Save Changes.
You will now receive an email when a visitor registers on your site. This way, you can quickly approve them instead of letting them wait for hours or days.
How to Send Account Activation Email to the User
To send an account activation email,
1. Go to Setting > Email > Account Activation Email.
2. Enable the option and click Save Changes.
Users will receive an email asking them to activate their account when they register on your site. A user will be able to see your website content only after activating their account.
Removing Restrictions From Content
You can also disable restrictions on your post, page, product, etc., to make the content public again. This overrides all rules that apply to the content, making it publicly accessible for everyone. This can be done from the meta box from which you restricted the content earlier.
What Does Ultimate Member Pro Version Offer?
Ultimate Member's free plan lets you restrict content on your website. However, if you want to have more flexibility in managing the content on your website, give its premium version a look. The premium version comes with extensions like MailChimp, Social Login, Real-time notifications, and many others.
You have the option to either purchase all extensions in one go or buy a few of them individually. Its Extension Pass includes access to all extensions, unlimited site licenses, updates, and email support for one year.
Restrict Content to Have More Control on Your Website
If you plan to run a premium community website, sell informational products to only premium members, or host a whole online course, the ultimate member is a go-to plugin to manage everything.
The more engaging the registration pages are, the higher your website's visitor engagement rate will be. With an increase in traffic, your website may slow down. In that case, try WordPress speed optimization services to speed it up.
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