Linked templates let you declare a named relationship between two templates — for example, a preview layout and the print-ready PDF that goes with it — so that automations can find the right sibling without any per-caller wiring.
What a linked template is
A linked template is a connection from one template to another, stored under a label you choose. The label is a free-form name — "print", "Print PDF", "wallet", or anything else that makes sense for your workflow. Templified does not interpret the label; it simply stores it and makes it available to automations that ask for it.
A common setup is a 5×7 preview template linked (under the label "print") to a high-resolution print PDF template. A customer order comes in tied to the preview design; an automation looks up the "print" link, finds the print template, and renders the deliverable — no manual re-routing needed.
Each template can hold up to 32 links, each with its own label. Labels must be unique within a template: you cannot have two links both labeled "print".
Where to find the Linked templates panel
Linked templates live inside Template settings:
- Open the template in the editor.
- Click the gear icon (Template settings) in the editor header, next to the template name.
- Scroll to the Linked templates section at the bottom of the popover.
The panel shows a list of existing links (each as a label and a target template) and an Add link button. When there are no links yet, the panel shows "No linked templates yet."
Note: the Linked templates section only appears when you are editing a template directly. It is hidden when you open a design in Studio — this prevents accidentally changing the source template's link map while working on a customer's design.
Add a link
- Click Add link. A new row appears with a Label field and a target-template picker.
- Type a label in the Label field — for example, print or Print PDF. The label identifies the role this sibling plays; keep it short and consistent with any automations that will read it.
- Click Pick target template… to open the searchable template picker. Type to filter by template name or folder. Select the sibling template.
- Click Save to persist the links.
The picker excludes the template you're editing (self-links are not allowed). It is sorted alphabetically by folder and template name. If a target template is later deleted, the row will warn you and prompt you to pick a new target or remove the row before saving.
Edit or remove a link
- To change a label — edit the text in the label field for that row and click Save.
- To retarget a link — click the template picker for that row, choose a different template, and click Save.
- To remove a link — click the × button on the row, then click Save. Removing a link from a template does not affect any designs or renders that have already been processed.
Unsaved changes are held in memory. Closing the popover without clicking Save discards any edits you made in that session.
Duplicating a template that has links
When you duplicate a template that has one or more linked templates, Templified asks what to do with the links. A Copy linked templates? prompt appears with three choices:
- Cancel — closes the prompt and does not duplicate anything.
- Duplicate without links — creates the copy with no links, exactly as a plain duplicate would.
- Copy links — creates the copy and carries the link relationships onto it.
Choosing Copy links copies the links, not the targets. The new copy points at the same existing target templates the source pointed to — those target templates are not themselves duplicated. This is a copy-the-link, not duplicate-the-target, behavior.
The prompt only appears when the source template actually has links. A template with no linked templates duplicates silently, just as it always has.
How automations use linked templates
The label you choose is the key an automation uses to look up the sibling. For example, a Zapier action called "Send GFcrew Order via Linked Template" accepts the label (such as "print") and, given a design tied to the source template, resolves the correct sibling template and renders or sends the result automatically.
Because the label is freeform and the platform does not assign meaning to it, you can use any naming scheme that matches your workflow. The only constraint is that labels must be unique within one template.
Automations can also pass a fields map when triggering a linked render — for example, to stamp an order number onto a dynamic text layer on the print design. How those fields are mapped depends on the integration; the field names correspond to the dynamic layer names in the target template.
Example: a 5×7 preview that prints a two-page plaque PDF
Here's the setup this feature was built for. The design your customer sees and orders is a 5×7 — that's the design uploaded to GFcrew/Pro. But the deliverable you actually print is a separate, two-page, print-ready plaque PDF. You link the 5×7 template to the plaque PDF template under a label like print.
Now, when a customer places an order for that 5×7 on GFcrew/Pro, Templified follows the print link and renders the linked two-page plaque PDF for printing — instead of just the 5×7 preview. You define the relationship once on the template; every order for that 5×7 prints the correct plaque automatically, with no per-order matching.
Comments
0 comments
Article is closed for comments.