Google Docs is a simple and easily accessible program. It also includes ready-to-use templates, but you can also make your own by playing around with the formats. This guide describes how to use Google Docs to create a brochure.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Setting Up the Document
Step 1. Decide what your brochure should look like
These publications come in many shapes and sizes. Do you want it to be as large as a letter and with many pages, or in an envelope format and with three foldable parts? It is often a good idea to create and fold a draft on a blank sheet before starting.
Step 2. Open the https://docs.google.com page on a browser
If prompted, log in with your Google account email and password
Step 3. Click the blue button ➕
You can find it in the document called "New", in the upper left part of the window.
- If you prefer to use a Google template instead of creating the brochure yourself, click on MODELS GALLERY in the upper right corner of the window, then scroll down to the "Work" section and choose a brochure template.
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If you don't see the templates at the top of the window, click the ≡ button in the upper left corner, then Settings and check View recent models on the home screen.
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 4 Step 4. Click "Untitled Document" in the upper left corner of the window
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 5 Step 5. Choose a name for the brochure
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 6 Step 6. Click File in the toolbar e Page Setup….
This will open a dialog where you can configure the paper size, page orientation and margins.
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 7 Step 7. Edit the page settings
Do it according to what the brochure should look like.
For example, if you are creating a standard, two-sided, three-fold folded brochure, change the paper orientation to "Landscape", leave the size at "Letter" and reduce the margins to 0.5cm on all sides; 2 cm margins waste too much space when a sheet is folded in three
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 8 Step 8. Click OK
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 9 Step 9. Click Format in the toolbar
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 10 Step 10. Click Columns And Other options….
This will open a dialog where you can set the number of columns in the document and the space between them.
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 11 Step 11. Choose the number of columns
Do it according to what the brochure should look like.
Continuing with the example of the brochure folded in three parts, create three columns, spaced 1 cm apart; once the sheet is folded, every third will have a margin of 0.5 cm on all sides
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 12 Step 12. Click the first row of the first column
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 13 Step 13. Click Table in the toolbar e Insert table.
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 14 Step 14. Click the first square (1x1) in the drop-down menu
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 15 Step 15. Click the border of the table and drag it to the end of the first column
Repeat these steps for all columns in the brochure
Part 2 of 3: Creating the Covers
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 16 Step 1. Find the cover
Due to the nature of the publications printed on both sides, the position of the cover varies according to the number of pages or folds of the brochure.
The cover of a three-part folded brochure is the rightmost column on the first page
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 17 Step 2. Click somewhere near the beginning of the cover
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 18 Step 3. Write the title of the brochure
A title text is usually larger and more prominent than the rest of the document. The cover title is often the largest and most eye-catching in the whole brochure. Typically it is interesting or contains some information.
Use the editing tools to choose your preferred style (italics, bold, underline), color, size and alignment (titles are often centered) of the title
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 19 Step 4. Add an image to the cover
It is important that the first page of the brochure has a beautiful image, in order to illustrate the purpose of the publication and to attract the interest of readers.
- To add an image, click insert in the toolbar, then Images….
- Select or take a photo, then use the mouse to move and resize it as you like.
- Click a layout option. For a three-fold brochure, the text will go around the image, so click Wrap text at the bottom of the inserted image. The option Break text it means that the text will stop above the image and continue below. This is also an acceptable choice, particularly for the small panels of a three-part brochure. On line indicates that the image will essentially be pasted in the middle of the text and this can cause formatting problems in a brochure.
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 20 Step 5. Find the back cover
Due to the nature of the publications printed on both sides, the position of the back cover of the brochure varies according to the number of pages and folds.
The back cover of the brochure is the center column of the first page
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 21 Step 6. Click the back cover
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 22 Step 7. Add contact information or to learn more
The last panel of a brochure often includes information on steps to take or methods for contacting the organization that published it. In some cases, it is designed as a shipping form, so that the brochure can be sent without an envelope.
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 23 Step 8. Add an image
The images on the back also make the brochure more interesting and inspire people to pick it up.
Part 3 of 3: Creating the Interior Panels
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 24 Step 1. Click on the first inner panel
Here you will add the text and images that contain the information you want to disclose with the brochure.
In the example of the folded sheet in three parts, this is the first panel to the left of the second page or the leftmost panel of the first page, because this is the first two the reader will see when opening the brochure
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 25 Step 2. Type or paste the text in the appropriate fields
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 26 Step 3. Edit the text
Select it with the cursor and use the tools at the top of the window.
- The headings of the articles are often written in bold or italics and in some cases use a different font than the main text of the brochure.
- The body of the text is usually in 10 or 12 point format. Titles are often wider.
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Use the alignment buttons to arrange the text on the page.
- Column text is usually left-aligned or justified.
- Titles are often left-aligned, centered, or justified.
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 27 Step 4. Add images
Photos help put more emphasis on the text and catch the reader's eye.
- To add an image, click insert in the toolbar, then Image….
- Select or take a photo, then use the mouse to move and resize it as you like.
- Click a layout option. For a three-part folded brochure, the text will go around the image, so click Wrap text at the bottom of the inserted image. The option Break text it means that the text will stop above the image and continue below. This is also an acceptable choice, particularly for the small panels of a three-part brochure. On line indicates that the image will essentially be pasted in the middle of the text and this can cause formatting problems in a brochure.
Make a Brochure Using Google Docs Step 28 Step 5. Print or share the file
Once you are ready to print the brochure, click File in the toolbar and then on Press. From the File menu, you can also download the document in another format, or send it by e-mail to whomever you prefer.
