This feature’s not a big deal, but can be kind of nice.

When sharing written materials or giving assignments to clients, it’s often handy to reference certain files or other media as part of the content.

For a long time, CoachAccountable has supported embedding videos and other media right into your Worksheets and other documents.  (In fact, if you’re curious about THIS topic go check out THAT first… because that’s what you’ll probably want 90% of the time!)

But SOMETIMES the thing you want to reference is a file that just doesn’t lend itself to embedding (like a spreadsheet, or PDF), and OFTEN, that something is a file that you’ve shared with them (be it from your Library, as part of a Course, or even just as a one-off).

For those cases, it’s workable (but admittedly kind of clunky) to say “Please go find such-and-such file in your Files tab…”  Better instead to have a button that takes your clients right to the file you want them to access, and have it open right there with no need to jump away from the Worksheet/Whiteboard/etc. at hand.

Linking to a shared file is super easy.  Just like for embedding videos and other media, click the “Embed Media” button on the WYSIWYG toolbar:

The one you seek is the 4th in from the right!

In the pop up that appears, choose the 3rd option, “Link to an already-shared File”:

It’s vital to make sure the title matches that of a file already shared!

Linking to files is done by title of the file.  Though you can freely type one in, the system will offer suggestions of files you might wish to link to.  When composing on a specific client’s Client Page, these will be the very files that are already shared with that client.  When composing within your Library, these will be the Library Files that you have.

As the cautionary red text states, you must link to a file that matches the name of one already shared, otherwise it will be a broken link.  Thanks to the suggestions this is easy to get right when on a Client Page.  However if you’re linking to some file within a template from your Library, (say a Worksheet Template that’s not yet assigned to any specific client), you’ll need to make certain that that file will have already been shared with a given client by the time that client sees that template.

Once you’ve chosen a file and customized the button text however you like ([fileTitle] is a magic tag that works just as you’d expect it), your embed will be inserted as a button:

Clicking the button is a shortcut to going to the Files tab, finding the right file, and double clicking it. Nice!

And that’s all there is to it!  When your client clicks on that button, it’ll bring up the file as usual (provided that file exists in their Files tab).  This button will even work from an email: clicking will bring them to the system (having them log in as needed) and bring up the file once in.

Linking to files as a media embed works not just in Worksheets, but anything you compose using the WYSIWYG, including:

• Session Notes
• Whiteboards
• Journal Entries
• Client Messages

Like I said above this feature’s not a big deal, but can nevertheless enable a nice bit of seamless interaction that makes your clients’ experience that much more elegant.  Enjoy!