Types
your content, finally defined as architecture — not labels
How do I define the distinct content types my platform needs so each one has the right structure, fields, and display rules?
You don't have a content problem.
You have a definition problem.
You treated every record as the same thing with a different title — events, listings, articles, and profiles all crammed into one generic template — so nothing displays optimally and your data can't support filtering, relationships, or workflows. Familiar?
You spin up a new type for every need. Every new content idea gets a brand-new type, instead of asking whether an existing type plus one field could carry it — so the model sprawls before a single record exists.
You let the platform's defaults decide. You accept whatever record types Brilliant Directories ships out of the box, instead of specifying what your business actually publishes — so your model is someone else's.
You make categories do a type's job. You publish everything as a generic record and lean on categories to tell them apart — which breaks the per-type templates, fields, and permissions that should have existed from the start.
You add fields after records exist. Fields accrete onto types as content gets created, so the field set reflects whoever published first — not what every record of that type actually requires.
From labels to real content architecture
"I assumed content types were just labels — a listing is a listing, an event is an event — and the platform would figure out the rest."
"Every record type has a census of what exists, a boundary where it ends, a spec of its fields, lifecycle, and permissions, and a display contract for how it renders — and getting those four right up front saved me weeks of retroactive cleanup."
The shift: content type design isn't labeling. It's architecture — and undone architecture debt compounds with every record you publish.
You don't just watch lessons.
You leave with 12 real artifacts.
Working documents you actually use — not generic taxonomy theory. By the end they add up to a defined content model — every type specified, fielded, and given a display contract.
Content Type Inventory
Every type with its purpose, audience, volume, and a uniqueness test applied.
Type Boundary Framework
Inclusion and exclusion criteria, edge-case rules, and a cross-reference map per type.
Type Specification Templates
A six-section spec completed for every content type you run.
Directory Listing Type System
Type taxonomy, shared foundation, per-type field extensions, and gating rules.
Field Architecture Document
A complete field specification for every field in every type.
Content Relationship Map
Type-to-type relationships, cascading rules, and a gap analysis.
Content Status Engine
Status registries, transition maps, trigger docs, and automation rules per type.
Directory Custom Field Framework
Category-specific field groups, verification workflows, and a priority roadmap.
Content Display Architecture
Four-zone template wireframes with conversion goals for every type.
Audience-Based Visibility Model
A four-tier visibility matrix, field-level rules, and upgrade gates per type.
Conversion-Oriented Layouts
A five-principle audit and an optimized template for every major type.
Directory Listing Display System
Three-surface specs — card, detail, dashboard — with conversion architecture.
Three moves: define what exists → spec the fields → design the display
Definitions
What existsThe distinct content or listing types your platform actually needs.
- Census Inventory every type by purpose, audience, volume
- Distinguish Draw boundaries with inclusion / exclusion rules
- Document Write a six-section spec for each type
- Apply Build your directory / niche listing type system
Data
The fieldsThe fields, attributes, and behaviors each type requires.
- Blueprint Architect every field — type, validation, order
- Relate Map type-to-type relationships and cascades
- Lifecycle Build a status engine with transition rules
- Apply Add your directory / niche custom fields
Display
How it rendersHow each type renders on the front end for different audiences.
- Template Wireframe a four-zone display per type
- Filter Set audience-based field visibility
- Optimize Run the five-principle conversion audit
- Apply Build your directory / niche display system
More than videos —
a learning system
Every lesson lives in a platform built to help you actually absorb, apply, and return to the work.
AI Chat per lesson
Ask questions and pull key points, action items, and reflections from any lesson.
Searchable transcripts
The full text of every video — search it, scan it, jump straight to the part you need.
Highlights
Mark the passages that matter and filter the transcript down to just your highlights.
Bookmarks
Save the exact moments you'll want to come back to and reopen them in a click.
Notes
Keep personal notes saved right inside each lesson, exactly where you wrote them.
Playlists
Build custom collections of lessons and sequence the path that fits you.
Certificate
Auto-issued the moment you complete every lesson in the course.
Podcast mode
Listen to the course as audio in any podcast app — learn on the move.
Video controls
Closed captions, speed controls, picture-in-picture, and theatre mode — watch your way.
Favorites
Heart any lesson to pin it to your favorites for quick access later.
History & resume
Pick up exactly where you left off — your place is always saved.
Threaded comments
Discuss each lesson with other students in threaded conversations.
Is this course your right next step?
This is for you if…
- You have a platform with multiple content types and have never formally defined what separates one from another.
- You're pre-launch and want to configure your content types right the first time, before records exist.
- You've inherited a messy type model and want a systematic way to audit and clean it up.
- You have a listing form full of optional fields that members skip, and completion rates that keep dropping.
