I am setting up an online course using Webflow and Memberstack.
I’m hoping to have interactive tables, which members can fill in and refer back to at later stages. Member’s inputted data will be stored in AirTable and relayed back to Webflow CMS via Zapier.
Each member has their own unique Member ID, Webflow Members Collection Item and Dashboard page.
The course itself is its own CMS Collection, with each step of the course having its own collection item.
The problem I’m having is showing the members their unique inputted data, within the course collection. This is easily achievable on their own personal dashboard, filled out with fields from their own CMS Item. BUT I want their information to be displayed within the course itself, which has its own CMS Collection page.
Can I reference a Member’s CMS Item within my Course CMS Collection Page, listing their unique item fields, filtering that collection list based on the member’s unique member ID? Will this require custom code?
From what I found, it is doable but requires a developer to write custom code. You will need javascript and JSON (I think). Data is inputted by users through a Webflow form, passed to Memberstack and saved in the user’s metadata using JSON, which is then called upon to repopulate fields in the Webflow CMS.
However, development is expensive and we ended up not using interactive tables at all.
If you are looking to create an online course, I have since found out about sites such as Teachable, Thinkific, Kajabi, LearnWorlds, and MightyNetworks which may provide you with the solution you are looking for.
Has anyone found a solution to this? From what I gather, you need some for of unique identifier for your collection list items. Item ID appears to be just that but you can’t pass that to memberstack, at least I haven’t figured out a way to do so.
Memberstack does have a member ID for each associated member, but you need a way to pass that back into your webflow CMS collection list.
If you are somehow able to do this correctly, you can use a program like zapier or make to connect all the information together but I’m still trying to figure it all out.
Tons of solutions. The problem isn’t the solutions, it’s choosing and building the right one for your needs.
SUPER SIMPLE, LOW VOLUME OF DATA ( < 500 records total ), TOTALLY INSECURE
Store all your data in the CMS, with a Member ID, in this case memberstack’s if that’s what you’re using. You’d likely do this through automation like Make or Logic depending on when and how data is created
Where you show the data, you filter it with custom code or a library, using the Memberstack member ID
** This is totally insecure, as everyone’s data is in the page, just not visible
MODERATELY SIMPLE, MEDIUM VOLUME OF DATA ( < 500 per USER ), MOSTLY INSECURE
Add a User table to the CMS, and keep it synced with your members and member IDs
Link your data records to those Users using a ref field
Use the User collection page as your member viewing page e.g. /user/2903842458243
Use Webflow’s filtering to show just the data for that user
** This is also insecure, but it’s slightly better. The user data is separated into discrete pages, and in a new feature this week, you can now prevent those CMS pages from appearing in the sitemap, so fairly impossible to guess. Just don’t dump a list of userids anywhere.
SAME AS PREVIOUS, BUT SECURE
Add a reverse proxy, which refuses to deliver the page if the memberstack member ID does not match the page being requested. I believe this ID is in a cookie, so easy to access. If not, put it in a cookie.
** Much more secure, but can still be hacked if someone has your member IDs and knows how to circumvent the reverse proxy.
COMPLEX, LARGE VOLUME OF DATA, UNLIMITED USERS, SECURE
Don’t store your data in the CMS. Use an external db like Xano
Retrieve the data dynamically using fetch, after securely authenticating your user
Implement security in your retrieval & update APIs
** This is your only option for actual security.
I build a lot of these types of systems, drop me a direct message ( click my name ) if you need an advisor on your build.
Does the data need to be accessed by others, or just the member? If only the member, then yes, you can use member JSON which is totally secure. Here’s a good example of that in action → Kajabi Inspired Course Template | Free Webflow Template
