Google Intranet Solutions for Google Workspace

Use Google Sites for Intranet Front-End Design

Google offers an intranet building platform via Google Sites. Google Sites is the best app for a Google intranet because it has the ability to integrate other Google Workspace apps and consolidate company resources. Google Sites is to Google Workspace as Sharepoint is to Microsft 365. Google Workspace is only providing you the tools to design your own intranet and it won't be automatically generated with AI.

Organize Google Drive for Intranet Document Management

Google Drive has many important tools related to creating an intranet, and Google Sites is one of them. That's right, Google Sites is part of Google Drive, much like Google Docs, Sheets, Slides and Forms. Make a shared drive to act as the backend for all intranet documents and shortcuts. Here is how to use Google Drive for intranet:

• Google Sites is recommended as the site builder for your intranet web project

• Google Docs is for policies, procedures, reports and plans

• Google Sheets is for data, finance, project management and budgets: Google Sheets templates for business.

• Google Forms is great for getting employee input and feedback with surveys

• Google Slides can be embedded for diagrams, flow charts, org charts and presentation decks.

Reasons to Build the Company Intranet on Google Sites

It's Quick & Easy

A Google Sites intranet supports collaborative editing with a no code "what you see is what you get" (WYSWYG) content management interface. Internal communications becomes a breeze when site managers can confidently update the intranet. This is why Google Sites is the best intranet solution for Google Workspace companies.

Google Workspace Integration Comes Natively

Google Sites is the best intranet platform because it has all the connectivity to the Google Workspace, formerly called Google Apps and Google Suite. Your organization uses applications like Gmail, Calendar and Drive everyday. Imagine adding a Google Calendar to show your upcoming meetings, embedding a spreadsheet data driven chart and being able to search for that elusive request form. You can bring everything together in a wiki, a hub, an intranet, whatever you want to call it. 

Google Sites is Inexpensive Compared to Other Intranet Platforms

Companies often have to subscribe to a variety of SAAS products to facilitate productivity. This practice rapidly becomes costly overhead expenses which strangle operations. With Google Sites you won't need another license or contract with a third-party developer. Even if you hire a Google Sites expert to set up the intranet, you become the owner and maintain it in-house.

Impressive On-Brand Intranet Templates

We design custom intranets using your organization's branding guidelines or input from your marketing team. We are happy to collaborate with whatever departments might have a say on the look and feel of the new intranet. 

We have lots of experience developing a templated approach to Google Sites. First you set a company Google Sites theme, then standardized navigation and webpages. Don't reinvent the wheel each time. Increase employee adoption and engagement with a thoughtful approach to Google Sites for intranet with a consistent user experience.

What Organizations or Companies Use Google Sites?

We have loved working with companies, non-profits and other various organizations, helping them adopt Google Sites as their intranet. Those clients include Netflix, Google, Whirlpool, Roche, Teach for America. We've built a lot of trust and powerful references. Review a Google Sites intranet case study from Cardinal Financial and another one from Roche

Google Sites Intranet Features and Apps

An intranet is only as good as the content and apps that power it and that's why Google Sites is a powerful solution. It is an advanced intranet platform with a ton of baked in app integrations. Corporate communications, HR, Sales and IT teams can all take advantage of the advanced features of Google Sites.

Why Use Google Sites for an Intranet Solution within Google Workspace?

Google Workspace integration

Connectivity with the applications you use every day, including Google Calendar, Google Docs, Google Maps, and more. Everything is searchable with Google Cloud search bar installed right into the intranet. Advanced integration available for other Google Apps:

• Google Apps Script

• Google Sheets

• Google Analytics

Great user experience

It is important for company buy-in to create an intranet that is easy to navigate, looks great and functions exactly how you need it to. Google Sites can act as one centralized wiki site for your entire company and all with a familiar user interface that makes managing it easy.

Intuitive security and access permissions

A secure domain-only site with single sign-on makes it easy to access to confidential company information. Assign owners, editors, and viewers. Admins can manage general permissions settings for Google Drive and Google Sites in the Workspace Admin console.

Easy to use and maintain 

No HTML coding required, editing and updating the intranet is like using a Word doc. It doesn't take much training to get this off the ground.

Customized for your company

Branding is very important and it's a great idea to carry the look and feel of your public website through to your intranet. A well designed and consistent presentation will encourage participation.

Intranet Projects

Google Sites is designed to be the intranet solution for Google Workspace. We have handled hundreds of intranet projects that prove Google Sites works for an effective knowledge base that boosts employee engagement, drives collaboration and assists in streamlining onboarding. Sites can be the source of truth throughout your organization.

