How To: Control FAQs from the Embeddables CMS

Learn how to manage your FAQs through the Embeddables CMS and display them using an OptionSelector

The Embeddables CMS provides an excellent way to manage your Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) without needing to modify code. This guide will show you how to set up and use the CMS to control your FAQ content, making it easy for non-technical team members to update questions and answers.

Overview

This approach allows you to:

• Manage all FAQs through a user-friendly CMS interface
• Store FAQs in a single place for all Embeddables in your project
• Maintain a single source of truth for your FAQs
• Update questions and answers without code changes or deployments
• Keep an audit trail of FAQ changes, via the Embeddables CMS’s version control system

Setting Up Your FAQ Table

1. Create a New Table

1. Navigate to the CMS section in the Embeddables Web App
2. Click “Edit Tables”
3. Click ”+ Add Table”
4. Select the “FAQs” template

2. Configure Your Columns

The template comes with recommended columns, but here’s the essential structure you’ll need:

Column Name	Column Key	Type	Purpose
Question	question	Text	The FAQ question to display on the button
Answer	answer	Text	The detailed answer to display when selected
Order	order	Number	Optional: Control the display order of FAQs

You could add additional columns based on your needs, such as:

• A category column to group FAQs by topic
• A tags column for better organization
• A last_updated column to track when FAQs were modified

You can use a column like category or tags above to show different subsets of FAQs in different places.

For example, you could have a tag called “Pricing”, and then filter the FAQs in a Computed Field called pricing_faqs.

Then you could display the results of this in an OptionSelector component on your pricing page, or offer users tabs to let them filter FAQs by tag.

3. Add Your FAQs

Add your FAQ content by adding rows to the table. Each row represents one FAQ item.

Connecting FAQs to Your Embeddable

1. Connect to the CMS

1. Add a Content Source

   • Create a new Embeddable or open your existing one
   • In the Embeddables Builder, go to Embeddable Options
   • Scroll to the CMS section
   • Click ”+ Add Content Source”
2. Configure the Connection

   • Enter a User Data key (e.g., faqs)
   • Select your FAQs table
   • Under “Which records should get shown?”, choose “Show all records”
   • Check “Multiple Records” since we want to display all FAQs
3. Register the Key

   • Add your User Data key to the list of Registered Keys in Embeddable Options

2. Create a Computed Field

You’ll need a Computed Field to transform the CMS data into the format required by the OptionSelector:

• Go to Embeddable Options
• Create a new Computed Field (e.g., faq_options)
• Add faqs to the inputs
• Add the following code:

// Computed Field: faq_options
function result({ faqs }) {
  // Sort FAQs by order if the order column exists
  const sortedFaqs = faqs?.sort((a, b) => (a.order || 0) - (b.order || 0)) || [];
  
  // Transform the FAQs into the format needed by the OptionSelector
  return sortedFaqs.map(faq => ({
    text: faq.question,
    description: faq.answer
  }));
}

Optional: Filter FAQs by Tags

If you added a tags column to your FAQs table, you can filter FAQs in your computed field. For example, to show only pricing-related FAQs:

// Computed Field: faq_options
function result({ faqs }) {
  // Filter for pricing FAQs and sort them
  const pricingFaqs = faqs?.filter(faq => faq.tags?.includes('pricing'))
    .sort((a, b) => (a.order || 0) - (b.order || 0)) || [];
  
  return pricingFaqs.map(faq => ({
    text: faq.question,
    description: faq.answer
  }));
}

This lets you create different FAQ sections (like pricing, features, or support) using the same CMS table.

Optional: Add a selector so users can filter FAQs by tag

You can create a dynamic tag filter by adding an OptionSelector above your FAQs. Here’s how:

1. First, create a computed field to get unique tags (e.g., faq_tags) - this will power the OptionSelector that lets users filter FAQs by tag.

// Computed Field: faq_tags
function result({ faqs }) {
  // Get all unique tags from FAQs
  const tags = [...new Set(faqs?.flatMap(faq => faq.tags || []) || [])];
  return tags.map(tag => ({
    text: tag,
    value: tag
  }));
}

2. Then modify your FAQ computed field to accept a selected tag - this will filter the FAQs based on the selected tag, and the results will be passed to the main FAQs OptionSelector:

function result({ faqs, selected_tag }) {
  // Filter FAQs by selected tag if one is chosen
  const filteredFaqs = selected_tag 
    ? faqs?.filter(faq => faq.tags?.includes(selected_tag))
    : faqs;
  
  // Sort and transform the FAQs
  return (filteredFaqs || [])
    .sort((a, b) => (a.order || 0) - (b.order || 0))
    .map(faq => ({
      text: faq.question,
      description: faq.answer
    }));
}

3. Finally, add the two OptionSelectors to your page:

• First OptionSelector: Set its key to selected_tag and its “Repeatable Buttons” field to {{faq_tags}} (which uses the first computed field above).
• Second OptionSelector: Set its key to expanded_faq and its “Repeatable” field to {{faq_options}} (which uses the second computed field above).

This creates an interactive FAQ section where users can filter FAQs by selecting different tags.

3. Set Up the OptionSelector

1. Add an OptionSelector

   • Add an OptionSelector component to your page
   • Enable “Repeatable Buttons”
   • In the “Repeatable” field, enter {{faq_options}}
   • Configure the OptionSelector to show descriptions only when selected
2. Style Your FAQs

   • Use the Designer to style the buttons and descriptions
   • Consider adding transitions for smooth description reveals
   • Ensure the text is readable and properly spaced

Previewing and Publishing

When testing your Embeddable on a preview link, add savvy_test=false to the URL to ensure CMS data loads correctly.

To preview your FAQs with different CMS versions:

• Use savvy_cms=latest to preview with the latest CMS version
• Use savvy_cms=123 to preview a specific version
• Use savvy_cms=staging to preview the staging version

Best Practices

1. Content Organization

   • Keep questions clear and concise
   • Use consistent formatting in answers
   • Consider grouping related FAQs using categories
   • Maintain a logical order for your FAQs

2. User Experience

   • Keep answers concise but informative
   • Use formatting (like lists or bold text) in answers where appropriate
   • Ensure the OptionSelector is easily accessible
   • Consider adding a search function for longer FAQ lists

3. Content Management

   • Regularly review and update FAQs
   • Use the CMS version control for major updates
   • Keep an audit trail of changes
   • Consider seasonal or temporary FAQs

Example Use Cases

1. Product FAQs

   • Common questions about features
   • Pricing and subscription details
   • Technical requirements
   • Support information

2. Service FAQs

   • Process explanations
   • Service limitations
   • Contact information
   • Terms and conditions

3. Company FAQs

   • About the company
   • Team information
   • Office locations
   • Career opportunities

Use the CMS version control system to create and test different FAQ variations before pushing them live. This is especially useful when making major updates to your FAQ content.

Troubleshooting

1. FAQs Not Loading

   • Verify the Content Source is properly configured
   • Check that you’re using savvy_test=false in preview URLs
   • Ensure the Computed Field is correctly transforming the data

2. Formatting Issues

   • Check that the OptionSelector is properly configured
   • Verify the Computed Field output format
   • Ensure all required columns are present in the CMS table

For additional help or questions, please contact the Embeddables support team.

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