Contributor Publishing

Contributor publishing provides contributors with a platform to express their ideas, fostering a collaborative environment and personal growth. It offers a structured workflow for content creation and submission, enhancing clarity and efficiency.

Contributors create and submit posts for Sparrow, each attached to specific topics. The topics they can use and the audience they can target depend on their permissions, which are set by the Admin.

When contributors create a post, a draft is automatically created, which then becomes a submission. Submission Managers are notified whenever a post is submitted for approval. However, if a topic is set to auto-publish, contributors can publish posts directly without any managerial intervention.

Creating Content as a Contributor

Contributors can create content either through SharePoint or MS Teams.

1. Creating Content via MS Teams
   From MS Teams, select the Teams button from the navigation panel on the left. Choose "All Company," then "General." On the top bar, you'll find a tab named "News Authoring."
2. Creating Content via SharePoint
   For SharePoint, navigate to the contributor authoring page provided by your admin.
   
   Regardless of the platform, the News Authoring page will be identical.
   
   

Creating a Post

Once you've navigated to the News Authoring page, you can view all your Draft, Scheduled, and Published news posts. Clicking on any category will show you its details.

Step-by-step instructions for creating a post:

1. Click on "Create New Post" to start a new entry or select an existing post to edit, duplicate, or modify it in other ways.
2. Choose an image from the media gallery or upload one.
3. Write your title, summary (optional), and the main body of your post.
4. The status section provides information about the remaining tasks before your post is ready for publishing. This is where you'll find the options to save a draft, preview the post, publish it, or delete it without saving a draft.
   
   
   
   • If your post isn't set to auto-publish, a message under Topics will inform you that your post will undergo approval before publication. Every post requires a Topic, which should align with the content you're expected to produce.
5. Publishing Options - The panel to the right of the News Authoring page allows you to specify the details of your post such as notifications, reminders, and scheduling options. 
   
   
6. Choose whether you want to notify subscribers upon publishing. The "Edit notification upon publishing" button allows you to select the channels through which these subscribers will be notified.
   
   
7. Opt for a reminder notification if a post is unread.
   • Check the "Send reminder if post is unread" field.
   • Click on "Edit Reminders".
   • Set the timing for reminders and modify reminder channels.
     
8. Decide if you want your readers to react to or comment on your post. You can also select whether people can comment anonymously, or if their names will be displayed. Note that the system doesn't currently notify you of comments or reactions. Regularly check back to see if you need to respond.
9. Schedule your post for immediate distribution or set it for a future date.
10. If the post's content is only relevant for a specific period, it should expire once it's no longer applicable. Posts must expire within a year and no post should be set to 'Does not expire'.
11. Once you've filled out all required fields, you're ready to submit/publish your post!