How dynamic content placeholders work?

In this article we will show you how to add dynamic content placeholders, e.g., client name, so your team can build and customize presentations faster.

Watch the tutorial video on how to set up your placeholders

How to create and manage placeholders - step-by-step guide

To start building your placeholder library you just have to follow some easy steps:

1) Go to manage view and click on the “Placeholder” tab



2) Here you’ll have an overview of all your placeholder identifiers and you can create new ones by clicking on “Create new”



3) Add the placeholder identifier

To ensure the platform recognizes and processes placeholders correctly, enclose the placeholder content in square brackets "[]". Use this format when creating placeholders and whenever you want the platform to identify and work with these placeholders within a slide.

For example, when you create a new placeholder identifier, such as [client name], you need to use the exact same identifier within your slide for it to work. The platform is not case-sensitive, so you can use variations like [Client Name] or [CLIENT NAME], and it will still function correctly. Just make sure the identifier remains consistent throughout.

4) (Optional) You can add a description or format example to show up as a suggestion in the form when inserting slides into PowerPoint to help guide your end-users

5) (Optional) You can also add a default value to replace your placeholder automatically (that can help maintain certain company-wide information)

6) As the last step just click on “Create”

Now, it’s time to add the new placeholder to the relevant slides.

How to add placeholders to your files

To prepare your files for end-user access you just need to follow a few simple steps.

1) Go to manage view and download the slide(s) or presentation you want to add placeholders to, or if you are already in PowerPoint, simply use the add-in to insert them directly



2) Once you've opened your slides in PowerPoint, begin adding the new placeholder identifiers. Make sure to use the square brackets and placeholder identifiers consistently. For example, if you created the [client] identifier for client names on the platform, use [client/Client/CLIENT] throughout your slides



If you need to add more placeholder identifiers while working on your slides, simply insert them into your slides. The platform will scan for any new [identifiers] and suggest them if they’re not already in your existing identifiers. You can quickly add these new identifiers to your library by clicking "Create”

3) Once you’ve finished adding the placeholder identifiers, simply update the slide or presentation

All that’s left is to link your slides with the platform identifiers

1) Go back to manage view and find the slide or presentation you’ve been working on. Through the slide thumbnails/preview you’ll be able to see the placeholder identifiers within your slides



2) Go to the edit identifiers view. You can do this multiple ways:

2.1) For stand-alone slides - select the slide(s) in the library overview and click on the downward arrow and select “Edit and add placeholders” option. Alternatively, you can also go into the individual slide settings, scroll down and there you’ll find the “Placeholders” section



2.2)For presentations - go to the presentation settings, and click on the “Edit and add placeholders” tab



Here you’ll have an overview of all your slide contents and identifiers found within the slides. You'll also be able to see how many slides the identifier appears in

If the platform finds identifiers that are not already existing within the library, you’ll see a “Placeholder suggestions” section. To add the suggested placeholder to the library, hover over the identifier box and the Create button will appear. Just click on it and add the identifier to the library



3) To link specific identifiers, click on the placeholder identifier boxes. When you see a red checkmark (see image above), it indicates that the platform and the slide placeholders are successfully linked. To unlink them just click on the box again

That’s it! Your slides now have placeholders and are ready for end-users to insert and replace the content automatically.


So how it looks like for end-users?

To test your placeholders and see how it will look for the end-user when inserting or downloading, click the “Test identifiers” button on the top right in the Edit slide identifiers view

Slides or presentations containing placeholders will have this black icon on the top right, so that users can recognize that they will need to quickly insert some data to customize the slides. When users want to download the presentation a small window will pop up where they need to fill out the relevant information. After Filling out the missing fields the slides will be instantly update with the relevant information.




Can I change/update my identifiers?

Yes, if you would like to for example change your identifier from [client] —> [client name], just go to the Placeholder overview and then go to the the [client] identifier’s settings.



To update the identifier, simply change the identifierand click "Update." A pop-up window will appear, showing how many slides contain the identifier. Click "Confirm" to automatically update all instances of the identifier in the slides with the new placeholder.




How to scan for potential placeholders based on slide content and existing identifiers


How to keep track of your placeholders?

Now that multiple placeholders exist in the library, it's easy to track which slides are linked to each one. Simply navigate to the placeholders overview (or the settings of a specific slide), and for any placeholder you'd like to check, click on "Used x times in x slide(s)". This will take you to the slide overview, showing all the slides that are linked to that specific placeholder.



You can filter your slides by placeholder identifiers. In the manage view, click on "Show all filters," then locate the placeholder filter. From there, select the specific placeholder you want to filter by.



You can also keep track of the changes made to the placeholder by going into one of the placeholder’s setting and see who created or updated it and when.




Related articles: How to use dynamic content placeholders

If you need additional help, don’t hesitate to reach out to the Customer Success Team at SlideHub.

Updated on: 10/07/2024