Platform 2 Guide — This article applies to the new platform. Looking for classic platform docs? Browse the Platform 1 collection.
Why: Understanding how publishing and visibility work is essential to controlling the member experience and avoiding the common issue of content being invisible when you expect it to be shown.
Navigate: App Station > Content Library > Recipes
Quick Start
Set a publish date for content to make it visible in the library.
Choose a visibility mode: PUBLIC, MEMBERS, or ASSIGNED.
Assign the correct access levels to your content.
For weekly schedules, add content to the schedule to ensure it appears in the "This Week" block.
Check the visibility settings to confirm everything aligns for your members.
THE THREE CONTROLS
Every content item has three visibility controls that determine when and who can see it:
Publish Date: This controls when the content appears in the library. Content without a publish date is a draft and not visible to members.
Content Visibility Mode: This defines who can see the content:
PUBLIC: Anyone, including guests, can see it.
MEMBERS: Only logged-in members with the required access levels can view it.
ASSIGNED: Only members with a direct content grant can access it.
Access Levels: These are the subscription tiers that determine which members can see the content. All three controls must align for a member to view the content.
PUBLISH DATES
Content visibility is heavily influenced by the publish date:
No Publish Date: The content is a draft and invisible to members.
Future Publish Date: The content is scheduled and will not be visible until the specified date.
Past Publish Date: The content is published and visible, subject to access controls.
For blog posts, there is an additional status field that can be set to Draft, Published, or Scheduled.
VISIBILITY MODES
Understanding visibility modes is crucial:
PUBLIC: Great for marketing; anyone can see this content.
MEMBERS: Only members who have the right access levels can view it.
ASSIGNED: Only members with a direct content grant can access this content.
THE DUAL PUBLISHING MODEL
This model is especially important for users of the weekly schedule:
Content in a schedule appears in the "This Week" block, regardless of its publish date.
Library visibility still requires a publish date.
Here’s how different combinations work:
Publish Date | In Schedule | Appears in Schedule | Appears in Library |
Not set | Yes | Yes | No |
Not set | No | No | No (Draft) |
Set | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Set | No | No | Yes |
PRACTICAL SCENARIOS
Here are some common scenarios to illustrate how to use these controls effectively:
I want a recipe to appear in this week's plan but not in the library yet: Leave the publish date unset and add it to the schedule.
I want a recipe in both the schedule and the library: Set a publish date and add it to the schedule.
I want to schedule a blog post for next Tuesday: Set the status to Scheduled and choose the scheduled date.
I want public teaser content to convert free visitors: Set the visibility to PUBLIC and assign a publish date.
LOCKED CONTENT AND TEASERS
When members lack the required access level, they may see locked content as a teaser, which shows the title and image but blocks access. Alternatively, content can be hidden entirely based on access level settings. This configuration is essential for managing what locked pages show to guests and search engines.
FEATURED CONTENT
Marking content as featured pushes it to the top of content grids that have 'featured first' enabled. This is a great way to highlight your best content or seasonal picks.
For more information on managing access levels, see Setting Up Access Levels. If you want to learn about how locked content teasers work, check out Locked Content Teasers and Search Visibility.