There’s no doubt that Evernote is an incredible tool with a lot of uses. In fact, if you aren’t using it, you should be using Evernote to remember everything. . There is a lot of emphasis put on organizing notes in Evernote. However, there often isn’t a lot mentioned about the actual organization within notes. Evernote provides the basic tools in its simple text editing interface, but wouldn't it be nice to create more of a structured environment within Evernote? That is possible, but it’s not the easiest of tasks and is rather cumbersome. There’s an easier way – KustomNote.

KustomNote is a web app which connects to your Evernote account. It allows you to use and create templates for virtually anything you might need one for. These templates provide the structure that you need for organizing the content within your Evernote notes.

About KustomNote

http://youtu.be/zxrZN_iyUMA

Knowing about KustomNote isn’t necessarily crucial at all, but I’d like to share its history. KustomNote started in 2012 as an application competing for Evernote’s DevCup, which it won the Silver Cup in and an awesome cash prize. Since then KustomNote has continued to improve. KustomNote was founded by Hussein Ahmed. You can connect with him on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

Template Options And Features

KustomNote has an abundant amount of features, yet it remains very simple at the same time. The majority of these features lie in the templates themselves.

  • Default notebook per form template
  • Configurable and automatic tagging
  • Note title prefix and suffix
  • Including fields in note title
  • SmartFields
  • Set fields to be required
  • Preset values to select
  • Icon Stamps
  • Email reminders
  • Browse and use public templates

Default notebook per form template

evernote templates

Each template that you create in KustomNote has the ability to be added to a specific notebook. This allows future uses of the same template to automatically send the note to the specified Evernote notebook.

In addition, you can also check a box to choose the notebook when each note is created with that template.

Configurable and automatic tagging

evernote note templates

These are tags which you can set for templates that will always need that tag. Once set, KustomNote will apply them automatically for future forms of the same template.

Note title prefix and suffix

evernote note templates

This feature allows you to choose what text (if any) adheres to the beginning and/or end of the note title. This isn’t a requirement by any means, but it is a nice feature to be able to add.

Include specific fields in the note title

evernote note templates

This option is as simple as checking a box. Under the Note Fields section, you have an option to add any fields to the title.

SmartFields

This option is only available for the movie, music and Google Contact and Calendar categories at this time. However, the feature is pretty neat. SmartFields show up as an autocomplete field.

evernote custom templates

It may not seem like much after selecting the movie, but when you close the note you’re editing and open it back up to view it, you’ll see a beautifully designed snippet of the movie with an image, ratings, stars and links to IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes and Fandango.

evernote custom templates
evernote custom templates

The music SmartField is very similar. I was actually impressed by its database. I searched for an artist who I knew wasn't really popular and it was found, leading me to the conclusion that as long as the song is on iTunes, you’ll be able to add it.

To enable this for Google Contacts and Calendar, you must first connect your Google account to KustomNote – then you’re all set.

In my opinion, this gives Springpad some real competition. As of now, Springpad has the edge on the visual aspect of notes, especially with its exterior integration similar to SmartFields. But with SmartFields, you are able to bring that integration right into Evernote

Set fields to be required

Under the Note Fields section on the template editing page, there is a column titled Required with a checkbox on every row. When that checkbox is checked for certain rows, that information will then be required to filled out for that form to be complete.

Preset values to select

If you’re wanting multiple choice for a certain field, that is possible in KustomNote as well. This feature is under the Note Fields section. To use this, fill out the Title field (as always), then under Type choose Multiple choice options. You can then type in your choices in the next field over under Possible Values.

Icon Stamps

This feature isn't a “necessity,” but it does provide a nice level of customization. You’re able to choose from a pretty surprising amount of icons while editing the template.

Once you decide on one that fits your template, check out the final product.

Email reminders

I’ll be honest, I was pleasantly surprised when I saw that I can be reminded by email. I know it was stated as a feature before signing up, but I somehow looked over it – but I won’t anymore. Being able to set reminders about different things is an excellent feature for Evernote… I think we all can understand why without further explanation.

Browse and use public templates

Perhaps you don’t know where to start with making your own, or you just want to save time – both are great reasons to check out the public templates that are on KustomNote. Because there are so many uses for Evernote, there are a ton of awesome templates too. Perhaps you could even use this area as some inspiration for new ways to use Evernote, such as for business or crafts or education, or even fitness, as well as many others.

Once you found a template that you want to use, click Clone and it will be added to your templates. You can then edit and modify it to fit your needs.

Of course, you always have the option of creating your own template as well, so if you don’t find what you’re looking for in the public templates, don’t be afraid to start from scratch.

Integration Within Evernote

As of now, KustomNote is strictly web-based, at least the template acquisition and modification part of it is. Once the template is used in a note, it then becomes available in Evernote on all platforms (mobile, web and desktop). Even the visual part of the template can be edited in Evernote (this is different from the modification process in KustomNote, however).

evernote templates

Mobile-Optimized Website

KustomNote currently doesn’t have a mobile app, however, they’re website is optimized for mobile use, so you can still use it on the go. It might be slightly less convenient then an actual app, but it’s still a huge step above not having templates at all.

Current Drawbacks And Possibly Future Updates

Two of the current drawbacks have actually already been mentioned: Limited KustomNote use outside of the web app and no mobile app. Another one is that there is no offline access. So if you’re an Evernote Premium customer because you want or maybe even need offline access, KustomNote currently doesn't offer that.

Are these drawbacks going to always be drawbacks? The answer is hopefully not. Of course I can’t promise anything – I’m not the developer – but Evernote obviously saw something in this product since they have awarded it a total of $25,000. From what I’ve read, a mobile app and offline access is planned. What would really be nice is Evernote integrating these features directly into it’s apps on all platforms, but I haven’t heard any plans for that yet.

If you have more ideas that you’d like to suggest to KustomNote, you can do so on the Feedback page, also accessible by clicking the UserVoice “feedback & support” button on the right side of the screen.

Conclusion

Now that we’ve walked through all the features of KustomNote, I encourage you to try it. Is it 100% perfect? No, but what app is? The problem that KustomNote solves by organizing the interior portion of your notes is pretty impressive.

For further reading on Evernote check out the following articles:

We’ve also done an entire manual on it: How To Use Evernote: The Missing Manual

Do you use KustomNote? What feedback to you have about the tool? If not, go on and check it out, then report back to us how it’s improving your Evernote experience. If you prefer using Chrome web apps, KustomNote is also available in the Chrome Web Store.