Using Templates

Templates are pre-built page structures that give you a professional starting point for common document types. Instead of staring at a blank page and figuring out what sections to include, a template provides the skeleton — headings, placeholders, and formatting — so you can focus entirely on the content.

This guide covers how to use Quixli's built-in templates, how to create and share your own custom templates, and best practices for maintaining a template library that scales with your team.

Why Templates Matter

Templates solve two problems at once: speed and consistency. A product manager who writes weekly status updates shouldn't spend 5 minutes recreating the same heading structure every time. A team of 10 technical writers producing API documentation shouldn't have 10 different page formats. Templates eliminate this wasted effort and drift.

Specifically, templates help you:

• Write faster: Skip the structural decisions and jump straight to filling in content. For recurring document types, this saves 5–10 minutes per page

• Stay consistent: Every page of the same type looks and feels the same, whether created by you or a colleague. Readers build familiarity with the format, which makes content easier to scan

• Reduce omissions: Templates include placeholder text that prompts you for specific information. A bug report template reminds you to include "steps to reproduce" — a section that's easy to forget when writing from scratch

• Onboard new team members: New hires can produce correctly structured documents on their first day without needing to study existing examples

Built-In Template Library

Quixli ships with a curated set of professional templates organized into categories. These are designed based on industry best practices and are available to all users:

Each built-in template includes descriptive placeholder text explaining what to write in each section. The placeholders are designed to be self-explanatory — you shouldn't need a separate guide to fill out a template.

How to Use a Template

Creating a page from a template takes just a few clicks:

1. Open the creation dialog: Click "+ New Page" or press Cmd/Ctrl + N

2. Select "Start from Template": This opens the template browser with categories, search, and previews

3. Browse or search: Browse by category (Documentation, Meetings, etc.) or type a keyword in the search bar to filter

4. Preview before choosing: Click any template to see its full structure — headings, sections, and placeholder text — before committing

5. Click "Use This Template": A new page is created with the template's content pre-populated. The page is yours to edit freely

6. Replace placeholders: Work through each section, replacing the placeholder text with your actual content. Delete any sections you don't need

Pro Tip: After using a template, adjust the structure to fit your specific needs. Templates are starting points, not rigid forms — add sections, remove irrelevant ones, and rearrange blocks freely.

Creating Custom Templates

Built-in templates cover common use cases, but your team likely has document types unique to your workflow — weekly standup notes, client handoff checklists, incident post-mortems. Custom templates let you capture these patterns and reuse them.

Step 1: Design the Structure

Create a page that represents the ideal version of your document type. Include all the headings, placeholder text, tables, and formatting that every instance of this document should have. Think about:

• What sections are always needed (required sections)

• What sections are sometimes needed (optional — include them with a note saying "delete if not applicable")

• What placeholder text will prompt the author for the right information

• Whether any pre-filled tables, checklists, or boilerplate text should be included

Step 2: Save as Template

1. Open the page you've designed

2. Click the page menu (⋮) in the top-right corner

3. Select "Save as Template"

4. Give it a clear, descriptive name (e.g., "Weekly Status Update" not "Template 1")

5. Choose a category or create a new one

6. Write a one-line description explaining when to use this template

7. Set visibility: Private (only you) or Team (all workspace members)

8. Click "Save Template"

Step 3: Use and Iterate

Your custom template now appears in the template browser alongside built-in templates, marked with a "Custom" badge. As your team uses it, collect feedback and update the template when you notice:

• Sections that everyone deletes (remove them from the template)

• Information that everyone adds manually (add it as a placeholder)

• Formatting inconsistencies (standardize in the template)

• New requirements or best practices (add new sections)

Editing a Template

When you update a custom template, the changes only affect new pages created from it going forward. Existing pages that were previously created from the template are not modified — they're fully independent documents.

Managing Templates

As your template library grows, keep it organized so the right templates are easy to find:

• Categories: Group templates into logical categories (Documentation, Meetings, Reports, Client-Facing, Internal). Create categories that match your team's vocabulary

• Naming conventions: Use consistent, descriptive names. If your team creates "Weekly Report," "Monthly Report," and "Quarterly Report" templates, the naming makes it obvious which to choose

• Favorites: Star the templates you use most often. Favorited templates appear at the top of the browser for quick access

• Archiving: If a template is outdated but you don't want to delete it (in case someone references old documents), archive it. Archived templates are hidden from the browser but remain accessible through settings

Sharing Templates Across Teams

Templates become more valuable when shared. Quixli provides several sharing mechanisms:

Template Best Practices

Write Better Placeholders

The quality of your placeholders determines how useful the template is. Good placeholders are specific and actionable:

• Good: "[Summarize the project goal in 1-2 sentences. What problem does this solve and for whom?]"

• Bad: "[Write description here]"

• Good: "[List 3-5 key success metrics with target values, e.g., 'Reduce page load time to under 2 seconds']"

• Bad: "[Add metrics]"

Include Contextual Notes

Use blockquotes or callouts within the template to give authors guidance that should be deleted after filling in. For example, a meeting notes template might include a callout saying: "Tip: Record action items as a checklist so they're easy to track after the meeting."

Keep Templates Focused

A template should cover one document type well, not multiple types poorly. If you find yourself adding "optional" sections that apply to different situations, it's better to create two focused templates than one bloated one.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I convert an existing page into a template retroactively?

Yes. Open any existing page, click the page menu (⋮), and select "Save as Template." The page itself remains unchanged — a copy of its structure is saved as a new template in your library.

Do templates include images and embedded media?

Yes. Templates preserve all content types including images, tables, code blocks, and embedded media. When a new page is created from the template, all content is duplicated — including uploaded images, which are copied to the new page's storage.

Can I share a template with someone outside my workspace?

Yes. Generate a template link from the template settings. Anyone with the link can duplicate the template into their own workspace. They'll get the full structure, but the template won't update in their workspace if you modify the original.