CMS Guide

Table of Contents

• Style Management
• Custom HTML Modules: Content Editor (WYSIWYG) FAQs
• General Advice & FAQs
• Section Guide

Style Management

If you want to add one of the following styles to an item in your custom HTML content, find them in the "Style" dropdown.

Here's how:

1. In the 'Preview' view (the default), highlight the text or link you want to style.
2. Click the 'style' button on the upper right of the text editor.
3. Pick the style from the list of names.

Only some styles can be mixed and matched.

If you run into trouble with competing styles, you can view the styles that are added via this menu in the code view, and delete the unwanted class that way.

Styles in the dropdown:

"Aligned - Center"

"Aligned - Left"^*1

"Button - Style 1" ^*2

"Button - Style 2" ^*2

"Button - Style 3" ^*2

"Header - 1"

"Header - 2"

"Header - 3"

Sub-Heading 1

"Larger Copy"

"No Margin Below"

"Color - Green"

Style notes:

^*1"Aligned - Left" is made to be used inside an otherwise center-aligned section such as "Intro Big Text" or "Icons With Copy - Cards".

^*2 Please only use Button styles on links, to aid in users knowing what to expect when they click on them. A button style on a plain piece of text that doesn't do anything when clicked is possible to make, but it would confuse a user.

Custom HTML Modules: Content Editor (WYSIWYG) FAQs

How do I replace placeholder ("lorem ipsum") or unwanted text content?

The content editor can be finicky. To replace placeholder or unwanted text, we recommend that you first click the “BLOCKS” button in the toolbar to reveal outlines surrounding block-level elements. Then, select the text you wish to replace and type in your desired text. Or, you can place your cursor at the end of the text you want to replace, add your desired text, and then select and delete the placeholder text preceding it. We do NOT recommend selecting all placeholder text in the editor and deleting it before you add your desired content. As a result you may accidentally erase necessary markup that the content depends on. It is always best to edit text elements one at a time rather than deleting everything you don’t want from the start.

Can I copy/paste from other sources?

Be very careful when copy/pasting text content from other sources into a Custom HTML module's content editor. When copying from an external document, take steps to ensure the text you are copying is plain text (as opposed to rich text.) When copying from a web page, make sure you are ONLY including text and not actual HTML tags (<p>, <br>, etc.) as this could result in unintended styling/format inconsistencies.

How do I change the appearance of text content (color, font size, etc)?

The "STYLE" dropdown in the toolbar can be used to edit the styling/appearance of content. Keep in mind that when you add a style from the dropdown, it does not overwrite other styles previously applied to the element. This allows greater flexibility in cases where you may need more than one style applied, but you will need to remember to uncheck undesired styles after applying them.

Please refer to Style Management for examples of classes/styles you may apply.

Keep in mind that changing the appearance or styles of text should be done SPARINGLY - for the sake of consistency across pages, it is best to stick with the module's default styling whenever possible.

How do I add/edit a link?

The "insert/edit link" button in the toolbar is used to create and modify links:

To create a new link, type your desired link text within the content editor, select it, and then click the "insert/edit link" button. This may be tricky if you're creating a new link next to an already-existing link. To do this, place your cursor at the end of the existing link's text and then press the right arrow key, so your cursor is outside the existing link. Then, type the new link's text, select it and click the "insert/edit link" button.

To modify an existing link, click into the middle of the link text within the content editor, then click the "insert/edit link" button.

Note: Using proper link text is very important. For more details, see "Does it matter what I use for [clickable] link text?" in General Advice & FAQs.

How do I add/edit an image?

The "asset picker" button in the toolbar allows you to add images into the content editor. To modify an existing asset, click the asset and then click the "asset picker" button. Not all custom HTML modules were made with the intent to have an image placed in them. (Tip: If your default placeholder content did not contain an image, you should probably avoid adding one with this tool.)

Note: If you're including an image in a Custom HTML module, remember to consider the image alt text (which is editable through the "asset picker" button), and include a value when necessary. For more details, see "Do I need to update/include alt text for every image?" in General Advice & FAQs.

How do I add a code snippet?

The "insert code snippet" button in the toolbar adds pre-made snippets of code into the content editor. Note that code snippets are often (but not always) used as a way to revert either the entire content of a Custom HTML Module to its default state, or to revert a part of its content to its original state. In many cases you will not need to use code snippets unless you're attempting to "fix" a module (i.e. bring back original content which was since removed.)

