Idea Board

Idea Board Hub Docs

Last updated: November 13, 2025

The Idea Board Hub is your central workspace for gathering, organizing, and developing content ideas before they become social media posts. Whether you’re brainstorming original ideas, using proven templates, or curating content from RSS feeds, this feature helps you stay ahead of your content calendar.

The hub consists of three integrated tools: Ideas Board for capturing and organizing your thoughts, Templates for using pre-written post formats, and RSS Feeds for pulling in fresh content from external sources. All three tools connect directly to your post composer, making it easy to turn inspiration into published content.

This guide will show you how to use each tool effectively and integrate them into your content workflow.

Ready to get started? Let’s begin by accessing the Idea Board Hub.

Table of Contents

Getting Started

To access the Idea Board Hub, navigate to the Scheduler section in your Viraly dashboard. You’ll see three navigation options in the left sidebar:

  • Ideas (lightbulb icon) – Your visual board for organizing content ideas
  • Templates (document icon) – Pre-written post templates you can customize
  • Feeds (RSS icon with plus button) – RSS feed reader for content curation

Click any of these options to switch between tools. The interface remains consistent across all three, with the main sidebar always visible for quick navigation. On mobile devices, these options appear as horizontal tabs at the top of the screen.

When you click the plus icon next to Feeds, you’ll see a dropdown menu with three options: Add Feed, Explore Feeds, and Add Collection.

💡 Tip: All content in the Idea Board Hub is scoped to your current social set. Switch social sets using the selector at the bottom of the sidebar to organize content for different brands or clients.

Ideas Board

What are Idea Boards?

Idea Boards work like a digital kanban board for your content. Each board represents a category, campaign, or stage in your content workflow. Within each board, you create idea cards containing text, images, videos, or documents that you’ll eventually turn into social media posts.

Common board setups include:

  • Content stages: “Ideas,” “In Progress,” “Ready to Post,” “Posted”
  • Content types: “Educational,” “Promotional,” “Behind the Scenes,” “User Generated”
  • Campaigns: “Summer Sale,” “Product Launch,” “Holiday Content”
  • Platforms: “Instagram Ideas,” “LinkedIn Ideas,” “Twitter Threads”

Creating Your First Board

When you first access the Ideas section, you’ll see an empty state prompting you to create your first board. Here’s how:

  1. Click the Create Board button
  2. Enter a board name (for example, “Content Ideas”)
  3. Add an optional description to clarify the board’s purpose
  4. Click Create to save your board

Your new board appears as a vertical column. Each board displays its name, description, and a count of ideas it contains. Create as many boards as you need to organize your workflow.

💡 Tip: Start with 3-4 boards maximum. You can always add more later as your workflow evolves.

Adding Ideas to Boards

To create an idea, click the New Idea button at the bottom of any board, or click the plus icon in the board header. This opens the “Create New Idea” modal with the following fields:

Basic Fields

  • Title (required) – A short headline for your idea at the top of the modal
  • Board – Dropdown selector below the title (defaults to “Unassigned” if you haven’t selected a board)
  • Caption (optional) – Large text area on the right side for your full post text, up to 2,200 characters. The character counter displays in the top-right corner of this field (e.g., “394 / 2200”)

Adding Media

Ideas support multiple media attachments:

  • Photos – JPG, PNG, GIF, WebP formats
  • Videos – MP4, MOV, AVI formats with thumbnail preview
  • Documents – PDF and other document types

The media upload area appears on the left side of the modal. Add media in three ways:

  1. Drag and drop files directly onto the dashed border area
  2. Click the “Drag & drop or select a file” area to browse your computer
  3. Click Select from Library button below the upload area to choose from your media library

Formatting Tools

At the bottom right of the caption field, you’ll find two formatting buttons:

  • Hashtag button (#) – Insert saved hashtag lists at your cursor position
  • Emoji picker button – Add emojis without leaving the modal

Saving Your Idea

At the bottom of the modal, you have two buttons:

