Group Privacy: Open, Closed, and Unlisted Groups
ControlShift's Groups feature supports different settings for a group's privacy: open, closed, and unlisted groups.
Visibility
- By default, groups are listed. This means that these groups, once approved by moderators, will be fully visible on the local organizing map and the groups-only lookup page. This means that any site visitor will be able to find the group and start the process of joining the group.
- If the group organizer (or an admin) chooses, the group can be set as unlisted instead. Unlisted groups must still be approved by moderators but they do not appear on public lookup pages. Instead, site visitors will need to know the URL of the group in order to view the page. Once they've gone to the group's URL, they can start the process of joining the group.
Membership
Usually, groups are open. Open groups allow anyone who's interested in joining the group to do so immediately after creating an account.
Open groups will show a "Join" button on their group front page. Also, users RSVPing to an open group's event will automatically be added as a "listening" member of the group – this means they'll receive updates from the group's forum even though they haven't fully joined the group.
If the group organizer (or an admin) chooses, the group can be closed instead. Closed groups require prospective members to submit an application to join the group. The application is then sent to the group organizers for approval or rejection.
The group's front page will show a "Request to Join" button (instead of the normal "Join"), which will open a modal that allows a prospective member to respond to the membership questions and submit their application.
When the application is submitted, the user will see a thank you message and a note that the application is under review.
Group organizers (and admins) can see pending applications in their group's Manage > Members.
The Review modal will include the prospective member's name and contact information (depending on the organization's privacy settings), the date and time they submitted their application, and their response to the membership question(s).
In addition to the application process, closed groups also have a different process for users RSVPing to their events. When users RSVP to a closed group's event, they won't be automatically added as a "listening" member of the group. Instead they'll see a message explaining that the event is sponsored by the group and encouraging the attendee to apply to join the group.
