A text building block lets you add written content to a guide, such as instructions, descriptions, or announcements. You can use text blocks to explain features, provide guidance, or highlight important information for visitors.
Text building blocks support simple formatting using built-in editing tools or Markdown. You can also apply styling to control the appearance of the text and the container around it. This allows you to create consistent, readable content within your guides.
For an overview of all building blocks, see Guide building blocks overview.
Prerequisites
To add a building block to a guide, you must have permission to create or edit guides.
Add a text building block
To add a text block to a guide:
-
Go to Guides.
- From the table, open the guide you want to edit.
- Select Edit in my app to open the Visual Design Studio.
- Select View steps, then choose the step you want to edit.
- Select Edit step.
- For a new guide step that is blank: Select Click to add content, then choose Text as the building block type.
-
For an existing guide step that already has content: Select the step, then hover above or below the block and select the Add row (+) icon that appears, or hover to the left or right of a block and select the Add column (+) icon. Then choose Text as the building block.
Text building blocks
When you add a text building block to a guide, the Edit Text Block window allows you to edit the content and control how it appears. You can format text, adjust styling, and organize text alongside other building blocks such as buttons or images.
Depending on the theme style selected for the guide, different formatting and styling options are available.
With text building blocks, you can:
- Format text using the editing toolbar or Markdown.
- Adjust text styling such as font, size, color, and alignment.
- Add links, lists, and text formatting such as bold or italics.
- Add additional text blocks or place text next to images or buttons.
- Adjust spacing around the text block.
Text format and style
Styling options applied in the Theme style, Styles, and Spacing sections apply to the entire text building block.
To apply different styles to separate elements (for example, a title and body text), add another text building block and style each block independently.
Theme style
Text building blocks include the following style options:
- Paragraph
- Sub Title
- Title
- Custom
Paragraph, Sub Title, and Title styles follow the formatting defined in the guide’s theme.
Selecting Custom overrides the theme and provides additional styling options.
Standard formatting options
When you format text using the editing toolbar, the formatting appears in the Edit Text Block window with the Markdown automatically applied. You can use the editing tools to:
- Bold, italicize, underline, or strikethrough text
- Create bulleted or numbered lists
- Add hyperlinks
- Align text left, center, or right by expanding the Styles section to access the alignment options.
Supported Markdown
Text building blocks support common Markdown formatting.
- **bold**
- *italics* or _italics_
- ++underline++
- --strikethrough--
- [links](https://www.pendo.io/)
- 1. Ordered Lists
2. Item 2
3. Item 3 - Unordered Lists
-Item 2
-Item 3 - *Unordered Lists
*Item 2
*Item 3 - +Unordered Lists
+Item 2
+Item 3 - {color: #ec2059}Individual colored text{/color}
Custom formatting options
If you select Custom as your text style, additional formatting options appear in the Styles section.
These options include:
- Font Family. Choose a different font.
- Weight. Set the baseline boldness of the font.
- Size. Adjust the font size.
- Color. Choose a font color using hexadecimal values, RGB values, or the color selector.
-
Text transform.
Capitalize the first letter of each word
Uppercase all letters
Lowercase all letters - Line height. Adjust line spacing as a percentage.
- Letter spacing. Adjust spacing between letters in pixels.
Link appearance
If you select Custom as your text style and include links in your guide, you can customize how links appear.
You can adjust:
- Weight. Control the boldness of the link text.
- Color. Set a custom color or inherit the color from your application.
- Text decoration. Add or remove the underline.
Manage columns
If you have added a column next to your text, you can adjust the width of each column in pixels (px).
Spacing
Expand the Spacing section of the Edit Text Block window to edit the margins and padding around your text. Margins control the space outside the text block and padding controls the space within your text block. You can only edit padding if you choose Custom as your text style.
Edit text block padding
If you choose Custom as your text style, you can edit the padding around your text block. This adds or removes space between the text and the container for your text. You edit the top, bottom, left, and right padding independently.
Edit text block margins
Editing the margins adds or removes space between the text block and the edges of your guide (the guide container) or neighboring building blocks. You edit the top, bottom, left, and right margins independently.