Creating Custom Template Tabs

In this article, you will learn how to create custom template tabs.

This feature is available in all plans.
Users with manage template permission can access this page/feature.

To start, select a project in the project dropdown in the sidebar menu, then, under the Configuration section, go to Templates. Once you're on the template page, click the template to which you want to add a custom tab.

To create a custom tab, click the new tab button. Name it, press ENTER, or click the check button to save it.

General Fields

Your custom tab will be empty. You can use general fields to build it.

ℹ️ Note that you can't add system fields to a custom tab (those under Main Content and CMS Fields tabs).

Click the add a new field button to reveal a dropdown selection of available general fields. Click on the one you want to add.

Currently, there are 10 general fields to choose from, but we are continuously adding new ones and refining the older ones. If you want to see new fields or would like to suggest improvements, you can use the report an issue or request a feature link at the bottom of the right sidebar menu. We can't wait to hear your suggestions!

Here are the currently available general fields as of the time of this writing:

1. Single line text
2. Paragraph text
3. File/Image upload
4. Single Image^NEW!
5. Checkboxes
6. Radio buttons
7. Date
8. Dropdown select
9. Heading
10. Guidelines

Let's take a look at each of them in more detail.

Heading

This field allows you to add a heading text. You can use it to organize your tab into different sections. Think about how you would structure your article or blog post in different sections using headings, this is the same idea, but for your templates.

💡Note that this is not an input field, so whatever heading text you write here will appear as it is in a content item.

Guidelines

This field allows you to add tab-level guidelines. You can use a combination of headings and guidelines to organize your tab, especially if you have a complex template structure.

💡Like the heading field, this is not an input field, so whatever text you write here will appear as it is in a content item.

Single line of text field

This field allows you to add a single-line text input field. Useful for adding input fields for short text like author name, product code, CTAs, tags, etc.

• Set recommended length to - lets you set a recommended limit of words or characters for this field
• Required - when this option is checked, the content item can't be submitted or approved if this field is empty
• Field guidelines - lets you add a guideline specific to this field

💡Keep in mind that submission or approval actions will still go through even if the recommended limit is not met.

Paragraph text field

This field adds either a rich text editor or a plain text area input field. Great for adding input fields for your article's content or other long-form text that requires multiple sentences. Set it to rich text mode if you want users to be able to add text formatting, and plain text mode if you only want raw text.

• Plain text - when this is enabled, this will become a plain text editor (no text formatting options)
• Set recommended length to - lets you set a recommended limit of words or characters for this field
• Required - when this option is checked, the content item can't be submitted or approved if this field is empty
• Field guidelines - lets you add a guideline specific to this field

File/Image upload field

This field adds a file uploader, similar to the one in the main content tab.

• Required - when this option is checked, the content item can't be submitted or approved if this field is empty
• Field guidelines - lets you add a guideline specific to this field

Single image field

This field adds an image uploader for a single image only. It offers advanced commenting features such as the ability to add a comment on a precise location on the image.

• Required - when this option is checked, the content item can't be submitted or approved if this field is empty
• Field guidelines - lets you add a guideline specific to this field

Checkboxes field

This field adds a multiple-choice element that can be selected using checkboxes.

To add choices, click the Add option link.

• Required - when this option is checked, the content item can't be submitted or approved if this field is empty
• Field guidelines - lets you add a guideline specific to this field

Radio buttons field

This field adds a radio button element. This allows a user to select only one option from a list of options.

To add choices, click the Add option link.

• Required - when this option is checked, the content item can't be submitted or approved if this field is empty
• Field guidelines - lets you add a guideline specific to this field

Date field

This field adds a date picker element.

• Required - when this option is checked, the content item can't be submitted or approved if this field is empty
• Field guidelines - lets you add a guideline specific to this field

Dropdown select field

This field adds a dropdown selection element. It works quite similarly to the checkboxes field, but the difference is that users will choose items from a dropdown menu, and you can limit the number of choices a user can make.

To add choices, click the Add option link.

• Limit the number of selected options to - set a maximum number of options that can be selected
• Required - when this option is checked, the content item can't be submitted or approved if this field is empty
• Field guidelines - lets you add a guideline specific to this field

Conclusion

You've learned how to create a custom template tab and how to add general fields to it. You've also learned about the different types of general fields. By now, you should have a solid understanding of how to create and utilize custom tabs and general fields for your templates, so go ahead and start creating your custom templates!