Imagine what it would be like to save time sharing the latest news with your team, without having to find and post the content. Sources make this possible. Sources provide relevant content for Group members to consume and share as soon as the content is available. You don’t have to continually visit the sites and keep your attention spread over various channels. Instead, set up a Group Source and let the content come to you.

This article describes how you can activate and source Group content using feeds and keywords. Let’s get started!

🔹 This is available on the Teams and Enterprise plans.

🔸 This is accessible to Admin and Group Moderators.

🔸 Admin may disable this feature. Please check with your program Admin if this is unavailable. 

Source types

Before we dive into how to use Sources, we need to first look at content types that can be added. There are three types of content you can use: RSS feeds, Twitter Handles, and Keywords.

RSS feeds

Really Simple Syndication feeds, aka RSS feeds, are files that display content from a website in chronological order. These files are designed to pull the most recent content first and are great for pulling time-sensitive content, such as blog posts and podcasts.

Content pulled from an RSS feed will have the URL displayed on the top left, with the post directly below the URL. See below. Note the content does not have an author attributed on the top left.

Want to know more? Please click here for more information on RSS feeds.

Twitter Feeds

Add a Twitter profile’s feed using the Twitter Handle, aka @username. Click here for more details on finding a Twitter account handle. 

Content pulled using a Twitter Handle will display a “Read more on Twitter” button to encourage engagement with the post directly on Twitter. (See below.)

Twitter content will not have an author assigned, but the Twitter content is wrapped in a second container with the Twitter Handle's profile visible.

🔹Someone must be connected to Twitter to add Twitter feeds to a Group. 

Keywords

Automate content using a keyword for Groups. Be sure to use specific keywords for your company and industry. Using a general keyword, such as “news,” will pull in all content posted for that keyword and it will overwhelm users reading the content and admins approving the content. Instead, try using a news-specific keyword. For example, “cyber security news” would pull relevant content for a news Group with the majority of members involved in tech security.

Content pulled from a keyword will have the URL displayed on the top left, with the post directly below the URL. See below. Note the content does not have an author attributed on the top left.

Add a Group Source

Add a Group Source to your Group Settings to automate content. In this article, we’ll use a published Group, but you can always add Sources while creating a Group.

1. Click Edit to go to Group Settings.
2. Scroll down to Sources.
3. Enter your Source into the Source field.
4. *Check the box if you want to Auto-approve posts.
   Learn more about auto-approval best practices.
5. Click Add.
6. Toggle ON to activate the Source.
7. Click Done.

Content will start to curate within a few seconds for most Sources, though some have taken longer. You’ll see content added for anything published within the last few days. If you do not immediately see content pulled, we recommend waiting a few minutes and reviewing the Group’s Timeline–if Sources are auto-approved–or reviewing the For Approval tab–if Sources require approval.

Click here to learn how to approve Group content in the For Approval state.

Inactivate or delete a Group Source

Sources can not be edited, but they can be inactivated or deleted by a Group Moderator or Admins.

🔹Inactive Sources can be reactivated. Deleted Sources can not be retrieved.

1. Click Edit to go to Group Settings.
2. Scroll down to Sources.
3. *Toggle OFF to inactivate a Source.
4. *Click X to delete a Source. *
   Click Delete to confirm.
5. Click Done.

Best Practices

🔹Uncheck Auto-approve posts when creating a Source unless you’re confident the content can and should be shared (e.g., your company’s Twitter or blog RSS feed). Auto-approving content, without any review, can lead to a myriad of consequences, such as sharing unprofessional content or unrelated content with your team. For example, you may not want to share that a celebrity pivoted to a cyber security career, but a Source could have found it because of the keyword “cyber security.” If you set the Source to Auto-approve, then your team could see the content before it’s removed.

🔸Set up a cadence with Group Moderators and Admin to review the For Approval tab to ensure sourced content is added quickly so the team can share information as soon as it's published–helping establish your team as experts aware of what’s happening in the industry.