  • Create Post (white/outline button on the left) – Saves the idea and immediately opens the post composer with your content pre-filled
  • Save Idea (pink button on the right) – Saves the idea to your selected board for later use

Organizing Your Ideas

Moving Ideas Between Boards

Move ideas between boards using drag and drop or the move menu:

Drag and Drop Method:

  1. Click and hold an idea card
  2. Drag it to another board column
  3. Release to drop it into the new board

Menu Method:

  1. Hover over an idea card to reveal the three-dot menu
  2. Click the menu and select Move to Board
  3. Choose the destination board from the submenu

Reordering Ideas and Boards

Change the order of ideas within a board by dragging them up or down. Reorder entire boards by dragging their headers left or right. Your new arrangement saves automatically.

Editing and Deleting Ideas

Click any idea card to open the edit modal, where you can update all fields. To delete an idea:

  1. Click the three-dot menu on the idea card
  2. Select Delete
  3. Confirm the deletion in the dialog

⚠️ Warning: Deleting an idea is permanent and cannot be undone. The idea and its attachments will be removed from the board.

Using Ideas to Create Posts

When you’re ready to turn an idea into a post, you have two options:

Option 1: Quick Post Creation

  1. Hover over an idea card
  2. Click the three-dot menu
  3. Select Create Post

The post composer opens with your idea’s caption and all media attachments already loaded. Make any final edits and schedule or publish your post.

Option 2: Edit Then Create

  1. Click an idea card to open the edit modal
  2. Make any changes to the content
  3. Click Create Post at the bottom

This saves your edits to the idea first, then opens the composer.

AI-Powered Idea Generation

If you’re stuck for content ideas, use the AI idea generator:

  1. Click the Generate Ideas button (sparkle icon) in the toolbar
  2. Describe your business in the first field
  3. Describe your target audience in the second field
  4. Click Generate Ideas

The AI generates a content idea based on your inputs. If you don’t like it, click Try Another to generate a new idea. Click Use It to insert the idea into your caption field.

💡 Tip: Be specific in your business and audience descriptions. “Organic skincare for sensitive skin” works better than “beauty products.”

Content Templates

What are Templates?

Templates are pre-written post formats designed for specific types of content. Each template includes placeholder text you can customize with your own information. Templates help you maintain consistent posting quality and overcome writer’s block.

Browsing Template Categories

Viraly includes templates across 10 categories:

  • Tip – Share advice, hacks, or insights
  • Question – Engage your audience with questions
  • List – Numbered or bulleted list posts
  • Story – Personal narratives and experiences
  • Opinion – Share your perspective on industry topics
  • Tutorial – Step-by-step how-to content
  • Case Study – Share results and learnings
  • Behind-the-scenes – Show your process or team
  • Inspiration – Motivational and uplifting content
  • Announcement – Product launches, updates, news

At the top of the Templates page, you’ll see category filter tabs displayed as horizontal pills (All, Tip, Question, List, Story, etc.). Click any category to filter the templates, or select All to see everything. Below the filters, template cards appear in a grid layout, each showing an icon, title, description, and category tag.

Using a Template

To use a template:

  1. Click any template card to open the detail view
  2. Review the full template content and structure
  3. Choose an action:
    • Copy – Copies the template text to your clipboard
    • Use Template – Opens the post composer with the template pre-filled

When you click “Use Template,” the post composer opens with the template content pre-filled. You’ll see a success message “Template loaded! Customize and schedule your post” at the top. The template text appears in the post caption field with placeholder text in {{double brackets}}. Replace these placeholders with your specific information.

For example:

Template: “Pro tip: {{your main tip or insight}}”

Your version: “Pro tip: Schedule posts in batches to save 5 hours per week”

Template Best Practices

  • Customize thoroughly – Replace all placeholders and make the template sound like your brand voice
  • Add your own flair – Include emojis, line breaks, and formatting that matches your style
  • Save variations – If you modify a template significantly, save it as an idea for reuse
  • Mix and match – Combine elements from multiple templates to create unique posts
  • Test different categories – Try templates outside your usual content types to diversify your feed

💡 Tip: Templates work great for maintaining consistency during busy periods or when multiple team members are creating content.