Additionally, code snippets are used as a way to add specific html into your content editor that is either difficult or impossible to achieve without editing the actual source code.

IMPORTANT: Be very careful to only use code snippets that are intended for use in the specific module you’re editing. In most cases the name of the code snippet should match the name of the module you’re editing. A list of all code snippets that are intended for use within a module will appear in that module's parent section's documentation in the Section Guide.

I've messed up my edits and would like to revert to the original "lorem ipsum" placeholder content. Is there a way to do that?

Check to see if the module you're editing has a default code snippet available. The name of the snippet should match the name of your module (minus the given section name prefix.) If so, you may delete the entire content and then insert the appropriate code snippet. Some modules don't have default code snippets available, but they may have other snippets which could replace specific portions of your content.

Does it matter which levels of headings (H1, H2, etc) I use in my content?

Yes. For SEO and accessibility purposes, it is important that your page’s heading structure is hierarchical. This means that your page’s top heading needs to be an h1 heading.

You should also be careful to avoid skipping heading levels (i.e. using an h3 heading before an h2 has been used, etc.) If you need to change the appearance of a heading without changing the real heading level, apply one of the heading classes from the content editor's "STYLE" dropdown (see Style Management) to a normal paragraph.

General Advice & FAQs

How can I ensure that my content will be accessible to all users?

Be sure to follow all recommendations and instructions given in this guide, particularly the recommendations involving link text, image alt text, and heading levels. To learn more about accessibility, please see Accessibility for Radancy CMS Publishers.

Can I change the layout assignment of a page/section/module?

You should never change a layout assignment unless specifically instructed to do so in the relevant section's documentation found in the Section Guide. This will almost always lead to unintended results.

Can I add a module to a section?

You should never add a module to a section unless specifically instructed to do so in the relevant section's documentation found in the Section Guide. This will almost always lead to unintended results.

When I'm adding a section from the "Add New" section menu to a page, what should I name my new section?

To avoid future confusion, especially for other CMS users who may need to edit/update the content you're creating, naming conventions should be consistent throughout the site. When creating a section that you anticipate will only be used on the page you're adding it to, we recommend the following naming convention: [Page Name OR Abbreviated Page Name] - [Section Template Name] [Number (only include if you anticipate other sections of the same template will be added to the same page.)] For example, "Benefits - Full Width Copy" or "DEI - Full Width Copy 1." If you anticipate that the section you're creating may be used on other pages as well, we suggest giving it a name that summarizes its purpose/intent rather than its content or context (which may change or be updated later.) For example, "Human Resources Job List" or "Annual Job Fair CTA."

Note: While you CAN change a section's name after creating it, you will NOT be able to change the names of the modules included in the section (which will, by default, include the ORIGINAL section name.) So we recommend that you carefully choose a good name for each section you create.

Can I create a CMS page without using one of the CMS Page Templates?

Yes, but this is not recommended as creating a page without using a CMS Page Template will require you to select a page layout. To avoid selecting the incorrect layout, we recommend using one of the available CMS Page Templates, in all cases.

If you are looking to create a "blank" page, see the next question.

Which theme should my page be assigned to?

All CMS pages should be assigned to the "CMS Primary Theme" theme.

DO NOT assign any CMS pages to the "Default Theme (GST)" theme. This theme is enabled for CMS due to system requirements, but it is NOT intended to be used as a theme for CMS Pages.

Do I need to update/include alt text for every image?

Every time you add or replace an image file, you scuhould consider whether to include alt text for the image. In some cases, such as when the image is considered decorative and not essential to the page content, alt text may be left blank. For more details, please see this alt text decision tree. Not only are these considerations essential in making the site accessible to non-visual users, it will also improve SEO.

Does it matter what I use for [clickable] link text?

It matters a lot. To make links accessible to all users, use link text that would make sense to users if taken out of the surrounding context. For example, "learn more about our benefits" is acceptable, whereas "click here" or "learn more" are not. This is important in all situations but be particularly careful when adding/editing links inside Custom HTML modules, as you'll have full control over what text is included in a link.

How do I update/add a hero banner to my page?

After creating your page and saving it, edit the banner image by clicking on the page settings under the headline "Banner". Both the mobile and desktop sizes should be added.

The recommended banner sizes and shapes are a more square (landscape) shape of at least 600px by 400px for mobile, and a rectangular shape (landscape) of at least 1200px by 330px for desktop. Larger sizes than that are suggested if they are available for desktop, up to 1800px across, as the larger the image, the lower the risk of it looking blurry on desktop.