Hide threads from Google?

[Divinum Fiat]

Hi all,

I'm trying to do a flow between the resources and the final product and make the final thread not indexable by Google. Is this possible?

Is it also possible to turn off the social "share" buttons for those pages or make the thread so that it just can't be shared?

Thank you!

 

[AndyB]

As long as you make the thread accessible by the public, Google will see it too and will index it.

 

[Divinum Fiat]

I unchecked the box, so the the way it's set up right is that the forum is not set up to be seen by the public. However, the "landing page" within the Paypal button is set to the hidden thread. So the social 'share' buttons are still there and I just want to know if Google can index the page since it is accessible if someone has the url.

So if Google still picks up a thread although it's not listed to show in the forums, is there a way to make a thread 'private' but have the person after payment get access to the private thread (this would have to be be automated)? Can this be done?

 

[AndyB]

is there a way to make a thread 'private' but have the person after payment get access to the private thread (this would have to be be automated)? Can this be done?

I think the only way to do something like that would be to add some custom coding.

 

[Divinum Fiat]

Thank you, Andy.

 

[Kevin]

Blueprint, thinking out loud for a minute, taking into account that XF can handle usergroup promotions but not XF RM, for an automated solution working within the confines of the existing stock XF & XF RM options...

If you have a product called Widgets for sale at $1.00, create a new user group named Widgets Customers. Create a new forum named Widgets Customers. Create an XF User Upgrade called Widgets Purchase that is a one time $1.00 price. Change the permissions of Widgets Customers so that it is only viewable by members of the Widgets Customers user group. Create a new XF RM category named Widgets Customers. Specify the new XF RM category named Widgets Customers to automatically create a thread in the Widgets Customers forum. Create a new XF RM resource in the XF RM category named Widgets with a listed price of $1.00 so that it matches the price of the XF user upgrade named Widgets Purchase. Tying it all together, for the payment URL of the XF RM resource use the XF URL that links to the purchase for the XF user upgrade called Widgets Purchase.

It is a little unwieldy but if you only have a couple of items in question then the end result should be a resource that everybody can see but only people who have made a purchase can see the related discussion.

Your mileage may vary as I'm just free thinking at the moment.

 

[Divinum Fiat]

Super cool train of thoughts, Kevin. I so appreciate your mind! I did something similar, just a tad bit different. The challenge is that it's not just a couple of items, it's weekly teleseminars and eBooks. The resources feature is great but still very limited. I can't ask them to pay for an eBook and then send them back to the same resources post to "unlock" their eBook. I tried adding the eBooks to an aWeber form but they're too big. So the flow is to have them pay, register with aWeber, follow up with aWeber gives them an email with the link to the hidden thread where the eBook is upload. Same goes for seminars.

The ideal AUTOMATED flow is that both, members and non-members, can reserve a seat on the teleseminar. So I created a Resources for $20 for non-members and a new User Group for current members for $15 (with the goal of course that people become members).

So right now there are 2 payment options for the same teleseminar. One through the User Group and the other through the Resource. The paypal button linked to the Resource payment ($20) has a "landing page" set up, which is a hidden thread that doesn't show up in the forum and can only be accessed when someone has the url. And I'm assuming that Google can access it too, this is what I'm trying to prevent.

Members who choose the Upgrade option and pay the $15 will then automatically be granted access to that same thread also.

These threads are not really conversation threads, they're informative only, I think I used the library add on and created an article with the call-in information, etc.

I'm trying to automate the process so that all I have to do is change the date and access code in these two posts (resources post and call-in details thread).

A bit complicated, I know, but there's gotta be a way to simplify and automate this.