I made some changes to content formatting for the Zapier workflow that pulls in my Untappd check-ins/reviews to my website. My original format attempted to duplicate some of the ways that Untappd displays information on a check-in. I wasn't satisfied with the way the content was organized and formatted, but at the time didn't have any good ideas on what to do.
But after thinking about it this week, I have decided that the information should be displayed more like a short narrative. I had all the data elements I needed. I re-arranged them into paragraphs with links back to the major elements -- brewery, venue, brewery website, beer name, etc. -- available via the Untappd API.
The Orlando Brewing’s I-4 IPA review is an example of the original formatting. The Woodland Empire Ale Craft’s Empowered Hazy IPA (2018) is an example of the new formatting.
The content feels more like a regular post and less like a shopping list. The phrasing still feels a bit mechanical but I think it's an improvement over the original formatting.
The Zap template code for the body of the post:
<p>I am in <a href="{{29756616__venue__foursquare__foursquare_url}}">{{29756616__venue__venue_name}}</a>, drinking <a href="https://untappd.com/b/{{29756616__beer__beer_slug}}/{{29756616__beer__bid}}" rel="nofollow">{{29756616__beer__beer_name}}</a> by <a href="https://untappd.com/w/{{29756616__beer__brewery__brewery_slug}}/{{29756616__beer__brewery__brewery_id}}" rel="nofollow">{{29756616__brewery__brewery_name}}</a>. <a href="{{29756616__beer__brewery__contact__url}}"> {{29756616__brewery__brewery_name}}</a> is a {{29756616__beer__brewery__brewery_type}} in {{29756616__beer__brewery__location__brewery_city}}, {{29756616__brewery__location__brewery_state}}. {{29756616__beer__beer_name}} style is {{29756616__beer__beer_style}}, with an ABV of {{29756616__beer__beer_abv}}% and IBU of {{29756616__beer__beer_ibu}}. I gave {{29756616__beer__beer_name}} a {{29756616__rating_score}} on <a href="https://untappd.com/user/{{29756616__user__user_name}}/checkin/{{29756616__checkin_id}}" class="u-syndication syn-link" rel="syndication nofollow">Untappd's</a> 5 point rating system.</p>
<p>
{{29756616__checkin_comment}}</p>
<h2>Brewer's notes</h2>
<p>{{29756616__beer__beer_description}}</p>
<p> {{29756616__beer__brewery__brewery_description}}</p>
<p><link ref="https://untappd.com/user/{{29756616__user__user_name}}/checkin/{{29756616__checkin_id}}" class="u-syndication syn-link" rel="syndication nofollow">
</p>
