Introducing Canvas templates: Design once, apply everywhere

Introducing Canvas templates: Design once, apply everywhere

Greetings all!

We're happy to introduce Canvas templates, a Forms view enhancement that enables you to design form layouts just once and apply them seamlessly across multiple modules. 
 
Imagine you use five CRM modules (Contacts, Deals, Leads, and more), all sharing the same form design. Currently, you clone and map fields for each module separately, which works initially. The real problem appears when you need a correction. Since these forms aren't linked, every layout change must be repeated manually across all five modules. 
 
Canvas Templates solve this. 
 
Design one primary template and group modules that share the design. Any layout update automatically applies to all linked modules, making it easier to maintain consistency at scale. Create one design and apply it everywhere in just four steps. 



What you do

This Canvas update introduces a centralized template management system accessible through a new "Templates" tab under Canvas > Setup. You can now:
  1. Create a Template: Design your ideal form layout. You can start from a blank canvas or pick a pre-made template to save time.
  2. Map it to your modules: Choose which modules of your CRM should use this template — Contacts, Leads, Deals, whatever you need.
  3. Configure and customize: You can still style individual modules before finalizing, so it's consistent and flexible.
  4. Publish: Click Publish, and each module gets its own version of the template.

Key feature highlights

  1. Design once, deploy everywhere: Create a master form template, link multiple modules and layouts to it for unified management, and apply it across related modules.
  2. Consistent theme and layout: Break free from previous restrictions, whereby you could only clone forms within the same module. Changes made to the master template automatically reflect in all associated modules.
  3. Complete template control: Published templates display all associated views in the output footer. When necessary, you can delete individual associated views or remove entire templates—along with all linked views.
  4. Override styles within the template: For minor changes, make adjustments or apply styles for any specific module within the template. The core design remains shared; only the tweaks are module-specific.
  5. Unsync for independent form views: For major changes, unsync any associated view from the primary template. It instantly becomes an independent Canvas Form View that you can customize freely, while the remaining modules continue receiving updates from the template.

Canvas assignment for profiles

Once your templates are live, use Canvas Assignment to control which form view each profile sees by default. All profiles start on Standard View; assign them manually to whichever Canvas view fits their workflow. 
 
That covers Canvas Templates. Build once, reuse everywhere! Feel free to leave your thoughts as comments below. 
 
To learn more, refer to our help article Canvas Form View Templates where you'll find step-by-step guidance on creating your first template, assigning it to modules, and fine-tuning layouts per view. 

Info
Availability:
All DCs | All paid editions

Release status:
This enhancement is released to all customers of all DCs. 
Regards,
Fiona