Realsmart Help

← Realsmart Help

Advanced Smart Blocks

Create reusable collections of content blocks with custom HTML templates — searchable grids or carousels for teams, courses, facilities, and more.

Overview

Advanced Smart Blocks (ASB) goes beyond the standard Smart Blocks plugin. Instead of a fixed layout, you define a collection with custom fields and an HTML template, then add as many items as you need. Display the collection as a searchable grid or carousel on any page.

This is ideal for staff directories, course listings, facility showcases, or any structured content that repeats with different data.

Getting Set Up

  1. Go to Advanced Smart Blocks in the WordPress sidebar.
  2. Create a new collection with a name and layout template.
  3. Define your fields (e.g. title, summary, photo).
  4. Add items to the collection.
  5. Add the shortcode to a page: [advanced_smart_blocks id="your-collection-id"]

Features

Collections admin

Where to find it: Advanced Smart Blocks

The admin interface lets you:

  • Create named collections
  • Define a layout template using placeholders like {{title}}, {{summary}}, {{{cta_html}}}
  • Add field keys for each data point
  • Add, edit, and remove items

Default template:

<article class="asb-card">
  <h3>{{title}}</h3>
  <p>{{summary}}</p>
  <div>{{{cta_html}}}</div>
</article>
  • {{field}} — escaped text
  • {{{field}}} — raw HTML
  • {{index}} — item position

Display shortcode

Shortcode Parameters Example
[advanced_smart_blocks] or [asb] id, display, columns, gap, searchable, search_placeholder, class [asb id="staff" display="grid" columns="3" searchable="yes"]
Parameter What it does Default
id Collection ID Required
display grid or carousel grid
columns Grid columns 3
gap Gap between items (px) 16
searchable Enable search box yes
search_placeholder Search box placeholder text Search blocks…

Common Tasks

Creating a staff directory

  1. Create a collection called "staff".
  2. Define fields: title (name), summary (role), photo, cta_html (email link).
  3. Add each staff member as an item.
  4. Add [asb id="staff" display="grid" columns="4" searchable="yes"] to your staff page.

Tips & Best Practice

  • Plan your fields before creating items — changing the template later affects all items.
  • Use searchable="yes" for large collections (staff lists, course catalogues).
  • Test the layout template with one item before adding the full dataset.
  • Use {{{field}}} only for fields that contain safe HTML you control.

Troubleshooting

The shortcode shows nothing

Why it happens: The collection ID may be wrong, or the collection may have no items.

How to fix it:

  1. Check the collection ID in the admin matches the shortcode id parameter.
  2. Confirm the collection has at least one item.
  3. Verify the layout template renders correctly.

Last updated: 9 July 2026 · Plugin version: 1.0.0

Was this helpful?