Adding Automatically Generated Content

A great way to save time posting content in your community is to take advantage of automatic content curation using Raftr’s next-gen technology. Raftr can automatically generate Posts and Events in Raftr by pulling information from your websites, calendars, and select other systems into one place for your members. Having a single, aggregated source for the latest news and events helps members and administrators keep track of what’s happening in your community. 

The number of automatically generated content (AGC) sources will depend on your contract, but we strongly recommend these integrations as a part of your content strategy. Not only does AGC help keep content in your community fresh, it allows your administrative users to focus their efforts on more creative, interactive content. Below are examples of standard and custom content sources we support and instructions for adding, editing, or removing AGC sources from your community. 

Examples of AGC Sources

News & Social Media Sources

• Web RSS Feeds – Provide RSS feed URL to create Posts (standard)
  • Commonly used for general campus news
  • Includes Anthology and CampusGroups news feeds
  
  
• JSON – Provide an API endpoint URL returning a list of news posts (custom)
  • Includes Presence news feeds
  
  
• Other Systems – Provide a URL for our team to analyze and determine implementation timing for Posts (custom)
  • Includes 3rd-party APIs and XML

Calendar and Event Sources

• Google, ICS, & Outlook Calendars – Provide calendar URL to create Events  (standard)
  • Includes Sharepoint
  
  
• Web RSS Feeds – Provide RSS feed URL to create Events (standard)
  • Commonly used for general campus events and sports team schedules
  • Includes Anthology and CampusGroups calendar feeds
  
  
• JSON – Provide an API endpoint URL returning a list of events (custom)
  • Includes Presence/Modern Campus calendar feeds
  
  
• Guidebook – Provide Guidebook URL to create Events (standard)

• Other Systems – Provide a URL for our team to analyze and determine implementation timing for Events (custom)
  • Includes 3rd-party APIs and XML

Adding AGC to Your Community

To add a new AGC source to your community, or edit or remove an existing AGC source Raftr has built for you, please contact your dedicated Success Manager. Depending on how many sources you have remaining, you may need a revised quote to add a new source. 

Setup Information

In order to properly configure an AGC source, you will need to provide the following information to your Success Manager:

• Source Info – For example, the RSS feed, social media handle, or website URL
• Author – Assign an Author for the auto-generated content on Raftr. The Author can edit the Post or Event if needed. It must be an existing member of your community and Raft(s).
• Raft(s) - Decide which Raft you would like the Post or Event to be created in. Raftr supports cross-posting content to multiple Rafts. This can be done by specifying additional Rafts, or it can be done automatically for location-based Events to Rafts with the same location pre-assigned.
• Topic(s) - Determine which existing Topic(s) you would like assigned to the Post or Event. This helps community members discover content in Search. 
• Default Image(s) – Share up to three placeholder images for AGC Posts or Events that do not have a source image. Having multiple images will allow Raftr to randomize for greater variety in feeds.

Creating Automatic Content Feeds

Once we have configured your AGC sources, your Success Manager will ask you to review examples of AGC in your community for final sign-off. Once AGC is being generated in your community, there are several places your members can access automatic content feeds.

Home Page 

The Home Page is one of the primary Pages on Raftr, accessed from the left sidebar on web and at the bottom of the mobile apps. The top section of the Home Page, called “Don’t Miss It,” highlights upcoming Events, whether manual or AGC. (NOTE: AGC news Posts are excluded from the Home page’s Posts section to keep it more personalized.)

Community Hub

Once you create a Raft that features AGC, you can easily create a new section on your Community Page to highlight Posts or Events from that specific Raft. You can also create a News section that displays AGC content from a single Raft or your entire community. Your Success Manager can share resources on creating Community Page sections or discuss strategies for organizing this landing page, or you can read more about how to manage your Community Page here.

Posts Feed

The Posts Feed is one of the primary Pages on Raftr, located in the left sidebar on web and at the bottom of the mobile apps. This feed includes:

• AGC-sourced Posts from Public Rafts
• Manually created Posts from Public Rafts
• AGC-sourced Posts from a member’s Private and Secret Rafts
• Manually created Posts from a member’s Private and Secret Rafts

Events Feed

The Events Feed is one of the primary Pages on Raftr, located in the left sidebar on web and at the bottom of the mobile apps. This feed includes: 

• AGC-sourced Events from public Rafts
• Manually created Events from Public Rafts
• AGC-sourced Events from a member’s Private and Secret Rafts
• Manually created Events from a member’s Private and Secret Rafts
• Manually created Events from a member’s personal messaging groups

News or Events Raft

One of the best ways to highlight AGC is to create a News or Events Raft that is exclusively filled with the latest news and upcoming events from your AGC sources. These Rafts can be set to auto-join, meaning any new member of your community is automatically joined to the Raft so they don’t miss out on important info. Typically, these Rafts are more informational than social, so Chat and Channels are disabled by default, and content creation is limited to admins only.