Linking a text layer (or several of them, all in different documents) to an external .txt file

[ericf80118809]

When building campaigns at scale, it would be incredibly useful to be able to link multiple text layers (and layouts) to a single edit point — a basic .txt file. It's already possible in InDesign, but it could be even more useful if implemented simply, i.e. making it behave just like any other linked smart object.

The variables feature that's been available for a while is finnicky and easy to break, which makes it impractical. On the other hand, designers, particularly those who use design systems that take advantage of Photoshop's existing linked smart-object feature, would greatly benefit! Desktop, tablet, mobile, and all the banners, and the social posts, and the emails, and the brochures, and on and on — all linked to the same headline.txt file. It'd be glorious.

Surely something so simple could be added easily?

[Myra Ferguson]

Try creating the text in Photoshop and adding it to your Creative Cloud library (you can drag it there). Then you can use that same text in multiple documents by dragging it out from your Creative Cloud library.

If you need to make a change to the text, then you can open the text from the Creative Cloud library by double-clicking on it. When you save it, other documents that have that linked asset will show up with an icon of a yellow triangle and exclamation mark over the cloud icon in the thumbnail. Right-click on it and select Update Modified Content.

[ericf80118809]

Thanks Myra, this is something we're already doing, and it gets the job done well enough.

That said, it doesn't help when text needs to reflow, or formatting needs to be different (not counting color changes or things that can be done with an fx or adjustment layer) -- these are really important  considerations that are missing with this setup, that could be solved with a simple link to a text doc.

[digi_5702]

I totally get what you mean. Having a simple way to link text layers in Photoshop to an external .txt file would save so much time, especially when working on large campaigns with multiple assets. The variables feature does feel clunky, and it’s easy to mess up. InDesign handles this kind of linking pretty smoothly, so it would be great if Photoshop offered something similar. Definitely feels like a feature a lot of designers could benefit from.

[Trevor.Dennis]

Check out Data Sets.

[Stephen Marsh]

@Trevor.Dennis - That was my first thought, however, @ericf80118809 mentioned that Photoshop Variables were clunky for this.

This leaves scripting as an alternative until such a new feature is possibly added as per this feature request.