Tagging a Matik Template is how you specify where Matik will place dynamic content in your template. The method of tagging differs for each content type. Click on the links below for tagging specific to your content type.
- Tagging Presentation Templates
- Tagging Document Templates
- Tagging Google Sheet Templates
- Tagging Email Templates
- Tagging in Speaker Notes
Additionally see below for how to tag sub-content and how to add formatting to tags in all content types.
Tagging Presentation Templates
There are multiple ways to tag presentation templates. We recommend reviewing the instructions to manual tagging before proceeding with the other routes to help you understand how Matik is interacting with your templates.
Adding Tags Manually
Matik will not recognize any tagging changes made to a presentation until the template is synced. Please go to the template page and click on “Sync Template” after making any changes.
Tagging Charts, Tables, and Photos in Presentations
Matik stores the tags in the Alt-Text of the containing your text or the chart, image, or table object. Matik uses a double curly bracket syntax {{ }} with the name of the dynamic content in the middle. E.g. for the dynamic content account_owner_photo entering {{account_owner_photo}} in the Alt-Text box for the photo will tag that photo with the account_owner_photo dynamic content.
In Google Slides: To access the alt text of a slide element, right-click on the component and select Alt-text. The formatting panel will open up and you can enter the tag, {{account_owner_photo}}, in the Alt Text Description box.
In Powerpoint: To access the alt text of a slide element, right-click on the component and select “View Alt Text”. The Alt Text panel will open up, and you can enter the tag, {{account_owner_photo}}, in the Alt Text Description box.
When you are done editing tags be sure to sync your template to get the changes to appear in Matik.
Tagging Text Dynamic Content in Presentations
When tagging text dynamic content, you must specify where you want the text inserted in the text box using aliases and reference those in the Alt text.
Place an alias in a text box using the notion {{<alias>}}. In the alt text box, enter {{<alias>:<dynamic_content_name>}} for example {{9:time_saved}}.
The alias within the text box will be replaced with whatever text or numbers is returned by your dynamic content. It will also take on any of the font formatting applied to the alias. In the example above, since the {{9}} is in bold, the dynamic content text will be bold on the final slide.
Multiple pieces of content can be tagged on the same text box by separating the <alias>:<dynamic_content_name> pairs with a comma in a single set of double curly brackets
A single slide cannot have duplicate alias names. We recommend aliasing using numbers, starting with 1 and increasing sequentially for each piece of dynamic content on the slide.
Note: while text styling is preserved when tagging, certain text box settings are not currently supported:
- In Google Slides: "Shrink text on overflow" is not supported. The existing text size from the template will simply be preserved.
- In PowerPoint/PowerPoint 365: "Resize shape to fit text" is not supported. The text will be populated properly in the box, but the box width will not automatically expand on generation. (You can fix this after generation by opening the file and making any change at all to the text box. At this point, the existing resize shape settings will be applied.)
Syncing Templates
When you are done tagging your Google Slides template or have made changes to a template, you need to sync your template with Matik for the changes to be recognized.
To sync, go to the template page and click on the 3 dots dropdown menu in the upper right. Click on "Sync from Google Drive". Your template changes will be reflected within Matik and any changes to dynamic content and associated inputs will update.
Syncing a template refreshes Matik for any changes to tags and content within your template. However, upon generating a template, Matik will always pull the most recent version of the template from Google Slides. This means that if you are actively updating a template's Google Slide and another user generates a presentation with that template, their presentation will include your incomplete changes. When making changes to an active template, we recommend making changes to a copy of the original template and transferring them over when ready.
Tagging Google Slides with the Matik Google Add-On
If your content is in Google Slides, you can use our Google add-on to add tags to your slides. The add-on will automatically add the tags to the slides and will add the name of the dynamic content to the alt text for you. Click on this link to install the Google Slides add-on. Once installed the Google Add-on can be launched from the Google Slides menu bar by going to Extensions > Matik > Open Matik.
To tag content within your slides, the content cannot be grouped. Please ungroup all grouped objects before tagging.
Below are a few things to know about the add-on:
- Authorization: When you click the add-on, you will be prompted to authorize Google access to your Matik account.
- Template Tags: Lists all the tags (dynamic content) currently on each slide within the template (for easy reference, the number of the tag is next to the name of the dynamic content). You will be led to the slide and object by clicking on the name of the dynamic content in the add-on. The object (i.e. chart, text box, table, etc.) will be highlighted.
- Content Library: Click the “add” button for the dynamic content you want to insert into the slide. You can click on the arrow next to the name of the dynamic content to see the type and description. After clicking the add button, the add-on will automatically add the tag in the slide and will insert the object's name in the alt text for you.
- Refresh: If you edit the tags manually within the slide, or you aren’t seeing a piece of dynamic content that you recently added in Matik show up in the add-on, you will need to click on the refresh button at the bottom of the add-on for it to detect the change or new piece of content.
If you add-on won't load it is likely because you are signed into multiple Google accounts or a Google account not associated with your Matik presentations. Sign out of all Google accounts not associated with Matik, and sign into your Matik Google account.
