Publishing & Moderation

After creating your service, it enters the publishing workflow. This guide covers service statuses, moderation, and post-publication management.

Service Statuses

WordPress and the plugin track service state through post statuses and moderation meta.

Post Statuses

Only 3 WordPress post statuses are used:

Status	Visibility	Description
`draft`	Private (author only)	Service saved but not submitted
`pending`	Private (author + admins)	Submitted for admin review
`publish`	Public (all buyers)	Live on marketplace

Note: “Paused” and “Archived” are NOT registered post statuses. They do not exist in the codebase.

Moderation Statuses

Stored in wpssmoderation_status meta:

Status Constant	Meta Value	Description
`ModerationService::STATUS_PENDING`	`pending`	Awaiting admin review
`ModerationService::STATUS_APPROVED`	`approved`	Admin approved
`ModerationService::STATUS_REJECTED`	`rejected`	Admin rejected

Note: Only these 3 moderation statuses exist. There is no “request changes” or “paused” moderation status.

Publishing Workflow

When Moderation is Enabled

Admin setting: wpssvendor['requireservice_moderation']

Flow:

Create Service → Submit → post_status: 'pending'
                       → moderation_status: 'pending'
                       → Admin receives email
                       → Admin reviews
                       → Approve OR Reject

If Approved:

post_status → publish
wpssmoderation_status → approved
wpssmoderated_at → Current timestamp
wpssmoderator_id → Admin user ID
Vendor receives approval email and notification
Service appears on marketplace
Syncs to WooCommerce product (if WooCommerce active)

If Rejected:

post_status → draft
wpssmoderation_status → rejected
wpssrejection_reason → Admin’s reason text
wpssmoderation_notes → Same as rejection reason
Vendor receives rejection email with reason
Service remains private, can be edited and resubmitted

When Moderation is Disabled

Flow:

Create Service → Submit → post_status: 'publish' (immediate)
                       → Service live immediately
                       → Syncs to WooCommerce

No moderation meta is set. Service goes live without admin review.

Moderation Queue

Admins access pending services via Admin → Services → Moderation.

What Admins Review

The ModerationService class provides methods:

getpendingservices() – Retrieves services with poststatus='pending' and moderationstatus='pending'
getpendingcount() – Count of pending services (used for admin menu badge)
approve($service_id, $notes) – Approve service
reject($service_id, $reason) – Reject service with reason

Approval Process

PHP Code Flow:

$moderation = new ModerationService();
$result = $moderation->approve( $service_id, $admin_notes );

Actions:

Updates post_status to publish
Sets wpssmoderation_status to approved
Records moderator ID and timestamp
Fires wpssserviceapproved action hook
Sends email to vendor if moderation_approved email type is enabled
Creates platform notification

Rejection Process

PHP Code Flow:

$moderation = new ModerationService();
$result = $moderation->reject( $service_id, $rejection_reason );

Actions:

Updates post_status to draft
Sets wpssmoderation_status to rejected
Stores reason in both wpssrejectionreason and wpssmoderationnotes
Records moderator ID and timestamp
Fires wpssservicerejected action hook
Sends rejection email to vendor if moderation_rejected email type is enabled
Creates platform notification with edit link

Rejection Reasons

Common reasons (not enforced by code, admin free-text):

Misleading title or description
Low-quality images
Policy violations
Incomplete information
Unrealistic delivery times
Inappropriate content

Vendor can edit and resubmit by clicking “Publish” again in wizard.

Email Notifications

Three email types handled by EmailService:

Email Type	Trigger	Recipient
`moderation_pending`	Service submitted	Admin email
`moderation_approved`	Service approved	Vendor
`moderation_rejected`	Service rejected	Vendor

Each email type can be enabled/disabled in settings.

Moderation Data Structure

Meta Keys:

_wpss_moderation_status    // 'pending', 'approved', or 'rejected'
_wpss_moderation_notes     // Admin notes (approval or rejection)
_wpss_rejection_reason     // Rejection reason (same as notes for rejected)
_wpss_moderated_at         // MySQL datetime of moderation action
_wpss_moderator_id         // User ID of admin who moderated

Retrieval:

$data = $moderation->get_moderation_data( $service_id );
// Returns array with status, notes, moderated_at, moderator_id

Editing Published Services

Vendors can edit published services via the wizard shortcode:

[wpss_service_wizard id="123"]

Edit Restrictions

Can Edit If:

User is service author OR current user has manage_options capability
No specific permission checks on post status

Cannot Edit:

If vendor account status is not “Active” (pending or suspended vendors blocked)
During active moderation review (post_status=’pending’)

Edit Workflow

Vendor edits service in wizard
Clicks “Save Draft” → Updates post_status='draft', keeps existing data
Clicks “Publish Service” → Re-triggers moderation flow (if enabled)

If moderation enabled:

Service goes back to post_status='pending'
Admin must re-approve
Service temporarily hidden from marketplace during review

If moderation disabled:

Changes go live immediately
post_status='publish' maintained

What Happens to Active Orders

Active orders continue with original service configuration. Edits only affect new orders.

