---
schema_version: "1"
id: 5ec4ab20c9a8f91b46eb89e7e53a9dc525e83c8747aa42930fae5089c542a5d5
title: Template
collection: developer
version: current
locale: en-us
portal_url: https://docs.salesforce.com/developer/current/en-us/marketing-cloud/guides/mc-apis/asset_template.md
canonical_url: https://developer.salesforce.com/docs/marketing/marketing-cloud/guide/asset_template.html
source_site: developer.salesforce.com
content_type: documentation
content_hash: 9afda10e267b912ed7d1ff5424ff9672a738a108899366198d8010ad35af43b5
products:
  - Marketing Cloud Engagement APIs and Programmatic Languages
  - Marketing Cloud
---
# Template

Template designates another asset as a starting point for the current asset. The template acts as a fallback if blocks or slots in the asset aren't found in their corresponding attribute. For example, if the asset contains a slots placeholder but no slots attribute, and that asset has a template, the given slot in template.slots will be used, if found. Templates can also provide locking mechanism to prevent assets from using them as templates to modify specific sections of content.

You can only use a template within the `html` view inside a top level attribute views `object.views.html.template`.

Add a template to the asset as an object, under the `template` attribute. For example, this asset uses a template for the `html` view, with some changes to the content slots.

The template is pulled from an existing template asset and therefore has an ID attribute. When blocks are imported as existing blocks or when they are saved separately, they will also have an ID attribute, like `block1` in this example.

## Sample Asset with Template

```json
{
  "name": "NTO Welcome Series Email",
  "channels": {
    "email": true,
    "web": false
  },
  "views": {
    "html": {
      "template": {
        "id": 108494,
        "content": "<!DOCTYPE html><body><div><div>Some header content</div><div data-type=\"slot\" data-key=\"firstslot\"></div><br /><div data-type=\"slot\" data-key=\"secondslot\"></div></div></body></html>",
        "slots": {
          "firstslot": {
            "content": "<div data-type=\"block\" data-key=\"block1\"></div><div data-type=\"block\" data-key=\"block2\"></div>",
            "design": "<div>Drag blocks here to start editing them!</div>",
            "blocks": {
              "block1": {
                "content": "123",
                "design": "click here to start editing this block",
                "assetType": {
                  "name": "freeformblock",
                  "id": 195
                }
              },
              "block2": {
                "content": "234",
                "design": "click here to start editing this block",
                "assetType": {
                  "name": "htmlblock",
                  "id": 197
                }
              }
            }
          },
          "secondslot": {
            "content": "<div data-type=\"block\" data-key=\"block3\"></div><div data-type=\"block\" data-key=\"block4\"></div>",
            "design": "<div>Drag blocks here to start editing them!</div>",
            "minBlocks": 1,
            "maxBlocks": 1,
            "allowedBlocks": ["textblock"],
            "blocks": {
              "block3": {
                "superContent": "Some ampscript or custom markup or http://www.valid.url/likeThis",
                "content": "Some %%ampscript%% or !!!customMarkup or http://www.invalid.url/%%likeThis%%",
                "design": "click here to start editing this block",
                "assetType": {
                  "name": "textblock",
                  "id": 196
                }
              }
            }
          }
        },
        "assetType": {
          "name": "template",
          "id": 4
        }
      },
      "content": "<!DOCTYPE html><body><div><div>Some CHANGED header content</div><div data-type=\"slot\" data-key=\"firstslot\"></div><br /><div data-type=\"slot\" data-key=\"secondslot\"></div></div></body></html>",
      "slots": {
        "firstslot": {
          "content": "<div data-type=\"block\" data-key=\"block1\"></div><div data-type=\"block\" data-key=\"block2\"></div>",
          "design": "<div>Drag blocks here to start editing them!</div>",
          "blocks": {
            "block1": {
              "id": 456,
              "content": "CHANGED",
              "design": "click here to start editing this block",
              "assetType": {
                "name": "freeformblock",
                "id": 195
              }
            },
            "block2": {
              "content": "CHANGED",
              "design": "click here to start editing this block",
              "assetType": {
                "name": "htmlblock",
                "id": 197
              }
            }
          }
        },
        "secondslot": {
          "content": "<div data-type=\"block\" data-key=\"block3\"></div><div data-type=\"block\" data-key=\"block4\"></div>",
          "design": "<div>Drag blocks here to start editing them!</div>",
          "minBlocks": 1,
          "maxBlocks": 1,
          "allowedBlocks": ["textblock"],
          "blocks": {
            "block3": {
              "superContent": "Some CHANGED ampscript or custom markup or http://www.valid.url/likeThis",
              "content": "Some CHANGED %%ampscript%% or !!!customMarkup or http://www.invalid.url/%%likeThis%%",
              "design": "click here to start editing this block",
              "assetType": {
                "name": "textblock",
                "id": 196
              }
            }
          }
        }
      }
    },
    "text": {},
    "subjectline": {},
    "preheader": {}
  },
  "assetType": {
    "name": "templatebasedemail",
    "id": 207
  },
  "data": {
    "email": {
      "someEmailSpecificAttribute": 5
    }
  }
}
```

## Related Items

- [Asset Model](https://developer.salesforce.com/docs/marketing/marketing-cloud/guide/asset-model.md)
- [Asset Model Example](https://developer.salesforce.com/docs/marketing/marketing-cloud/guide/asset_model_examples.md)