Content Collections

Content Collections allow you to create reusable collections of content (like team profiles, customer testimonials, case studies, FAQs) that can be displayed across multiple pages. This guide will show you how to create, manage, and use content collections effectively.

Content Collections are centralized repositories of reusable content items. Instead of creating the same content multiple times across different pages, you create it once in a collection and reference it wherever needed.

Key Benefits:

• Single Source of Truth: Update content in one place, changes appear everywhere
• Consistency: Ensure uniform presentation across your site
• Efficiency: Save time by not duplicating content
• Organization: Keep related content grouped together
• Flexibility: Display the same collection in different layouts on different pages

The Workflow:

1. Create a Collection: Define a collection with a name and block type (Profile, Quote, Case Study, FAQ, etc.)
2. Add Content Items: Use inline forms to add items to your collection
3. Organize Items: Drag-and-drop to reorder items within the collection
4. Reference on Pages: Add Collection blocks to pages and select your content collection as the source
5. Configure Display: Choose how to display the collection (columns, carousel, slider, rows)

Example: Create a "Leadership Team" collection with Profile blocks. Add it to your About page as columns, your Contact page as a carousel, and your Services page as rows - all showing the same team members with different layouts.

Step-by-Step:

1. Click your user menu in the top right
2. Select Content Collections
3. Click New Content Collection
4. Enter a descriptive name (e.g., "Customer Testimonials", "Leadership Team", "Product FAQs")
5. Select the block type for items in this collection:
6. Profile: Team members, staff bios, author profiles
7. Quote: Customer testimonials, reviews, endorsements
8. Case Study: Project showcases, success stories, portfolio items
9. FAQ: Frequently asked questions organized by topic
10. Service: Service offerings, product features
11. Media: Image galleries, video collections
12. Click Create Content Collection

Once you've created a collection, you can add items to it:

1. Open your content collection
2. Click Add Item at the bottom
3. Fill in the inline form with the item's details (fields vary by block type)
4. Click Save to add the item
5. Repeat to add more items

Reordering Items:

• Drag the handle icon (⋮⋮) on the left of each item
• Drop it in the desired position
• Changes save automatically

To display a content collection on a page:

1. Navigate to the page where you want to display the collection
2. Click Add Block
3. Select Collection block
4. In the Collection block settings:
5. Set Source to "Content Collection"
6. Select your collection from the Content Collection dropdown
7. Choose Display Type:
   • Columns: Side-by-side responsive grid
   • Rows: Stacked vertically
   • Carousel: Auto-rotating slideshow
   • Slider: Manual navigation with arrows
   • Set Ordering:
   • Normal: Display in the order defined in the collection
   • Random: Randomize the order on each page load
   • Configure additional settings (shadows, background, etc.)
   • Click Save

Team Profiles:

• Create a "Leadership Team" collection with Profile blocks
• Display on About page, Contact page, and individual service pages
• Update bios in one place, changes appear everywhere

Customer Testimonials:

• Create collections by service type ("Roofing Testimonials", "Siding Testimonials")
• Display relevant testimonials on each service page
• Show a carousel of all testimonials on the homepage

FAQs by Category:

• Create collections like "Roofing FAQs", "Financing FAQs", "Warranty FAQs"
• Display relevant FAQs on service pages
• Create a comprehensive FAQ page showing all collections

Case Studies / Portfolio:

• Create a "Recent Projects" collection with Case Study blocks
• Display as a carousel on homepage
• Show as columns on a dedicated Portfolio page
• Feature specific projects on relevant service pages

Service Offerings:

• Create a "Core Services" collection
• Display on homepage, About page, and Contact page
• Maintain consistent service descriptions across the site

Editing a Collection:

1. Navigate to Content Collections from your user menu
2. Click on the collection name
3. Make your changes (add, edit, delete, or reorder items)
4. Changes are saved automatically

Editing an Item:

• Click the Edit button on any item
• Update the fields in the inline form
• Click Save

Deleting an Item:

• Click the Delete button on any item
• Confirm the deletion
• The item is removed from all pages using this collection

Deleting a Collection:

• Click Delete Collection
• Confirm the deletion
• Warning: This will break any Collection blocks referencing this collection

Naming Conventions:

• Use descriptive names that indicate content and purpose
• Good: "Leadership Team", "Roofing Testimonials", "Product FAQs"
• Avoid: "Collection 1", "Misc", "Stuff"

Organization:

• Create separate collections for different content types
• Don't mix unrelated content in one collection
• Use meaningful ordering within collections

Content Quality:

• Keep item content concise and focused
• Use high-quality images
• Maintain consistent formatting across items
• Review and update content regularly

Performance:

• Collections are cached for performance
• Updates invalidate the cache automatically
• Large collections (50+ items) may impact page load times
• Consider splitting very large collections into smaller, focused ones

When to Use Collections:

• ✅ Content that appears on multiple pages
• ✅ Content that needs centralized management
• ✅ Content that changes frequently
• ✅ Content that needs consistent presentation
• ❌ One-off content unique to a single page (use child blocks instead)
• ❌ Content that needs different versions on different pages

Collection not showing on page:

• Verify the Collection block source is set to "Content Collection"
• Ensure you've selected the correct collection from the dropdown
• Check that the collection has items
• Verify the page is published

Changes not appearing:

• Hard refresh your browser (Cmd+Shift+R or Ctrl+Shift+R)
• Clear your browser cache
• Wait a few seconds for cache invalidation to propagate

Can't delete a collection:

• Check if any Collection blocks are referencing it
• Remove those references first, then delete the collection

Items in wrong order:

• Check the Collection block's "Ordering" setting
• If set to "Random", order will change on each page load
• If set to "Normal", verify the order in the collection itself

Now that you understand Content Collections, explore these related guides:

• Block System: Learn about all available block types
• Collection Block: Deep dive into Collection block settings and display options
• Creating and Managing Pages: Build complete pages using blocks and collections
• Templates: Use pre-built block compositions for consistent design