Understanding SEO Variables
Link: https://support.brilliantdirectories.com/support/solutions/articles/12000022881
Overview
SEO variable names are variables that appear between percent signs (%) and are pre-processed before being output to the web page. Several formatting options control how a variable's value is displayed.
Percent Sign Formats
The examples below use the website_name variable, with a stored value of brilliant directories website (all lowercase).
Single Percent Sign
Format: %website_name%
The variable is output exactly as stored, in lowercase: brilliant directories website.
Single Percent Sign + First Capital Letter
Format: %Website_name%
Capitalizing the first letter of the variable name capitalizes the first letter of each word in the output: Brilliant Directories Website.
Double Percent Sign
Format: %%website_name%%
Wrapping the variable in double percent signs pluralizes the output.
Double Percent Sign + First Capital Letter
Format: %%Website_name%%
Combines both effects — the output is both pluralized and capitalized, following the same capitalization rule described above.
Triple Percent Sign
Format: %%%website_name%%%
The stored value is printed exactly as entered — capital letters remain capital, lowercase letters remain lowercase, with no automatic capitalization or pluralization applied.
Postfix Variable Parameters
Variable formats can be extended by postfixing them with a method: %variable_name~method%. Regular formatting (single, double, or triple percent signs) still applies when a method is used.
| Postfix | Effect |
|---|---|
~ao | Pre-processes the variable on the front end only, not for administrators. |
~as | Adds an apostrophe for possession (e.g., "women" becomes "women's"). |
~na | Displays the variable name in plain text instead of pre-processing it — %variable_name~na% displays as %variable_name% rather than its value. |
~ut | Pre-processes the variable and additionally strips special characters (e.g., slashes) to make the output URL-safe. |
Related Reading
The full list of available variables is covered in the "SEO Variables List" article.
Special Note Regarding Variable Names
SEO variable names should not match an existing database column name, since this creates a naming conflict. The following names should be avoided when naming a custom SEO variable:
type, old_filename, new_filename, updated_by, name, icon, keywords, order, group_name, database, first_name, last_name, email, company, phone_number, fax_number, address1, address2, zip_code, zip, state_code, country_code, state_ln, country_ln, website, twitter, facebook, linkedin, blog, active, token, position, profession, additional, link, link_order, user_id, comments, data_name, data_type, form, form_name, search_results, h1, h2, post_type, widget, widget_name, status, title, section, filename, quote, experience, affiliation, awards, published, education, softwares, fees, about_me, featured, testimonial, preferred, work_experience, rep_matters, speaking_engagements, current_position, additional_fields, lat, lon, post_title, post_caption, post_category, post_image, post_price, post_tags, group_category, property_status, property_type, property_beds, property_baths, property_price