RSS Feeds

What are RSS Feeds?

RSS feeds let you subscribe to content from blogs, news sites, and other publishers. Instead of visiting multiple websites, you can read new articles in one place and quickly turn relevant content into social media posts with proper attribution.

Setting Up Your First Feed

Adding Feeds Manually

To add an RSS feed:

  1. Navigate to the Feeds section
  2. Click the plus icon next to Feeds in the sidebar
  3. Select Add Feed
  4. Fill in the feed details:
    • Feed Name – How you’ll identify this feed (e.g., “TechCrunch”)
    • Feed URL – The RSS feed URL (usually ends in /feed or /rss)
    • Feed Type – Choose RSS or Atom (RSS works for most feeds)
    • Description – Optional notes about the feed
  5. Click Add Feed

💡 Tip: To find a website’s RSS feed, look for an RSS icon in the footer or try adding /feed or /rss to the end of the URL.

Using the Explore Feeds Library

Viraly includes 50+ curated feeds across 5 categories. To add feeds from the library:

  1. Click the plus icon next to Feeds in the sidebar
  2. Select Explore Feeds from the dropdown menu
  3. The “Explore Feeds” modal opens, showing category tabs at the top (Tech, Design & Development, Marketing & Business, News & Media, Science & Learning)
  4. Click any category tab to filter the feeds. Below the tabs, feed cards appear in a two-column grid. Each card shows:
    • Feed icon and name
    • Brief description of the feed
    • RSS feed URL
    • Plus button on the right to add the feed
  5. Click the plus button on any feed card to add it to your feeds list

The feed appears in your sidebar immediately and begins fetching content.

Organizing Feeds with Collections

Collections help you group related feeds together, similar to folders. To create a collection:

  1. Click the plus icon next to Feeds in the sidebar, or click New Collection in the top-right corner of the RSS Feeds page
  2. Select Add Collection from the dropdown menu (if using the plus icon)
  3. In the “Create Feed Collection” modal, enter a name (e.g., “Tech News” or “Design Inspiration”). The placeholder text suggests examples like “Tech News, Design Inspiration”
  4. Optionally add a description in the second field
  5. Click the Create Collection button

Move feeds into collections by:

  1. Hovering over a feed in the sidebar
  2. Clicking the three-dot menu
  3. Selecting Move to
  4. Choosing the destination collection

You can rename or delete collections using the three-dot menu next to the collection name.

⚠️ Warning: Deleting a collection also deletes all feeds within it. Move important feeds out before deleting a collection.

Working with Feed Content

Browsing Feed Items

Click any feed in the sidebar to view its content. At the top of the main area, you’ll see the feed name with its icon, the “Last refreshed” timestamp, and a Refresh button on the right. In the top-right corner of the page, there’s a New Collection button for creating feed collections.

Each feed item card displays:

  • Featured image on the left (when available)
  • Article title
  • Article excerpt or description
  • Author name and publication date (e.g., “Neil Patel • 2 days ago”)
  • Three action buttons on the right: View, Create Post, and Save as Idea

Feed items load 20 at a time. Scroll down to see more items automatically.

Creating Posts from Feed Items

To quickly share a feed item:

  1. Click the Create Post button on any feed item
  2. The post composer opens with formatted content:
    Article Title

    Article Description

    Source Link

  3. Edit the content and add your commentary
  4. Schedule or publish your post

💡 Tip: Always add your own perspective when sharing others’ content. Explain why it’s relevant to your audience or what key takeaway they should notice.

Saving Feed Items as Ideas

If you want to save an article for later or add more context before posting:

  1. Click the Save as Idea button on the feed item
  2. The idea modal opens immediately with:
    • Title from the article
    • Description as the caption
    • Source link included
    • Featured image (if available, downloads automatically)
    • Notes indicating which feed it came from
  3. Make any edits you want
  4. Click Save Idea or Create Post

Saved images are automatically added to your media library for future use.

