Template Permissions and Team Sharing

Control who can access, edit, and use your templates with Marq's flexible permission system.

Effective template sharing is crucial for maintaining brand consistency while enabling team collaboration. This guide covers everything you need to know about managing template permissions, organizing templates for teams, and ensuring the right people have access to the right templates.

What You'll Learn

• ✅ Understanding permission levels and what each allows
• ✅ Setting up team access for templates
• ✅ Organizing templates with categories and tags
• ✅ Managing template permissions at scale
• ✅ Best practices for template governance

Understanding Permission Levels

Permission Types Explained

View Only:

• Users can see the template in their library
• Cannot create new documents from the template
• Cannot edit template structure or content
• Useful for reference templates or restricted content

Users:

• Users can modify template structure and smart fields
• Can update template content and design
• Cannot delete the template or change permissions
• Ideal for design team members and content creators

Admin:

• Full control including deletion and permission management
• Can change sharing settings and template ownership
• Can archive or permanently remove templates
• Reserved for template managers and administrators

Setting Up Team Access

Basic Template Sharing

1. Navigate to your Templates section
2. Find your template and click the three-dot menu
3. Select "Manage Permissions"
4. Add team members or groups:
   • Search by name or email address
   • Select appropriate permission level
   • Add optional message explaining template purpose
5. Set default permissions for new team members
6. Click "Save Changes"

Group-Based Sharing

Create User Groups for Efficient Management:

• Create different groups in the Admin Settings>Users, and add users to those groups to share content to everyone in that particular group.

• Users can be in multiple different groups, and the characteristics of those groups and how you want to segment users is up to you.
• You can also share with all users on your account by sharing with your team. The name of your team was set when you first visited the admin settings, and can be viewed in the Users tab. 

Advanced Sharing Scenarios

Campaign-Specific Access:

• Create temporary groups for specific campaigns
• Grant time-limited access to external contractors
• Use Creative Studio scheduling to automate access removal

Regional or Department-Based Sharing:

• Set up geographical template libraries
• Create department-specific template collections
• Manage compliance requirements with restricted access

Client or External Sharing:

• Provide View Only access for client approval processes
• Create client-specific template collections
• Use branded sharing links for external collaboration

Organizing Templates with Categories and Tags

Creating Effective Categories

Primary Categories:

• Marketing Materials
• Sales Collateral
• Event Materials
• Social Media Templates
• Internal Communications
• Brand Guidelines

Secondary Categories:

• By format (Instagram Post, Letter Size, Banner)
• By audience (Customer-facing, Internal, Partner)
• By campaign (Product Launch, Holiday, Quarterly)
• By department (HR, Sales, Marketing, Support)

Strategic Tagging System

Format Tags:

• "instagram-story", "facebook-post", "letter-size"
• "landscape", "portrait", "square"
• "print", "digital", "social-media"

Content Tags:

• "product-launch", "holiday", "webinar"
• "customer-facing", "internal", "partner"
• "urgent", "seasonal", "evergreen"

Workflow Tags:

• "needs-review", "approved", "draft"
• "high-priority", "standard", "low-priority"
• "template-v1", "template-v2", "current"

Tag Management Best Practices

Consistency Rules:

• Use lowercase with hyphens (not spaces)
• Create a tag dictionary for your team
• Regularly audit and clean up unused tags
• Establish tag approval processes for new categories

Hierarchical Organization:

marketing/
├── social-media/
│   ├── instagram/
│   ├── facebook/
│   └── linkedin/
├── print/
│   ├── brochures/
│   ├── flyers/
│   └── business-cards/
└── digital/
    ├── email/
    ├── web-banners/
    └── presentations/

Managing Permissions at Scale

Bulk Permission Updates

Using Creative Studio for Large-Scale Changes:

1. Filter templates by current permission settings
2. Select multiple templates using checkboxes
3. Choose "Update Permissions" from bulk actions
4. Apply new permission settings to all selected templates
5. Notify affected users of permission changes

Common Bulk Permission Scenarios:

