On-Clone Placeholders in Clone Expert for Jira

Insert custom values into your templates at the moment of cloning

On-Clone placeholders let you personalize any Jira template before cloning, without modifying the original issues. They work similarly to variables: you define them directly inside template content, and Clone Expert asks you to fill in their values during the cloning process.

This feature is ideal when each workflow iteration requires slightly different information, such as a client name, new-hire details, version numbers, URLs, or dates.

What Are On-Clone Placeholders?

On-Clone placeholders are simple variables you add into any text field by wrapping a word in double curly braces:

{{NewHireName}}
{{ClientIndustry}}
{{GoLiveDate}}

They act as fill-in-the-blank fields that users complete during cloning. After the clone is created:

Every placeholder is replaced with the value you provided
If you leave a placeholder empty, it is removed from the resulting issue

On-Clone placeholders do not pull data from Jira fields. They are purely user-defined, flexible text variables designed for fast customization.

Where You Can Use On-Clone Placeholders

Placeholders can be added to any text-based field, including:

Summary
Description
Acceptance criteria / checklists
Text custom fields
Sub-task descriptions
Any child items in a hierarchy (Epic → Task → Sub-task)

They make large, multi-level templates instantly reusable by allowing you to define key context once per clone.

How to Create On-Clone Placeholders

Just type a word inside {{ }} anywhere in your template work-items:

{{NewHireName}}
{{ManagerEmail}}
{{EnvironmentURL}}
{{contractStart}}

Naming rules

To keep placeholders valid:

Use English alphabet letters (A–Z, a–z), numbers, or underscores (_)
Do not use spaces or non-English letters or special characters
Do not use dots (.)
Do not use hyphens ( – )
Do not use other special characters (e.g., -, @, #, $, %, etc.)
Do not use non-English letters (e.g., ą, é, ü, ñ, etc.)

Valid:

{{ClientName}}
{{training_scope}}
{{phase2}}

Invalid:

{{Client Name}} (contains space)
{{client.name}} (contains dot)
{{client-name}} (contains hyphen)
{{firma_żółw}} (non-English letter not allowed)
{{{{nested}}}} (nested braces)

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Note

If a placeholder has invalid syntax (for example, {{Client Name}}), it will not be replaced during cloning. Instead, it will appear in the cloned issue exactly as typed (e.g., {{Client Name}}), or as the word undefined, depending on how the invalid placeholder was created.

How Clone Expert Detects and Displays On-Clone Placeholders

While preparing a clone, in clone window, select Placeholders in the top-right corner of the preview window.

You will see:

All placeholders found in your selected issues
A text field for each one
Autofill suggestions if a matching Custom Placeholder exists
A notification badge showing how many placeholders are still empty

This allows you to review and complete your placeholder values before cloning.

Clone Expert - placeholders auto-detection before clone

Best Practices

Use clear, human-readable names ({{ClientName}}, not {{cName}})
Avoid very long or overly technical placeholder names
Use placeholders consistently across the whole template
Combine placeholders with Clone Expert’s preview edits (bulk replace, date auto-adjust)
Validate your template by previewing a clone before sharing with your team