Package data is stored per-order in wpss_orders table, so order details remain unchanged.

Service Visibility

Services are visible to buyers when:

post_status='publish' AND
wpssmoderation_status='approved' (if moderation enabled)

Services are hidden if:

post_status is draft or pending
wpssmoderation_status is pending or rejected

There is no “pause” feature in the codebase. To hide a service, vendor must set it to draft.

Deleting Services

Vendors can delete services using WordPress standard deletion:

Restrictions:

Active orders may prevent deletion (implementation dependent on admin settings)
WordPress soft-delete (trash) is used
Complete deletion moves to trash, can be permanently deleted by admin

What Happens:

Service post moved to trash
Meta data preserved
Orders remain in database (not deleted)
Reviews may remain (implementation dependent)

WooCommerce Sync

If WooCommerce is active, approved services sync to WooCommerce products:

Sync Trigger:

// In ServiceWizard::ajax_publish_service()
if ( class_exists( 'WooCommerce' ) && 'publish' === $post_status ) {
    $wc_provider = new \WPSellServices\Integrations\WooCommerce\WCProductProvider();
    $wc_product_id = $wc_provider->sync_service_to_product( $service_id );
}

Sync Behavior:

Creates WooCommerce product linked to service
Syncs title, description, price (from Basic package)
Updates existing product if already synced
Logs sync result via wpss_log() function

REST API Endpoints

Services are accessible via REST API for mobile apps:

Endpoints:

GET /wpss/v1/services – List services
GET /wpss/v1/services/{id} – Get single service
POST /wpss/v1/services – Create service
PUT /wpss/v1/services/{id} – Update service
DELETE /wpss/v1/services/{id} – Delete service

Moderation Actions:

POST /wpss/v1/moderation/{service_id}/approve – Approve service (admin only)
POST /wpss/v1/moderation/{service_id}/reject – Reject service (admin only)

Common Issues

Service Stuck in Pending

Causes:

Moderation enabled but admin hasn’t reviewed
Email notifications disabled, admin unaware
Moderation queue backlog

Fix:

Check admin notification email settings
Contact site administrator
Wait for admin review (typically 24-48 hours)

Changes Not Appearing

Causes:

Clicked “Save Draft” instead of “Publish”
Moderation enabled, awaiting re-approval
Browser cache showing old version

Fix:

Check service status in dashboard
Click “Publish Service” to trigger moderation
Clear browser cache (Ctrl+F5)
Wait for admin re-approval if moderation enabled

Service Not Syncing to WooCommerce

Causes:

WooCommerce not active
Service status not publish
WooCommerce sync failed silently

Fix:

Verify WooCommerce is active
Check service post status is publish
Check error logs at wp-content/debug.log
Re-save service to trigger sync

Technical Details

Moderation Service Class

Location: src/Services/ModerationService.php

Key Methods:

ModerationService::is_enabled()                    // Check if moderation required
ModerationService::get_pending_services()          // Get pending services
ModerationService::get_pending_count()             // Count pending
ModerationService::approve( $id, $notes )          // Approve service
ModerationService::reject( $id, $reason )          // Reject service
ModerationService::set_pending( $id )              // Mark as pending
ModerationService::get_moderation_data( $id )      // Get moderation meta
ModerationService::get_statuses()                  // Get all status labels

Action Hooks

do_action( 'wpss_service_pending_moderation', $service_id );
do_action( 'wpss_service_approved', $service_id, $notes );
do_action( 'wpss_service_rejected', $service_id, $reason );

Filter Hooks

None specific to moderation. Publishing behavior controlled by admin settings.

Best Practices

Before Submitting

Complete all wizard steps fully
Upload high-quality images (5MB max, WebP supported)
Write clear, detailed descriptions (5000 char max)
Set realistic delivery times
Price competitively

After Rejection

Read rejection reason carefully
Fix ALL mentioned issues
Don’t just resubmit without changes
Consider improving beyond minimum requirements
Add note in description explaining improvements

While Published

Monitor service performance
Update content quarterly
Respond to buyer questions promptly
Adjust pricing based on demand
Keep gallery images current

Publishing, Moderation & Templates

Publishing & Moderation

Service Statuses

Post Statuses

Moderation Statuses

Publishing Workflow

When Moderation is Enabled

When Moderation is Disabled

Moderation Queue

What Admins Review

Approval Process

Rejection Process

Rejection Reasons

Email Notifications

Moderation Data Structure

Editing Published Services

Edit Restrictions

Edit Workflow

What Happens to Active Orders

Service Visibility

Deleting Services

WooCommerce Sync

REST API Endpoints

Common Issues

Service Stuck in Pending

Changes Not Appearing

Service Not Syncing to WooCommerce

Technical Details

Moderation Service Class

Action Hooks

Filter Hooks

Best Practices

Before Submitting

After Rejection

While Published

Related Documentation