Refreshing Feeds

Feeds check for new content periodically. To manually refresh a feed:

  1. Click on a feed in the sidebar to view its content
  2. Look at the top of the main content area for the Refresh button (located on the right side of the feed header)
  3. Click the Refresh button and wait for it to complete (indicated by a spinning icon)

The “Last refreshed” timestamp appears below the feed name, showing when the feed was last updated (e.g., “Last refreshed 11/13/2025, 10:58:35 AM”).

Curated Feed Library Details

The Explore Feeds library includes these popular sources:

Tech (9 feeds)

  • TechCrunch – Startup and technology news
  • The Verge – Technology, science, and culture
  • Ars Technica – In-depth technology analysis
  • Hacker News – Tech community discussions
  • MIT Technology Review – Emerging technology
  • Wired – Technology and innovation
  • CNET – Product reviews and tech news
  • Engadget – Consumer electronics
  • ZDNet – Technology and business

Design & Development (7 feeds)

  • CSS-Tricks – Web design tips
  • Smashing Magazine – Design and development
  • Designer News – Design community
  • Codrops – Web tutorials
  • Dev.to – Developer community
  • SitePoint – Web development tutorials
  • Web Designer Depot – Design inspiration

Marketing & Business (8 feeds)

  • HubSpot Marketing – Marketing strategy
  • Neil Patel – SEO and digital marketing
  • Content Marketing Institute – Content best practices
  • Social Media Examiner – Social media how-tos
  • Marketing Land – Digital marketing news
  • Forbes Business – Business and entrepreneurship
  • Entrepreneur – Small business advice
  • Inc. Magazine – Business growth

News & Media (9 feeds)

  • Associated Press – Breaking news
  • BBC News – World news
  • Reuters – Global news
  • Fox News – News and commentary
  • CNN – Breaking news
  • ABC News – Top stories
  • CBS News – National news
  • The Wall Street Journal – Business news
  • Bloomberg – Financial news

Science & Learning (10 feeds)

  • Nature – International science journal
  • Scientific American – Science discoveries
  • Quanta Magazine – Science and math
  • Brain Pickings – Literature and philosophy
  • Wait But Why – Long-form explorations
  • NASA – Space and aeronautics
  • National Geographic – Science and exploration
  • Science Daily – Research news
  • Popular Science – Science for everyone
  • Smithsonian Magazine – History and culture

Common Workflows

Weekly Content Planning Workflow

  1. Monday: Review RSS feeds for trending topics and save 3-5 items as ideas
  2. Tuesday: Browse templates and create 5-7 posts for the week using different template categories
  3. Wednesday: Review your Ideas board and move ready ideas to “This Week” board
  4. Thursday: Create posts from your “This Week” board and schedule them
  5. Friday: Brainstorm new ideas for next week and add them to your Ideas board

Content Inspiration Workflow

  1. Open the RSS Feeds section
  2. Skim headlines from 3-4 industry feeds
  3. Save interesting articles as ideas (not posts yet)
  4. Switch to Ideas board and add your commentary to each saved item
  5. Choose the best 1-2 ideas and create posts with your unique perspective

RSS to Post Workflow

  1. Find a relevant article in your feeds
  2. Click Save as Idea to open the idea modal
  3. Wait for the image to finish uploading (if present)
  4. Add your commentary to the caption explaining why this matters
  5. Click Create Post
  6. Schedule the post in your composer

Template Customization Workflow

  1. Browse Templates and find one that fits your content goal
  2. Click Use Template to open the composer
  3. Replace all {{placeholders}} with your specific content
  4. Add relevant hashtags using the hashtag picker
  5. Upload media from your library or computer
  6. Save as a draft or schedule immediately