• New team member onboarding
• Organizational restructuring
• Campaign launch coordination
• Security policy updates

Permission Inheritance

Template Collections:

• Set permissions at the collection level
• New templates inherit collection permissions
• Override individual template permissions as needed
• Maintain consistency across related templates

User Group Management:

• Add users to groups instead of individual templates
• Update group permissions to affect all members
• Create nested groups for complex organizations
• Use role-based access control principles

Template Governance Best Practices

Establishing Template Ownership

Primary Owner Responsibilities:

• Maintain template quality and accuracy
• Update content and design as needed
• Manage permissions and access requests
• Monitor template usage and performance

Backup Owner Assignment:

• Designate secondary owners for critical templates
• Cross-train team members on template management
• Document template maintenance procedures
• Establish succession planning for key templates

Access Review Processes

Monthly Access Reviews:

• Review all template permissions
• Remove access for departed team members
• Update permissions for role changes
• Archive unused or outdated templates

Quarterly Governance Audits:

• Assess template organization effectiveness
• Review tag and category systems
• Update permission policies as needed
• Gather feedback from template users

Compliance and Security

Brand Compliance:

• Restrict editing access for brand-critical templates
• Require approval for template modifications
• Monitor template usage for brand consistency
• Implement template version control

Security Considerations:

• Regular permission audits for sensitive templates
• Multi-factor authentication for admin access
• Secure sharing for external collaborations
• Data retention policies for archived templates

Troubleshooting Permission Issues

Common Permission Problems

Template Not Appearing:

• Check sharing permissions in template settings
• Verify user is in correct user group
• Confirm template is not archived
• Clear browser cache and refresh

Cannot Edit Template:

• Verify user has "Can Edit" or "Admin" permissions
• Check if template is locked or view-only
• Confirm user account is active and licensed
• Test permissions with different user account

Sharing Invitation Not Received:

• Check recipient's email address accuracy
• Verify invitation wasn't filtered to spam
• Confirm recipient has Marq account access
• Resend invitation from template sharing settings

Permission Debugging Steps

1. Check Template Status:
   • Verify template is published and active
   • Confirm template hasn't been archived
   • Check if template is scheduled for future access
2. Verify User Status:
   • Confirm user account is active
   • Check user's license and subscription status
   • Verify user is logged into correct account
3. Review Permission Chain:
   • Check individual template permissions
   • Verify user group memberships
   • Confirm permission inheritance settings
4. Test with Different User:
   • Try accessing template with admin account
   • Test permissions with different user roles
   • Compare working vs. non-working access patterns

Quick Setup Checklists

New Template Sharing Checklist:

• Template is finalized and tested
• Appropriate categories and tags applied
• Permission levels defined for different user types
• User groups created (if needed)
• Sharing invitations sent with clear instructions
• Access tested by sample users from each group

Team Onboarding Checklist:

• User groups established for different roles
• Template categories explained to new users
• Permission levels and what they allow documented
• Training provided on finding and using templates
• Contact information provided for template support

Regular Maintenance Checklist:

• Monthly permission audit completed
• Unused templates archived or removed
• Tag and category system updated
• User feedback collected and addressed
• Template ownership assignments current

Advanced Permission Strategies

Conditional Access Patterns

Time-Based Access:

• Seasonal templates available only during relevant periods
• Campaign materials accessible only during active campaigns
• Training templates available to new hires for specific duration

Role-Based Templates:

• Manager-only templates for sensitive communications
• Customer-facing templates for client-interaction roles
• Internal templates for employee communications

Project-Based Sharing:

• Temporary access for specific projects or campaigns
• Cross-functional team templates for collaboration
• External contractor access with automatic expiration

Next Steps

Master template organization with these additional resources:

1. Template Creation Basics → - Learn to create effective templates
2. Creative Studio Guide → - Advanced bulk management features
3. Troubleshooting Templates → - Solve common template issues

Effective template sharing starts with clear permissions and good organization. Set up your permission structure thoughtfully, and your team will have seamless access to the templates they need.