To see the Google accounts you are signed into, click on your Google profile icon in the top right of Google docs (with your profile picture or initials. See below).
If more than one is listed, you need to sign out of the accounts not associated with Matik. If this doesn't resolve your issue, signing out and signing back into Google can also resolve this issue.
Tagging Presentations from Matik in Single Slide View
Double-click on a slide to see the full view of that slide. Within Single Slide view you can add and manage the dynamic content on a slide by selecting dynamic content from the left hand side bar or clicking on the dynamic content on the slide.
To return to the full slides grid view, click on the Grid View Icon at the bottom right of the screen.
Editing Dynamic Content in Single Slide View
Within Single Slide view you can manage dynamic content on a slide. Click on the dynamic content icon to edit your existing dynamic content.
In the sidebar on the left, you can swap the dynamic content or create new, identify the subcontent to be used, and add any formatting. Click on the dropdown to select new dynamic content or the pencil icon to create new dynamic content. When adding formatting, only include the formatting tag in the Format box. For more on formatting see this article. Be sure to click save when you have completed editing you dynamic content.
Adding Dynamic Content to your Template in Single Slide View
You can add dynamic content to a template in Single Slide View hovering over and object (Chart, table, or graph) in the slide preview and clicking the + icon that appears. If you dynamic content is Text type, highlight the text on the slide and click the resulting + icon. In the left menu that appears specify any subcontent and formatting information (leave blank if none) and click on Save.
Tagging Document Templates
When changes are made to your underlying Document template you will need to sync your template through the Sync banner or by clicking on the template settings menu.
Tagging Text in Document Templates
Tag text-type dynamic content by writing out the tag name in-line in a document, enclosed in curly brackets. e.g. {{Dynamic_Content_name}} Note that unlike Presentations, you cannot alias DC in alt-text so the full dynamic content name is required.
Tagging Text in Specific Cells of a Table in Document Templates
You can include text dynamic content within a specific cell of a table if the Dynamic content type is Text. Matik will automatically detect that the dynamic content is text-type, and replace only those tags in the specified cell. See the table section bellow for info on tagging a whole table.
Formatting Text in Document Templates
Text dynamic content will be inserted with the same formatting as the tag in the template. At this time, rich text and hyperlinks are not supported.
You can format numeric and date text dynamic content to include numeric formats such as comma separators, rounded numbers, percents, and dates in the tag by including a horizontal line and the desired formatting code after the dynamic content name {{Dynamic_content_name|numberformat(2)}} . Read more about formatting options here.
Tagging Images, and Charts in Document Templates
Tagging Images, Tables, and Charts works similarly to Tagging in presentations. Right click on the desired object in your Google Doc and click on Alt-text.
Write your dynamic content name in the Alt Text Description box surrounded by double curly brackets {{Dynamic_Content_name}}
Tagging Tables in Document Templates
When dynamic content type is set to table
Matik will populate all cells of a table in your Document template with the dynamic content results. The number of columns of your placeholder template table must match the number of columns returned by your dynamic content. Matik will auto match the number of rows in the table to the number of rows in the dynamic content.
To tag a full table, add the dynamic content name, enclosed in curly brackets, to a single cell in the table. Matik will automatically detect whether the tag corresponds to a piece of table-type dynamic content. If it does, we will automatically replace the entire table with the dynamic content values, regardless of where in the table you placed the tag.
Formatting of header rows and subsequent rows will be preserved on generated presentations. If your table overflows to subsequent pages you may pin header rows in table settings in Docs to have the header redisplay.
Tagging Google Sheet Templates
To tag dynamic content into a cell on a Google Sheet template:
- Right-click a cell and select Insert Note.
-
Inside the notes window, type the name of the Dynamic Content (DC) you want to tag, using the double curly braces notation e.g.,
{{Dynamic_Content_Name}} - Tag formatting and sub-content are supported using the standard notation. e.g.,
{{Dynamic_Content_Name|numberformat(2)}} - Each cell can only be tagged with one piece of Dynamic Content, but you can tag as many cells as needed within the spreadsheet
When generating content, Matik creates a copy of the spreadsheet and populates tagged cells with the values of the Dynamic Content. If a tag returns a range or table, the values are populated starting in the tagged cell and expand to the right and down. Any formulas referencing the cells impacted by dynamic content will update.
If the return tables or cell of two pieces of dynamic content overlap, the value will be chosen at random. Pay close attention to the maximum size of the tables returned from your dynamic content to ensure your dynamic content doesn't overlap or overwrite existing formulas, data, or other undesirable behavior.
Additionally, all formatting applied to the spreadsheet and charts, such as bold, italics, and conditional formatting, is maintained.
Google Sheets templates support standard functionality, including syncing with Google Drive, scheduled generation, bulk generation, and bulk generation via CSV upload.
Tagging Email Templates
For more on tagging email templates see the Creating Matik Mail Templates help article. For Tagging Charts an Tables specifically, see the Charts and Tables in Matik Mail help article.
