Communication and layout blocks reference
Six blocks handle messaging and page structure on the public help center: Announcement, What’s new, Contact CTA, and System status for communication; Spacer and Video embed for layout. Their block-specific settings and when to use each are below. Every block also has shared settings — a heading, an optional description, an optional background or hero image, and a visibility toggle. For the full 18-block catalogue, see the Portal blocks reference.
Communication blocks
Announcement
A horizontal banner with text, optional CTA, and a dismiss button.
Settings: heading, body, CTA label, CTA target, color (info, warning, error, success), dismissible toggle.
When to use: outage notices, scheduled maintenance, launch announcements, “we’re hiring” pulses. Take it down when it’s no longer true.
What’s new
A block that shows recent product updates or release notes in the help center. Each item gives customers a quick way to see what changed and click through for more detail.
Settings: heading, body, number of updates to show, show/hide publish date, CTA label, CTA target. The heading and body labels participate in Knowledge Base translation sync.
When to use: to keep customers aware of launches, improvements, and important product changes without turning the help center into a changelog.
Contact CTA
A block that nudges customers to chat, email, or open a ticket if they didn’t find an answer.
Settings: heading, body, CTA buttons (chat, email, phone, web form), enabled channels.
When to use: at the bottom of the homepage, the bottom of category pages, and the bottom of every article. The most-used block by volume.
System status
Live status of your services, pulled from your Atender Status page if you’ve configured one.
Settings: which services to show, compact vs. full layout.
When to use: if you have a public Status page, embedding it on the help center reduces “is everything down?” tickets.
Layout blocks
Spacer
Vertical empty space. Invisible but useful for tuning the rhythm of the page.
Settings: height (small, medium, large).
When to use: between dense blocks that would otherwise feel cramped.
Video embed
An embedded YouTube or Vimeo video.
Settings: video URL, heading, description, autoplay toggle (off by default).
When to use: for product demo or onboarding videos. Don’t autoplay — customers hate it.