Are you looking for a way to allow users to access your private posts in WordPress? Private posts in WordPress cannot be accessed by users by default. Only the editor user role and above have access to them. This can be a problem when you want to share a private post with some loyal visitors, family members, or future work staff.
To deal with this, you can add user groups in WordPress and then allow these user groups to access private posts. Of course, you cannot do this by default, instead, you will need to use a plugin to add user groups to WordPress. Today, I will demonstrate how to allow users to access private posts in WordPress with the WP JV Post Reading Groups plugin.
Why Share Private Posts With Users
The point of a private post is to keep the content hidden from users and this can be for many reasons. For starters, these can be used to share work details among staff members and other things. For example, you could write an outline of how your post content should be created or something similar. This works great because your staff members will probably have access to private posts.
However, there may come a time when sharing private posts with some users is necessary or desired. For example, you have a piece of content that is not suitable for your website, but you want to share it with your family members. You can make a user group for them and allow them to see the private post.
Another example of when you would want to allow users to see a private post is if you are experimenting with your post content. Many websites have loyal visitors that they recognize and talk to regularly. You could create a test group to have them sample your new private post to see what they think.
How to Allow Users to Access Private Posts in WordPress
Today, I will demonstrate how to allow users to access private posts in WordPress with the WP JV Post Reading Groups plugin. The plugin allows you to create groups and grant them permission to private posts and pages. You first need to create a group and then you can assign a group access to a particular private post. Different groups can have access to different private content. The plugin is very simple to use and should take a few minutes to set up.
Installing WP JV Post Reading Groups
To begin, click on Plugins and select the Add New option on the left-hand admin panel.
Search for WP JV Post Reading Groups in the available search box. This will pull up additional plugins that you may find helpful.
Scroll down until you find the WP JV Post Reading Groups plugin and click on the “Install Now” button and activate the plugin for use.
On the left-hand admin panel click on Settings and select the Reading option. This is where you will find the create a group option.
Creating User Groups in WordPress
At the bottom of the page, you will see the WP JV Post Reading Groups section. Fill in the Reading Group Name text box and click on the “Add New Reading Group” button.
You can repeat the last step if you want to make multiple groups. They can also be renamed or deleted at any time by clicking on either option underneath the group name.
Now that the group is created, it is time to start filling it. Filling the groups can be time-consuming if you are planning on adding a lot of users. This is because you will need to manually go to each user and add them to the group you want. One user can be included in multiple groups if you want.
Click on any user and scroll down to the bottom of their user page. You will see the WP JV Reading Groups section. Check the box of the group you want them to join. Click on the “Update Profile” button when you are done.
Continue this until your groups are filled with the users you want. Now that the groups are created, it is time to grant them access to your private content.
Sharing Private Content With User Groups
Granting access to private posts and pages is extremely easy. Go to any existing private post or page or make a new one. You will now see the WP JV Reading Groups box above the publish box. Check the box of the group(s) you want to grant access to. Don’t forget to click on the “Update” button to save the changes you made.
Congratulations, you have successfully learned how to share private content with users in WordPress. Remember you can change who has access to your private content at any time.
Avoid Making Too Much Content Private
While there may be a need to make certain content private, the vast majority of your content should be open for everyone. This can work differently depending on the nature of your website. For example, you may be a small content creator that accepts donations from Patreon. You could make your newest posts private and allow your Patreon group to see them earlier than other visitors.
This can be seen as a form of a pay-per-view website, which can be successful, but you are unlikely to have enough content to make it worthwhile at the beginning. This will make it easier to transition into a full pay-per-view website if that is your end goal.
Why do you want to share private content with your users in WordPress? How many user groups have you created with the plugin?