Tagging in Speaker Notes
Text dynamic content can be tagged in the speaker notes of slides by entering the dynamic content name wrapped in double curly brackets, e.g. {{dynamic_content_name}}. You can also tag speaker note dynamic content using the Matik add-on for Google Slides.
Tagging Sub-Dynamic Content
Sub-dynamic content, or subcontent, is dynamic content that contains multiple elements. See this link for more on sub-dynamic content.
To tag an individual element, enter specific column you want to extract by inputting the following syntax {{dynamic_content_name.column_name}} for photos or {{1:dynamic_content_name.column_name}} for text dynamic content. Note that column_name is case-sensitive.
By adding the “.column_name” you are telling Matik that you only want that piece of data inserted into the tag instead of the entire row.
Formatting Dynamic Content Tags
Output values from dynamic content can be formatted to make the values more visually appealing (e.g. 12398 > 1.24K, 12398 > 12,398). Formatting can be applied in Matik or with the Google add-on during tagging.
You can also apply formatting options directly in the alt-text by inserting the pipe operator followed by one of the functions below.
-
numberformat: Formats the number to be abbreviated. If the number is below one thousand, the entire number will be displayed. If the number is greater than one thousand, the number will be abbreviated with a “K” (i.e. 1.2K). If the number is greater than one million, a “M” will be used. You can indicate the number of decimal places by inputting parenthesis after numberformat. Numberformat will always strip trailing 0's, use commaformat if you would like to preserve trailing zeros.
- Example syntax:
{{<dynamic content name>|numberformat(2)}}- 12398 > 1.24K
- 100.123 > 100.12
- 100.000 > 100 (Because trailing zeros are removed)
- Example syntax:
-
commaformat: Inserts a comma within the number and rounds to the number of decimal places specified in the parentheses (optional)
- Example syntax:
{{<dynamic content name>|commaformat}}- 12398 > 12,398
- Example syntax:
{{<dynamic content name>|commaformat(1)}}-
- 100.000 > 100.0
-
- Example syntax:
-
datetimeformat: Dates can be also formatted by using
datetimeformat()and specifying the format within the parentheses.- Example syntax:
{{<dynamic content name>|datetimeformat('%m-%d-%Y')}}- 2020-21-12 > 12-21-2020
-
See the table below for more date format options.
Format Specifier Format Example %m/%d/%Y mm/dd/yyyy 02/21/2018 %m/%d/%y mm/dd/yy 02/21/18 %d/%m/%Y dd/mm/yyyy 21/02/2018 %d/%m/%y dd/mm/yy 21/02/18 %d-%m-%Y dd-mm-yyyy 21-02-2018 %d-%m-%y dd-mm-yy 21-02-18 %m-%d-%Y mm-dd-yyyy 02-21-2018 %m-%d-%y mm-dd-yy 02-21-18 %Y-%m-%d yyyy-mm-dd 2018-02-21 %f/%e/%Y m/d/yyyy 2/21/2018 %f/%e/%y m/d/yy 2/21/18 %e/%f/%Y d/m/yyyy 21/2/2018 %e/%f/%y d/m/yy 21/2/18 %f-%e-%Y m-d-yyyy 2-21-2018 %f-%e-%y m-d-yy 2-21-18 %e-%f-%Y d-m-yyyy 21-2-2018 %e-%f-%y d-m-yy 21-2-18 %b %e, %Y Mth d, yyyy Feb 21, 2018 %B %e, %Y Month d, yyyy February 21, 2018 %b %d, %Y Mth d, yyyy Feb 21, 2018 %B %d, %Y Month d, yyyy February 21, 2018 %Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S yyyy-mm-dd hh:mm:ss 2018-02-21 12:00:00 %H:%M:%S hh:mm:ss 12:00:00 %Y-%m-%d %I:%M:%S %p yyyy-mm-dd HH:MM:SS tt 2018-10-29 10:02:48 AM %Y-%m-%d %I:%M:%S %p yyyy-mm-dd HH:MM:SS tt 2018-10-29 07:30:20 PM
- Example syntax:
-
percentformat: Decimals can be formatted to percentages using
percentformat(). The value in the parentheses will determine how many significant figures show up in the format.
-
- Example syntax:
{{<dynamic content name>|percentformat(0)}} - 0.899 > 90%
- Example syntax:
-
listformat: Text dynamic content that is a list can be formatted using
listformat(). It optionally takes two arguments: separator (which defaults to ‘,’) and use_and (which defaults to true).- Example syntax for dynamic content value: [‘test’, ‘hello’, ‘goodbye’]:
- formatted with listformat: test, hello, and goodbye
- formatted with listformat(separator=’- ‘): test - hello - and goodbye
- formatted with listformat(separator=’- ‘, use_and=false): test - hello - goodbye
- Example syntax for dynamic content value: [‘test’, ‘hello’, ‘goodbye’]:
For a list of all of the formatting options see this link: Formatting Options
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