Displaying a variable before it has been set to a value

Question

What I have is an app that pulls in social media and displays that content in ExactTarget. I want to set text and links in the email based upon the content in the social post... in this case WordPress.

So basically I'm pulling in the dynamic content using an HTTPget. Within that content I am setting AMPscript variables. The issue is I need to output the variable in code before it gets set (using the HTTPget).

In the below example @meta_title and @meta_url is being set in the HTTPget. Here is my example:

 <!-- A CTA to appear before the other content being displayed. --->
 New Blog Post:%%=v(@meta_title)=%%. Click To <a href="%%=RedirectTo(@meta_url)=%%">Read Now</a>

 <!-- Get The Content Containing The Variable --->
 %%[
   Set @taca = TreatAsContentArea("73", HTTPGet("http://websiteurl.com/feed", false, 0, @CallStatus))
 ]%%

 <!-- Display The Social Content --->
 %%=v(@taca)=%%

The problem I am having is since %%=v(@meta_title)=%% is declared before the HTTPget the variable is empty. Oddly %%=RedirectTo(@meta_url)=%% works because I guess the RedirectTo() function evaluates after the email is rendered. To the the @meta_title to work I was trying to maybe queue the HTTPGet somehow to get the variables but not output or somehow retroactively replacing text in the href.

Any ideas?

Answer 1

I would try this:

Before your " New Blog Post..." have the following AMPScript

%%[
    SET @my_content = HTTPGet("http://dev.pushproject.fancentric.... /*etc*/
]%%

Then later on have

 %%[
   Set @taca = TreatAsContentArea("73", @my_content)
 ]%%

See if that works, and please post back here the results. That may or may not work, I have my doubts.