- You want real architectural artifacts — specs, boundaries, display contracts — not just taxonomy theory.
This is NOT for you if…
- You're publishing a simple blog or single-content-type site with no variation in record structure.
- You've already done formal type architecture — written specs, boundary definitions, and display contracts in place.
- You want a quick configuration tutorial — this is a structured architectural process (10–15 hours across 8–12 days).
- You want a how-to on a specific platform's admin panel rather than content type architecture principles.
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Three ways to go deeper
This course is one piece of a bigger system. Here's the whole map — and where you are on it.
University
Learn at your own paceThis course — full University access is $80 on its own.
Launchpad
Get the tools to execute-
Ebook$10narrative deep-dive
-
Checklists$15self-assessment diagnostic
-
Journal$20reflective application + AI prompts
-
Workbook$25full execution tracker
One of each — the full toolkit for this course is $70 on its own.
You're buying the University piece — the course, its platform, and the artifacts you produce. Bundle all three and save — see pricing below. Each column is also available à la carte: University $80, Launchpad $70, Events $280. See how we build →
Everything. Course price.
Lock in the full bundle today. Every piece ships to your account as it's built — and the price only goes up from here.
$430 value when complete
Everything, for the price of just the course.
- 12 lessons + AI Chat, transcripts, highlights, bookmarks
- Ebook + Checklists + Journal + Workbook shipping soon
- Workshop + Sprint + Challenge access shipping soon
- Certificate on completion
- Clinics included free — $20 each on their own
The price goes up as content ships — the founding price never comes back.
Not ready to commit? Attend our live workshops, sprints, and challenges for free — just show up. No signup, no credit card. If you like what you experience, the founding price locks in everything permanently.
Every piece below ships to your account as it's built — free, at your founding price:
- Types — 12 lessons Digital$80 valueLive now
- Ebook Digital$10 valueIncluded
- Checklists Digital$15 valueIncluded
- Journal + AI Prompts Digital$20 valueIncluded
- Workbook Digital$25 valueIncluded
- Workshop Events$40 valueIncluded
- Sprint Events$80 valueIncluded
- Challenge Events$160 valueIncluded
- Total value when complete$430You pay $80
↑ as the tools ship, the price rises
↑ as the live events go up, it rises again
Full $430 value, fully builtWhat ships when?+
- Week 1: Workshop Part A (courses 1–3) + Ebook ships.
- Week 2: Workshop Part B (courses 4–6) + video lessons go live + Checklists ship.
- Week 3: Sprint recordings + Journal ships.
- Week 4: Challenge recordings + Workbook ships.
Or start bigger — the same deal at every scope:
Course
1 course + tools + events
$80Pod
All 6 Structure courses
$320Pillar
All 36 Framework courses
$960University
All 324 courses
$4,320Same deal at every scope — everything included, price goes up as content ships. See How We Build →
Prefer one piece? Single University, Launchpad, or Events access. · See How We Build →
Founding Access — Types
Full bundle (University + Launchpad + Events) · $80 · pre-sale founding rate
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The first step of the Structure journey
Types is course 1 of 6 — the start of Structure. Define your content types first, because categories organize them, plans bundle them, forms collect their data, and widgets display them — every later layer needs to know what types exist.
You are here — define the content types.
You're not doing this alone
Every lesson has a discussion where you share your work and read how others approached the same prompt — so you see the patterns, not just your own answer.
“Post your experience, read two others, and notice the patterns.”
Per-pillar discussion forums are coming as the community grows.
Before you decide
Isn't a listing just a listing?+
No — events, articles, listings, and profiles each need different fields, lifecycles, and displays. Forcing them through one generic type means none of them render optimally and your data can't support filtering, relationships, or workflows.
Can't I just use more categories instead of more types?+
Categories organize records within a type — they can't give a record different fields, templates, or permissions. When you make categories do a type's job, every per-type behavior you wanted breaks.
Why define types before any records exist?+
Fields and boundaries set after content accumulates reflect whoever published first, not what every record needs — and retrofitting architecture onto thousands of live records is expensive. Defining first prevents weeks of cleanup.
Won't Brilliant Directories' built-in types cover it?+
Out-of-box types optimize for the general case. This teaches you to specify what your business actually publishes and extend the platform to fit — not bend your model to its defaults.
How much time does it really take?+
10–15 hours across 8–12 days, with deliberate gaps for stakeholder review and platform-side configuration between modules.
What do I actually walk away with?+
12 working artifacts — from a Content Type Inventory and Type Specification Templates to a Field Architecture Document and a Listing Display System.
How do I define the distinct content types my platform needs — so each one has the right structure, fields, and display rules?
Stop treating every record as the same thing. Define each type's census, boundary, spec, and display contract — before the data piles up.