Tips & Best Practices

Organizing Boards Effectively

  • Start simple. Begin with 3-4 boards like “Ideas,” “In Progress,” and “Ready to Post”
  • Use status-based boards. Move ideas through stages rather than organizing by topic
  • Archive regularly. Create an “Archive” board for old ideas you don’t want to delete
  • Review weekly. Set a recurring calendar reminder to review and clean up your boards

Naming Conventions

  • Be specific. “Q1 Product Launch” is better than “Launch Ideas”
  • Use dates. Include month or quarter in board names for time-sensitive content
  • Keep it short. Board names should fit on one line in the sidebar
  • Use emoji sparingly. One emoji per board name maximum for visual scanning

When to Use Ideas vs. Templates vs. Feeds

  • Use Ideas when: You have original thoughts you want to capture and develop over time
  • Use Templates when: You need to create content quickly or want to try a new content format
  • Use Feeds when: You want to curate and comment on industry news or trending topics
  • Combine them: Save a feed item as an idea, then use a template format to structure your commentary

Keeping Feeds Relevant

  • Audit quarterly. Remove feeds you haven’t used in 3 months
  • Organize by priority. Put your most-referenced feeds in a “Daily Check” collection
  • Don’t over-subscribe. 10-15 feeds is typically enough to stay informed without overwhelm
  • Refresh strategically. Manual refresh on Monday mornings to catch weekend content

Content Curation Strategies

  • Follow the 5-3-2 rule. For every 10 posts: 5 curated (feeds), 3 original (ideas), 2 promotional
  • Always add value. Never just share a link. Add your take or a key insight
  • Credit sources. Always include the original source link when sharing curated content
  • Batch your work. Spend 30 minutes once a week reviewing feeds instead of daily
  • Save more than you post. Not every saved idea needs to become a post. It’s OK to be selective

💡 Pro Tip: Create an “Inspiration” board where you save interesting posts from your feeds without the pressure to share them. Review this board when you need creative fuel.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many boards can I create?

There’s no limit to the number of boards you can create. However, we recommend starting with 3-5 boards to keep your workflow manageable. You can always add more as your needs evolve.

Can I share boards with team members?

Ideas boards are currently scoped to your social set. All team members with access to a social set can view and edit the boards within that set. Individual board sharing is not currently supported.

What RSS feeds are supported?

Viraly supports both RSS 2.0 and Atom feed formats, which covers the vast majority of blogs and news sites. If a feed doesn’t work, the site may be using a non-standard format or may require authentication.

How often do feeds refresh?

Feeds automatically check for new content periodically throughout the day. You can also manually refresh any feed at any time using the Refresh button in the feed header. The last refresh time is displayed below the feed name.

Can I delete ideas permanently?

Yes, deleting an idea removes it permanently from your board. This action cannot be undone. However, any media attachments you added to the idea remain in your media library and are not deleted.

Do ideas count against my post limit?

No. Ideas are stored separately from posts and do not count toward your account’s post limit. You can create unlimited ideas regardless of your plan. Only published or scheduled posts count toward your limit.

Can I use templates on mobile?

Yes. The Idea Board Hub is fully responsive and works on mobile devices. The interface adapts to smaller screens with horizontal navigation tabs and touch-optimized controls.

What happens to feed images when I save as idea?

When you save a feed item as an idea, Viraly downloads the featured image from the source website and uploads it to your account’s media library. This ensures the image remains available even if the source removes it, and you can reuse it in other posts. Videos from feeds are not downloaded automatically.

Start Curating Content Today

The Idea Board Hub gives you three powerful tools for managing your social media content pipeline. Whether you’re capturing original ideas, customizing proven templates, or sharing industry news, everything connects directly to your post composer for seamless publishing.

Start by creating your first idea board or adding a few RSS feeds from the Explore library. Experiment with different workflows to find what works best for your content schedule. The more you use these tools, the easier it becomes to maintain a consistent posting schedule without the stress of starting from scratch every time.

Ready to get organized? Head to your Scheduler and click on Ideas, Templates, or Feeds to begin.