Word online Templates

[Deleted]

Hi All,

My internal communications team would like to add our own branded templates to Office365 so that when you click on the word online tile you are presented with our corporate templates.

Is that possible? I've had a good search and cannot see how to do it.

Thanks,

James

[#2]

Sorry, but this not possible. Office Online does not provide the possibility to add custom templates to either Word Online, PowerPoint Online or Excel Online

[#3 · Accepted solution]

You can get around this by uploading template documents (not dotx or dotm, but docx*) to an accessible 'brand' library and then asking users to open and then 'save as' from there. Making the library read-only will limit the potential for accidential change to the document.

*If you use 'dotx' or 'docm' the 'Edit in Browser' option is not available (at least in our tenant).

[#4]

Thanks, will discuss with communications team. I think it is doable and something that can be added to our instructions as part of a launch.

Cheers!

[#5]

Hey James,

If you're using SharePoint you can also add Document Templates to Content Types. May be another way around this if your content is going to end up in SharePoint anyway.

Thanks,

Tom

[#6]

Did it end up working for you?

[#7]

We are not huge fans of word on line - the editing is not always WYSIWYG... Our workaround has been to create a series of branded templates and save them to SharePoint. Users sync the relevant library and then point to that location as their default template location in Word. We have 20 standard documents that everyone uses and that we now only have to update once, centrally... It's an offline solution but it works well for us as our users have word locally....

[#8]

Hey Tom

do you work with the new Sharepoint? Do you know something like this is possible:
 

• add several company templates (potx, dotx, ...) 
• make sure people find them (on a modern page > by adding the 'document library' functionality)
• user clicks a file so it opens in Powerpoint, Word, Excel (as a new document)
• make sure they don't save their creation in this document library with the company templates

More or less the most basic form of template management ;-). But:

• I can upload template files into a new modern library
• but I can't 'see them' when i integrate the document library web part
• if I click the standard Powerpoint-template ... my file saves itself inside the document library.

So basically: make a nice page with company templates in a visual way (present them as tiles or so) > people click > program opens > make something > store somewhere. 

Thanks for your info.

[#9]

we have a central SharePoint template library and all users sync that library to their local machine and have Word point to that folder as personal templates. I m guessing that will work in other office programs

[#10]

Hey Simon, thanks for the info!

Did you follow a 'best practice/how to' on this? Could be me ... but it seems like a simple thing that (certainly for the new experience) lacks a good instruction. Helpful links are always welcome ;-).

[#11]

Sadly it's one I worked out myself in house - although I note another contributor suggested much the same thing.... The process I used was:

1. Create New SharePoint Library - call it group templates or whatever
2. Upload the required templates to library
3. Give all users read only access to that library 
4. Send link to all users instructing them to sync that library to their PC's (which they do from SharePoint)
5. Open file explorer on local machine and locate the newly synced folder
6. Select that folder
7. Click in address bar at top of explorer window to see the full file path
8. Select all and copy path to clipboard
9. Open Word
10. Click on file/ options/ save
11. Paste the path from clipboard to the field "default peronal templates location"
12. Click OK and close Word
13. Open Word
14. Click on new then personal and all the templates should now be available
15. Whenever templates are updated, new ones added or deleted everyone is seamlessly updated.
16. My guess is that's its the same in Excel and Powerpoint  

[#12]

Thanks Simon. Just one extra question: did you do it this way in Sharepoint or Sharepoint online?

[#13]

We have an enterprise  365 subscription and until your question prompted a quick google search I did not know there were two offerings - bless MS for keeping it simple. However, my understanding is that the necessary file sharing/ sync capabilities are central to the structure of both so as long as your users all have access the outlined methodology should work. I'd set up one template in a library and get a user to see if they can connect as described....

[#14]

OK. Thx again!

I will test it out as described.

[#15]

Hi James,
Hopefully you found a solution! Else I have a few options.

You can use corporate templates within SharePoint and distribute them.

Another option is to use the library on the local machine for templates and save them on sharepoint.

And option 3 is to use a template management tool (download in the Microsoft store). Then you have the corporate templates on a server that are simply accessible in Office 365 and save the document on your Sharepoint.

[#16]

I cannot think of an acceptable reason why a huge developer like Microsoft cannot provide it's online Word users with the simple means of storing document templates online. It seems to be a minimal change and a basic feature. 

 Could it be that it's less favorable if all current full product users move to online only? I hope someone (@microsoft or outside) can give me a more satisfying reason.