Is there a way to add (using the profile questions) a 'Contact Me' URL that brings up a form that a non-member can use to contact a member?

[Ken]

I want to offer a way to allow non-members to be able to contact members.  

 

Why?  Because I run a professional network for a niche industry and only professionals active in that industry are allowed to join.  

 

One of the services I want to offer is a professionals directory that helps promote these professionals - i.e. allow people who need their services to find and contact them.  

 

Note that the people that need their services will be outside the industry and so not eligible to join the network ....think of you looking to find a lawyer, or worse - a dentist :-)

 

Obviously I want to avoid members having to list their email addresses on their profiles!

 

My idea was to try to have a 'Contact Me' button on a members profile that directs the user to a network provided 'contact me' form where the user has to fill in:

Name+Email+Subject+Message...I would also want the user to complete a 'captcha' to help prevent spammers.

 

This would then send an email to the 'member' and also record the details in a database so the network creator can see how many 'leads' have been generated for this member.

 

Anyone have any bright ideas how to do this?

 

Ken

 

 

 

 

[seymor54]

NO is the simple answer - why would you want such a feature

I can understand a link to your own e-mail - thats easy to post on the front page.

[Ken]

I tried to explain why I wanted it in the post.

 

I have members of a specific profession. Only members of that profession are allowed to join. Say they are lawyers for example.  Well, say you needed a lawyer - you may not be a lawyer, so you wouldn't want to join the network.  But you may see the profile of a lawyer with a specific specialisation and want to contact them....so how would you do it if you couldn't actually join the network and send them a message.

 

Hopefully that describes the problem.

 

Ken

[seymor54]

simpler answer is NO

non members need to become members, the only way around this is to separate a NING site and have an associate website running in tandom, where you can create this feature for non members.

the only way as said is to post a listing of members email address on the frontpage subject to their agreement - if their lawyers think not a good idea.

I have done something like this using a DISQUS.com disqusion blog site Ive created so as to allow non-members to communicate to members - this I have also backed up with both International Twitter sites and a FACEBOOK group - this way it allows members to communicate at their own discretion with non members

[Speed Racer]

go to foxyform.com and create a free contact form. copy the code.

go to yournetwork.com/page and click add. in the text editor, paste the code into the html side of the editor. click the box where people cannot post comments on the page. click save. copy the link to the page.

go to your network dashboard, under settings click tabs.

click add new tab.

name the tab "contact us" (or whatever you want to call it)

next to target page, click "use existing URL"

paste the link to the new page you just made, click save.

you now have a contact us tab, where anyone can fill in the information you chose at foxyform, and it will forward to your email, without even disclosing your email.

 

[seymor54]

You could also use a mixture of 

the wibiya bar = www.wibiya.com

with the contact me form that comes as standard with wibiya, or use the dedicated www.contactme.com form script

in both cases there are both FREE and Paid for versions

I have implemented BOTH on my Ning site to good effect

 

BUT do like the idea of using a TAB on the menu - may give this a go, but contactme does come with its own floating tab on the browser so you dont need it

(contactme was recommend by jen)

[Speed Racer]

i love foxyform, it's simple and integrates really well, give it a try, you'll like it!

[Ken]

I already use 'FoxyForm' as a 'contact us' for my network.   Please read the problem.   The problem is that I want to have something like 'FoxyForm contact us' PER MEMBER!!!   Thats right, I want the ability to bring up something like a 'contact me' per member - so that when the visitor to the network clicks on the 'contact me' ON A SPECIFIC USERS PROFILE the form they fill in will be sent TO THE MEMBER and not to the network admin.

 

Ken

[Speed Racer]

oh, i see.......why don't you encourage all of your members use foxy form, and generate a "contact me" code, and paste it into a text box on their page then? i mean, YOU could do it, if YOU want to make one for ALL OF YOUR MEMBERS YOURSELF. YOU have ALL of their email addresses under member moderation, go for it dude. if it were me, i would send out a message broadcast to all of my members with a link to foxyform.com and suggest they do it, and possibly even post the idea into a blog and feature it so it's featured on your homepage, but that's just me. If you want to do all that work for them, go for what you know.....Charge them 5.00 a piece if you want, hell, you may make some decent money from it, LOL.

Conversely, you COULD add it as a required profile question, something like "if someone needed your services, what email can they contact you at?" if you make it required, it should make all current members have to fill it in as well, but if your network is totally public, as you know, you are giving spammers all they need to spam members of your network, directly to their email. foxyform has a CAPTCHA feature, which helps curb spam, and also keeps their email private. I would go that route, via a message broadcast and/or blog post to all of your members with the idea, it's a good one for your members.

[Ed]

This could be an alternative - getting members to submit a contact email address that they don't mind being in the public domain.

Thanks Speed Racer.

[seymor54]

With 15,790 pages on CREATORS, you will find your posting rapidly disappear!!!!

This is a major fault and Ningle to CONTENT based Ning sites, where CONTENT becomes burried and forgotten within a few days of it being posted. End result, you lose your members interest very quickly as they never get anyone answer their comments or discussions... this results in members leaving the community due to lack of interest and response from other members who never get to see any of the many posts on the site - that all go missing.

 

Ning can you please rectify this problem before all messages are buried under the massive weight of thousands of messages and comments, that in many cases are duplications of many previous comments and discussions, that have been lost due to this massive oversight.

[Ed]

I'm in exactly the same position. I'm looking for a way for members to display a public element to their profile that will allow non members (i.e. people I don't want on the network) to contact them.

I already have an external site where members of the public can see my members on a Google custom Map and at the moment, if they want to contact a member they send me a message and I pass it on. But I'd love to find a way to insert a "contact me" link (without disclosing member email addresses to the public) that automatically sends a message to my member without having to go through me (manually) every time.

To complicate things, the non-members are potentially non-English speaking as well. All I need is a link that I can customise depending on the language.

Does anyone have any ideas? Is this possible?