A consultant guided project ensures best practices for intranet building are followed and all available apps are considered for integration. The scale of intranets on Google Sites varies greatly. We have designed simple extranets and login portals. We have also led teams building massive 500+ webpage wiki behemoths. Google Sites encounters no slow downs or inherent difficulties with large company intranets. A well thought out, organized approach saves headaches and avoid pitfalls in regards issues like navigation.

Development wise, Google Sites supports dynamic elements and Google Workspace integration. jQuery slideshows, Google Docs and Calendars, social networking gadgets - we are taking Google Sites to its full potential. Consider building custom web apps to provide dynamic information to staff regularly visiting the intranet. Overall, build an intranet hat benefits employees and avoids growing stale.

Google Sites Intranet Collaboration Steps

This is our typical process for creating an intranet with companies, steering committees or project managers:

• Tell us about your organization, your brand and your thoughts towards the intranets

• We create a design draft comprised on the theme and homepage

• We revise it the design draft according to your feedback

• We continue to iterate on the site and eventually move it to your Google Workspace domain

• We finish the job with any other content migration and Google Sites training

More on our Google Sites Design process

Google Sites Intranet FAQ

These are frequently asked questions concerning the development of a Google Sites company intranet. These most common questions we are asked typically in the discovery or planning phases of building the company intranet. 

Can Google Sites be used as a company intranet or wiki?

Yes, definitely. Google Sites is an excellent option for building an intranet or wiki. Especially within Google Workspace, Google Sites has all the essential features for developing an informative knowledge base for an organization, including integration of Google Docs, Calendar and access permissions. 

View a live sample demo of a Google Sites intranet

How do I create an intranet on Google Sites?

Go to sites.google.com to create a site, but before you do spend some time planning for the design, organization and functionality of your Google Sites intranet. We encourage clients to start a Google Shared Drive, then devising a folder structure to mirror the sitemap of your future intranet. This will provide a backend for hosting your important documents and ideas, which you can easily share with your team. 

How do I plan to design the company intranet with Google Sites?

It all starts with questions: What is your vision for the intranet? What is the audience you are serving within your company? What departments do I need to consult with and bring in their information? What does the intranet need to have and what are the plugins you may want? Your intranet steering team ought to openly discuss such intranet building brainstorming.

It comes down to three key facets of a successful intranet, which are:

• Aesthetic - What does your intranet look like? What's the brand?

• Organization - What is the Google Sites sitemap? How many webpages are there?

• Function - What does it need to do? What is interactive and dynamic?

How do I create a branded Google Sites intranet template?

The first step is to consult your organization's branding guidelines or contacting marketing or IT teams for guidance. A professional-looking, branded template will increase user adoption and engagement on the site, while a poorly designed Google Site will call into question to importance of your work in the minds of your site visitors. Anyone can build a Google Site, and we encourage exploration of the platform's formatting options, but it can truly be beneficial to call in an expert web designer to develop something next level.

What is Google's solution for internal communications?

The Google Workspace solution for internal communications is a combination of applications from the suite. For example, Google Sites can be used as the launch pad or general wiki in conjunction with Google Spaces for active forum-style collaboration. Then Google Groups, Google Drive and Awesome Table can be integrated to increase functionality.

Can I create my own intranet with Google Sites?

Certainly, yes, you can create your own intranet immediately with Google Sites. There is no harm in learning about the platform for your next portal or wiki. Explore how everything works and experience how intuitive it is to edit. Some of our best projects were ones where the client had a good base understanding of how Google Sites works.

Can Google Sites be used professionally?

Google Sites is an enterprise level application within the suite of Google Workspace products. It can be used professionally because it is secure, stable and adheres to the same level of excellence maintained throughout all Google apps.

Can Google Analytics be used on private or domain only Google Site?

Yes. We can help you set up and install Google Analytics to track key employee engagement metrics across the intranet or on any team sites regardless of their permissions / sharing settings. Track intranet page visits, clicks, devices, locations and more with Google Analytics 4.

How do I enable custom templates for my Google Workspace domain?

Administrators have the ability to designate templates for Google Drive files in specific editions of Google Workspace. See instructions for how to turn custom Drive templates on. Google Sites will appear in a template gallery called 'Your Domain' or other categories. Admins can also allow users to submit templates with or without moderation. 

In addition to this gallery on the landing page for sites.google.com of a Workspace domain, users can also share templates by appending "/template/preview" to the editing version URL just after the site ID. This was explained in a Google Workspace update blog post. For example:

• Preview Template URL: https://sites.google.com/d/1vvRhscGh5a4_q-P7z1Ty-s6AjdRaAcNa/template/preview 

• Site ID: 1vvRhscGh5a4_q-P7z1Ty-s6AjdRaAcNa