How to Create Google Doc Templates
When you are creating a new Google Doc in Google Drive, you will see that there is an arrow ">" that you can click on, where it will give you the option to create a Doc from a template.
You will see that there are arrows next to Sheets, Slides, and Forms, as well. That is because you can choose from templates for those types of files too. However, in this post, we'll be focusing on Google Docs templates specifically.
When you click on "from a template" to create a Doc, you will see templates you can choose from, grouped into categories. If you are using Google Workspace for Education, Business, or Nonprofit, you'll see custom templates created by your organization show up first, and you'll need to click on "General" to see Google's templates.
If you are using a personal Google account, you won't be able to create custom templates, so you will just see Google's templates with your recently used templates listed first. You can scroll though all the different templates and select the one you'd like to use. When you click on a template, it will open up a Google Doc with that template, which will automatically be saved to the Google Drive folder that you created the Doc in. From there, you can edit the words and pictures of the template to make it your own.
If your IT administrators have given you permission to create custom templates in your Google Workspace account, you can create a custom template by clicking on "Submit Template." Then, select the document from your Google Drive (that you have previously made) that you want to use as a template, decide if you'd like the template to be a copy of the original document or not, and choose the Google Docs category you want your template to be put in. The images below show you what Submit Template looks like.
If you do not see Submit Template and you have a Google Workspace for Education, Business, or Nonprofit account, this means that your IT administrators have turned off permissions for you to create a custom template. If you want to create custom templates and don't have permission, you should contact them about it.
Please note that when you create a custom template, you are submitting that template and there may be permissions set up where you have to wait for your template to be approved by your IT admins before it shows up and can be used. However, if you submit your template and it automatically shows up under your organization's templates, that means your template doesn't need to be approved by anyone and now everyone in your organization will be able to see and use it. At this time, there is no way for you to create a custom template that only you can see and use.
The Benefits of Using Google Doc Templates
At LogicWing, we find this feature especially helpful for having a starting point on projects. Whether it's a general template or one we've created, we can focus on the language we want to use, then decide to customize how it looks if we want to, but we know that it will look nice even if we don't customize it.
Using Google Doc Templates can also be really helpful in keeping documents uniform, especially if you have new employees who need to create documents right away. It can also be great for students, especially young students, to give them a framework for how a book report or their notes should look.
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At LogicWing, we do a lot more than just keep track of the best Google Workspace features, we do migrations, offer consulting, and can help you manage your Google Workspace for Education and Business accounts with our Managed Services. Schedule a free consultation with us to learn more.