What are Text Blurbs?

Text blurbs are reusable pieces of content which can be placed on multiple pages. This is useful for information you might want to repeat in multiple places on your site, but you don't want to have to update in several areas.

Here are some examples of information for which you might find text blurbs useful:

• Departmental contact information
• Notices
• "For more information, see here" messages

Where do they show up?

Text blurbs, by default, are placed in the left column of the page, under the site's navigation area. Here is a screenshot of a page that has a text blurb:

[A Text Blurb on a page]

Text blurbs can also be placed elsewhere on a page -- even in the main content area. Tell the Web Services Group that you want to place a blurb somewhere else on a page, and they will help you out.

Okay — How Do I Do It?

1. Log in to Reason and select the site you want to work in. If you are just experimenting, you can choose the Reason Training site.
2. Choose "Add/Edit Text Blurbs."
3. Click "Add Text Blurb." (If you want to modify an existing text blurb, just scroll down for a list of ones already in your site.)
4. Give your text blurb a title. This is only visible inside Reason, so choose a title that will help you find this blurb later.
5. Enter your blurb's content into the Content area. You can use all the same formatting features that are available when editing a page, but remember: since blurbs are typically placed in a skinny column, they look better and are easier to read when they are brief.
6. If you know who wrote this content, enter their name in the Author field. It's OK to leave this field blank if you don't know. It's mainly there to help you or another maintainer of the site remember who to contact if the blurb needs to be updated later.
7. Click the "Save and Continue Editing" button.
8. Choose "Select Pages where this blurb should appear" in the item workflow area.
9. Click "Select" next to the pages on which you want to place this blurb. (Scroll down to look at the pages on your site.)
10. Click "Finish" in the item workflow area.
11. Go to the public site to look at the pages you selected — they should now have the blurb on them.