Promote ideation through our virtual community wall by empowering users to vote, comment and collaborate on user-generated ideas. The ideation tool enables users to leave text-based contributions, share related media (photos, videos, documents), and set map locations for their concepts.
For each project, multiple idea topics can be created. An idea topic allows participants to start submitting ideas on this specific topic.
Create an idea topic
To add an idea topic to your project:
While logged in, use the top-level menu to navigate to the Projects tab.
Select the relevant project; this opens your project overview page.
In the left-hand menu, under the Participation section, click Ideas. This shows the list of created idea topics for this project.
Click +Add idea to create a new idea topic.
Give the idea topic a Title. This will be visible on the public-facing page.
Fill in the Description section to give participants a brief description of the idea topic. This will appear beneath the summary title.
In the Text short box: These fields are pre-populated and do not need to be updated when creating a new idea topic, as the default content is suitable for most cases.
The Summary field is the field where the participant can add a title to their idea
The Description is the text that will be displayed below the Summary field to help users fill in this field
Optional: Add some Placeholder text, to help participants understand how to respond to the Summary field.
In the Comment text box: These fields are pre-populated and do not need to be updated when creating a new idea topic, as the default content is suitable for most cases.
The Detail field is where participants can add the detail of their idea
The Description is the text that will be displayed below the Detail field to help users fill in this field.
Optional: Add some Placeholder text, to help participants understand how to respond to the Detail field.
You can add further input types to the idea topic if required (Add input, Add group), such as multiple-choice questions, email input fields, and more. For a full list of the input types and their uses, see further down this page.
On the right-hand side:
Tick Require account if you want participants to sign in before providing their responses.
Set an End date for your idea topic, either by typing the date into the field, or clicking the calendar icon on the right and choosing the date from the calendar.
In Advanced settings, you can add a customised submission response message to idea respondents.
Choose whether you want to disable comments, allow comments, or turn off comments (Comments).
Once you are finished building your idea topic, click Save at the top of the screen. Add a revision message to describe what you’ve done.
You can preview your idea in the Preview tab of your idea topic overview page.
Edit an idea topic
To edit an existing idea topic:
While logged in, use the top-level menu to navigate to the Projects tab.
Select the relevant project; this opens your project overview page.
In the left-hand menu, under the Participation section, click Idea topics. This shows the idea topics overview page for this project.
Click on the ellipsis button on a specific idea topic to show more options. Click Edit.
Alternatively, click on the idea topic you want to edit, then click the Edit tab.
When you are finished editing, click Done.
Delete an idea topic
You can delete an idea topic from a project if it’s no longer needed, or was created by mistake. This permanently removes the idea topic and all its content and cannot be undone. Proceed with caution!
Note: you may not have delete permissions as part of your role. If you have any questions about your permissions, contact your District Engage administrator.
To delete an idea topic:
Navigate to an existing project.
In the left-hand menu, under Participation, click Idea topics. This shows all the idea topics that already exist for this project.
Click on the ellipsis button to show more options for an idea topic. Click Delete.
Alternatively, click on the idea topic you want to edit, then click the Delete tab.
You’ll be prompted with a warning to confirm the action. Click Yes, Delete this Idea.
Your idea topic is now deleted.
