Make Google Sites Stand Out with These Pro Tips!

Summary of “Make Google Sites Stand Out with These Pro Tips!”

The video shares 7 practical Google Sites pro tips focused on improving performance perception, usability, branding, and interactivity—with step-by-step guidance on where to click in the editor and what settings to change.

1. Start from a better starting point (templates + expanded template gallery)

• Instead of using only a blank site, begin with a template or a previously used site.
• Google provides more templates than the default set, accessible by expanding the template gallery.
• Template categories (e.g., personal/small business/education) are not restrictive—you can reuse templates for other purposes too.

2. Customize navigation layout and appearance

• The default menu location is typically top-right (it can vary slightly by theme).
• In Settings → Navigation, you can switch from top navigation to side navigation.
• Side navigation helps keep attention on the header/above-the-fold content (like portfolio pages). The menu becomes a collapsible left-side menu.
• You can also adjust the navigation menu color (e.g., transparent vs white/black) to maintain contrast over background imagery.

3. Branding: upload a logo, use logo colors, and add a favicon (FON)

In Brand images, you can upload:

• Logo: upload an image, and (optionally) remove/edit the site text next to the logo depending on whether the logo already includes the company name.
• Theme color extraction from logo: Google Sites can pull colors from the uploaded logo to apply consistent theming across the site.
• “FON” (favicon): the video warns that without it, the site can look less professional because the browser/tab may show a generic Google Sites icon.

After uploading the favicon, you must publish for it to appear.

4. Add collapsible sections (expand/collapse content blocks)

• Use Insert → Content blocks → Collapsible group.
• A collapsible section includes:
  • A visible title/heading (e.g., “FAQ” or “More info”)
  • A hidden click-to-edit text area (questions/answers, optional bios, etc.)
• This improves readability by showing extra information only when clicked.
• On the live page, users can expand/collapse by clicking within the collapsible area.

5. Use an image carousel for interactive, engaging content

• Add an Image carousel (requires at least 2 images).
• Customize it by:
  • Dragging to resize/position so it can span the full width
  • Adding or removing captions (the tutorial turns captions off)
  • Enabling/disabling pagination dots (the tutorial turns them off)
  • Turning on autostart so slides cycle automatically
  • Adjusting transition speed (example given: slower than “medium”)
• Hover behavior:
  • When users hover, forward/back controls appear
  • The carousel pauses
  • This enables a more “read as you go” experience (useful for testimonials/quotes)

6. Embed Google Forms for contact/event collection

• Use Insert → Forms to embed an existing or new Google Form into a page.
• The form can be inserted and positioned/centered within the layout.
• Bonus tip: stretch the form to the full bottom of the available area to reduce extra scrolling and avoid awkward extra scrollbars.

7. Create and reuse a custom theme for faster site building

• In Themes, you can switch quickly, but the pro approach is creating a custom theme:
  • Go to Custom → + and name it (e.g., “My event theme”)
  • Optionally upload a logo and select banner imagery (banner optional)
  • Choose colors using presets or custom hex codes
  • Select custom fonts separately for titles/headings and body text
• Reuse the saved theme for future sites to speed up creation and keep brand consistency.

Main speakers/sources

• Speaker/host (unnamed): the tutorial narrator guiding viewers through the Google Sites interface.
• Primary source: Google Sites features and UI settings/templates (no external reviewers or third-party sources mentioned).