Styling Starter Templates

In this article, we cover some quick tips on how to prepare your report for testing so it's as pixel-perfect as possible. 

Document Styling

Turn Borders off on Tables

All starter templates have borders turned on to help you see where you are editing and where elements of the report will sit. However, before you test, you may want to turn these off. To do this:

1. Select the table
2. Click the dropdown arrow on the grid icon in the ribbon
3. Select No Borders

This is also available in the Table Design Tab if you are having trouble locating the icon.

Set the Default Font

The default font will be used on any merge strings containing rating or report text. To set the default font:

1. Press Command+D (Mac) or Control+D (Windows)
2. Adapt the font settings to match what you would like the default font to be
3. Press the Default... button
4. Set the default font for This Document Only

This can also be found by navigating to Format > Font in the top bar of Microsoft Word.

For more tips on managing font in the Sample Templates, visit the article here.

Connect Headings to Styles

If you have added headings beyond what is in the Sample Report, ensure these are connected to the document Styles. 

To see styles:

1. Open the styles pane
2. Select the desired style for the heading

This will ensure your content renders as intended.

Chart Styling

Use the Results Builder to Test your Charts

We recommend checking your charts in the Results Builder to reduce the amount of back-and-forth between Word and Brilliant Assessments when testing. 

Step One: Create a Results Page for Testing Charts

1. Navigate to Results in the Side Panel
2. Click Add Dashboard
3. Name your Results Page
4. Select the Type so it matches your report (i.e. for Individual or Cohort feedback)
5. Select the Assessment

Step Two: Add a Container and Tile

1. Click Add and Select Container
2. Add a Tile next and drag it into the container
3. Select the Gear Icon on the Tile and set the Background Color to match the page color of your report.
4. Save the settings

Step Three: Add your merge string/s

1. Select the merge string you want to test
2. Copy the merge string
3. Paste the merge string into the tile (accessed by pressing the Pencil icon.
4. Select the merge string content to load the Results merge manager.
5. Press save to preview the chart

Troubleshooting: If you get an Error No Chart Resolved message, press the test data button and ensure that your results are connected to a response. This should fix the tile if the merge string is correct.

Repeat this for as many merge strings as you like, and you can always add additional tiles or use this as your results page!

For more information on setting up Results Pages, view the article here.

Set Popular Options in Your Charts

	Width and Height When you set the width or height for the chart, it will be resized to meet this criteria. The number will represent a pixel value. As a guide, charts that span the width of A4 and US Letter templates are best set to a width of no more than 650(px) and a height of no more than 800 (px). Presentation templates allow for a width of up to 900(px) and a height of 600(px).
	Rating Bands and Rating Lines By default, most charts will use the rating color in lines or bars. Displaying rating bands or rating lines will add the rating colors to the background, as a fill, or as an indicator line. The number required in the rating line will specify the thickness of the line.
	Title Rules The title rules allow you to show or hide the chart title.
	Labels You can choose to display labels for the result by showing or hiding labels in the Options. You can also set the label color so it is easier to read.
	Font You can choose from a selection of compatible fonts for your charts and specify the size of the fonts to help with readability. This will be applied to labels and the axes.
	Bar Thickness To make your bars wider, you can specify the thickness of your bars in pixels.
	Axis & Legend Depending on the chart, you can choose to show/hide elements such as the Axis and the Legend.
	Chart Colors How chart colors work depends on the type of chart you have created. In a bar chart, it will override default settings and set the bar color. This is best used in conjunction with rating bands.

This is only a small selection of the things you can do to customize your charts! To get them looking perfect, we recommend playing around in the results builder and then copying and pasting the merge string back into your PDF report.