This article describes the asset follow feature, and explains how it works.
Learn how to use the follow functionality to surface content for your users in the most effective way.
Use the links below to jump to a specific topic:
- What is the follow feature?
- How the follow feature works
- Viewing the following page
- Removing (and re-adding) followed assets
- Setting the maximum number of followed items
- Adding a following sub-menu item
- Making the most of the follow feature
What is the follow feature?
Fans are passionate. They want to know what’s going on with the things they care about. They could be a sports fan keeping track of their favorite team, or a movie aficionado wanting to know more about a director whose work they admire.
The follow feature lets your users personalize their experience by selecting the assets they’re interested in within their app. This allows you to serve them with existing and newly added content about those assets - as well as related assets - eliminating the need to go searching for it.
How the follow feature works
Following an asset
Both team and persona assets can be followed. To follow an asset, select the heart-shaped follow icon when viewing the asset. Followed assets are added to a following list in the user’s profile.
Example showing an unfollowed persona asset:
Example showing a followed team asset:
To unfollow an asset, re-select the filled follow heart icon. It's then removed from the profile's following list.
A hollow icon indicates the user is not yet following the asset. | |
A filled icon shows the user is following this asset. |
Managing followed assets
Viewing the following page
The following page allows users to view and remove assets from their following list. The page is found in the user’s account profile area.
Note: The following page is available on all applications except for TV targets. Some page customization is needed for entertainment persona use.
All assets followed by the profile are shown on the page, grouped by asset type.
If a 1:1 image exists for the asset this will be displayed, otherwise a logo is shown if one is available. If neither a 1:1 image nor a logo is available for the asset, then only the asset title is displayed. A check mark indicates that the asset is followed.
Removing (and re-adding) followed assets
Selecting a followed asset on this page removes the check mark, and the asset is unfollowed.
Reselecting the asset re-adds it to the following list.
Unfollowed assets are still visible until the user exits the page.
If the user isn’t following any assets, they'll see the message below when they navigate to this page:
'You aren’t following anyone yet. When you do, they’ll be listed here.'
Setting the maximum number of followed items
A maximum of 50 followed assets per profile is set by default. Change this limit by going to Admin → System → Profile and setting the Max Followed per Profile field to the required value.
Note: Allowing unlimited assets to be followed by a profile (by removing the maximum value in this field) can result in performance issues.
If a user reaches the following maximum, a notification displays when they try to follow another asset, as seen in the example below.
The presentation of the message differs slightly depending on the user’s app.
Adding a following sub-menu item
Configuring a following sub-menu item provides users with a quick entry point to the following page. This menu item is set up by default, appearing below the Bookmarks sub-menu item.
To configure the sub-menu:
- Navigate to Display → Menus → Account.
- Add a new following sub-menu item with /account/profiles/following as the destination.
- Drag the item using the reorder icon to change the order in which users see it in the menu.
Read our article on sub-menus to learn more about these navigation items and how to configure them.
Making the most of the follow feature
The follow feature allows you to understand your users’ interests so that you can serve them with relevant content. You can also gain insights into your users’ interactions with the feature through analytics.
List rules let you dynamically curate content to keep your page lists refreshed. Using list rules together with asset relations provides a powerful tool for showing users more of what they like, as well as related content that they may also be interested in.
The Has Relation list filter lets you define a rule that will update the list with assets related to an asset the user follows.
For example, if a user follows Team A and an asset relation exists between Team A and competition asset types, list rules provide the ability to automatically populate lists with the competitions that Team A is participating in - ensuring your users are served content they have an invested interest in.
Note: Followed items lists are currently supported on ST1, ST3, STV2, STV3, and C1 row types.