If you have ever created content within Brightspot CMS, you’re probably familiar with the rectangular box located on the far-right side of our publishing interface.
This is what we call the "right rail widget," and if you haven’t been getting the most out of this tool, today's the day to start. Here are few ways to make the most of the right rail widget through the URL, Sites, References and Revisions tabs.
URL management
The “URL” tab displayed within the right rail widget is for all your URL needs. While Brightspot automatically populates a permalink for each new piece of content created within the CMS based on the primary title field, you might want to edit this default permalink for the sake of preciseness, uniformity and SEO best practices. It is in the right rail widget that you can edit, redirect, or delete the URL permalink(s) associated with the piece of content you are working on.
Not only can you keep, edit or delete the auto-generated permalink, but you can also create new permalinks. With the addition of new permalinks comes more options: a new permalink, an alias, a permanent redirect, or a temporary redirect. Having such robust possibilities allows for you fully control and personalize your content's permalinks.
Sharing content between sites in your CMS
Within the "Sites" section of the right rail widget is where you will find the ability to share or block other sites within your Brightspot CMS from having access to the content on which you are working. It is here that you can grant access to all, some or none of your company’s other sites.
This is a useful tool for times when you might have an author who works across multiple sites. By giving your other sites access that author’s bio page, you can save time having to replicate the same content across sites. If you want to check if someone has accidentally shared content with other sites within your CMS, coming to the right rail widget is the best place to start.
Understanding references for content in use anywhere in your CMS
"References" is the best place to check if you are wondering where that specific asset appears throughout your site. If you are considering archiving your content for any reason, examining its references is the best way to ensure live content is not accidentally being taken down.
A helpful feature when reviewing and managing assets being referenced throughout your site is the "View All" which will take you to a custom search page, from which you can create workstreams, bulk edit or export for further analysis.
Revisions mean you're only one click from full version history and rollback capabilities
Finally, the “Revisions” tab provides a list of named revisions as well as all the times published updates were made to that specific asset. Named revisions are versions of that asset edited and saved for a later date. By clicking on a named revision, you can continue editing where you left off without changing the live version of your content. Named revisions can be published to live. You do not always need to utilize named revisions, however. Maybe you know exactly what you want to change and publish that immediately.
If this is the case, your published change will also appear under the revisions tab, unnamed. Both types of revisions, named and unnamed, are clickable for a reason. Say you accidentally delete something on the page you are editing and hit publish. You could spend time going back into your CMS and finding/creating whatever you deleted, or you could simply click on the last revision published before your mistake. Here you will get a side-by-side preview of the current asset and the older one to compare, along with the option to republish the older version. This is not only a timesaver but added protection in the event you forgot what you might have deleted.
These are just some of the most popular and helpful features in the CMS right rail widget. It can be customized further to include asset attributes like watchers, auto-suggestions for tags and other keyword metadata and your saved search shortcuts.
Getting acquainted with your right rail widget can be invaluable. This tiny tool promotes efficiency, exactness, and ease. Make sure to try out these tools the next time you use your Brightspot CMS. Or contact us today if you'd like to schedule a live demo of the CMS publishing interface in action!
