---
title: "Creating and Managing Announcements in Announcements Carousel"
description: "A guide for editors of the Vitextra Announcements Carousel web part: how to open the SharePoint announcements list, add and edit announcements, format the body, attach files, set an expiration date, color and emoji."
url: https://vitextra.com/en/support/kb/10228
language: en
published: 2026-10-09
modified: 2026-10-10
products:
  - "Announcements Carousel"
author: "Lidija Reising"
tags: ["Announcements Carousel", "SharePoint announcements list", "add announcement", "edit announcement", "announcement expiration date", "announcement attachments", "color tag", "emoji", "Microsoft Lists", "Vitextra"]
---

# Creating and Managing Announcements in Announcements Carousel

A guide for editors of the Vitextra Announcements Carousel web part: how to open the SharePoint announcements list, add and edit announcements, format the body, attach files, set an expiration date, color and emoji.

## Introduction

The [Announcements Carousel](https://vitextra.com/en/products/announcements-carousel) web part does not have its own content storage. Every card it shows is an item in a standard SharePoint announcements list. To publish news on the page, editors work with this list in the familiar Microsoft Lists interface, and the web part picks up the changes automatically.

This article is for editors. It explains how to open the list, which fields of an announcement the web part uses, and how each field affects the card that readers see. If the web part has not been added to the page yet, start with [KB10208. Announcements Carousel: Getting Started](https://vitextra.com/en/support/kb/10208).

## Opening the Announcements List

There are three ways to open the list connected to the web part:

1. **The Open List button in the web part toolbar.** In Edit mode, select the web part and click **Open List** in the toolbar above it.
2. **The Open List link in the property pane.** Open the web part settings; the link is the first item in the **Data Source** group.
3. **Site contents.** Go to **Site contents** on your SharePoint site and open the list by name.

![The Open List button in the web part toolbar](https://static.vitextra.com/articles/10228/open-list-button-en.png)
*The Open List button in the web part toolbar*

📝 **Note**  
To add and edit announcements, you need at least **Contribute** (Edit) permissions for the list. Readers of the page only need read access.

## Adding a New Announcement

1. Open the announcements list.
2. Click **New** on the command bar.
3. Fill in the **Title** — it is required and is displayed as the card heading.
4. Enter the announcement text in the **Body** field.
5. If necessary, set the **Expires** date and attach files (see below).
6. Click **Save**.

![The new announcement form](https://static.vitextra.com/articles/10228/new-item-form-en.png)
*The new announcement form*

The new announcement appears in the web part the next time the page is loaded.

❗ **Important**  
If content approval is enabled for the list, a new announcement is created in the **Pending** status and is not shown to readers until it is approved. See [KB10230. Publishing Announcements with Content Approval](https://vitextra.com/en/support/kb/10230).

## How Announcement Fields Appear on the Card

The web part reads the following fields of a list item:

| Field | Where it appears | Web part option |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Title | Card heading | Always shown |
| Body | Main card text with formatting | Always shown |
| Attachments | List of file links under the text | **Attachments** |
| Expires | The announcement is hidden after this date; with the meta line on, the date is shown as "Expires …" | **Show author and date** (for the label) |
| Created By, Created | Meta line under the title | **Show author and date** |
| Color | Accent bar along the edge of the card | **Show color tag** |
| Emoji | Icon before the heading | **Show emoji** |

### Body Text

The **Body** field is a rich text field. Formatting is preserved on the card: bold and italic text, lists, links, and so on. Keep the text short: in the Carousel layout the card has limited space, and a long text forces readers to scroll.

💡 **Tip**  
Put the main point in the first sentence and move details to an attached document or a link to a news page. This keeps cards easy to read at a glance.

### Attachments

Files attached to an announcement are shown below the text as a list of links with a paper clip icon. Clicking a link opens the file in a new browser tab. Lists created from the web part have attachments enabled.

The attachments list is displayed when the **Attachments** option is turned on in the **Appearance** group of the property pane (on by default).

![Attachments on an announcement card](https://static.vitextra.com/articles/10228/card-attachments-en.png)
*Attachments on an announcement card*

### Expiration Date

The **Expires** field sets the date after which the announcement is no longer relevant. The web part shows the announcement through the end of the specified day and then hides it automatically — you do not have to delete or edit the item. Announcements without an expiration date are shown indefinitely.

💡 **Tip**  
Set an expiration date for every time-limited announcement — an event, a maintenance window, an enrollment deadline. The page stays up to date without manual cleanup, and the history remains in the list.

### Color Tag and Emoji

Items in a modern announcements list can have a color and an emoji. The web part shows the color as an accent bar along the edge of the card and the emoji before the heading. This helps readers tell categories of announcements apart at a glance: for example, red for urgent notices and green for events.

![Announcements with a color tag and emoji](https://static.vitextra.com/articles/10228/color-emoji-en.png)
*Announcements with a color tag and emoji*

📝 **Note**  
If a color or emoji is not set for an item, the corresponding element is simply not shown. Administrators can also hide them for all cards with the **Show color tag** and **Show emoji** options.

## Editing and Removing Announcements

To change an announcement, open it in the list, click **Edit**, make the changes and save. The web part shows the updated content the next time the page is loaded.

To remove an announcement from the page, you have three options:

- **Set an expiration date** in the past or today — the announcement disappears from the page but stays in the list.
- **Reject or unpublish it** if the list uses content approval.
- **Delete the item** — it goes to the site recycle bin.

❗ **Important**  
When the list has no announcements to show, the web part hides itself completely in Read mode. In Edit mode, it shows the message "There are no items to display" so you can see it is still on the page.

## Conclusion

Announcements are managed with the standard Microsoft Lists tools, so editors do not need to learn anything new. A title, a concise body, attachments when needed and an expiration date for time-limited news are all it takes to keep the carousel current. To learn how the web part selects and orders announcements, continue with [KB10229](https://vitextra.com/en/support/kb/10229).