Many offices have a «good document» to start from: the last report done well, which you open, save under another name and empty out. It is a fragile method. You forget to delete a paragraph from the previous client, you inherit broken formatting, and after a few months there are five different versions of the same «good document».
A template solves these problems. It is a special type of file which, when opened, creates a new, untitled document based on it, leaving the original untouched.
What template files are
| Program | Template extension | Macro-enabled variant |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Word | .dotx | .dotm |
| LibreOffice Writer | .ott | — (macros are handled differently) |
| PowerPoint | .potx | .potm |
| LibreOffice Impress | .otp | — |
An ordinary document becomes a template simply by saving it in one of these formats. The difference lies in the behaviour on opening, not in the content.
What to put in a template
A good template contains structure and appearance, not specific content:
- Already defined paragraph and character styles, with clear names.
- Page settings: size, margins, headers and footers with logo and page numbers.
- Fixed elements: title page, contact details block, standard confidentiality notices if the organisation requires them.
- Placeholders for the variable parts, clearly recognisable.
- Fields that fill themselves in, such as the date or page number.
- Document properties: default language, author left blank, any categories.
What should not go in are long sample texts to be deleted every time, or very heavy images.
Placeholders nobody forgets
The worst risk with a template is delivering a document with «Insert client name here» still in it. A few precautions:
- In Word you use content controls (Developer tab): a box with guide text that disappears as soon as you type. You can also use a MacroButton field with guide text.
- In Writer you use placeholder fields (Insert › Field › More Fields › Functions › Placeholder): one click selects the whole placeholder and you type over it.
- In both cases it helps to use obvious guide text, in square brackets and a different colour:
[CLIENT NAME]. Before delivery, searching for the opening square bracket reveals any left behind.
Fields that update
Fields save you from typing by hand data the program already knows:
- Date: inserted as a field, it either updates or stays fixed depending on the option chosen. For a letter it is best fixed to the creation date.
- Page number and total number of pages, for the classic «Page 3 of 12».
- Document title taken from the file properties: you write it once and it appears in the header and on the title page.
- Cross-references to chapters or figures, which stay correct when the text changes.
Where to save templates
In Word, personal templates go in the folder set under File › Options › Save › Default personal templates location. Once there, they appear in the Personal tab of the New screen. The Normal.dotm file is the template on which all blank documents are based: changing it changes the default look of every new document, so handle it with care.
In LibreOffice, you use File › Templates › Save as Template and choose a category. From the Manage Templates dialog you can set one as the default for new documents.
In a work group, the best solution is a shared read-only folder for the official templates, managed by a single person. That way everyone uses the same version.
Updating a template
Templates age: the address changes, the logo changes, a section is added. Two rules prevent chaos:
- Open the template itself to edit it, not a document created from it. In Word you open the
.dotxfile with File › Open; in Writer you use Edit from the template management dialog. - Mark the version in the file name or properties, for example
technical-report-v3.dotx, and keep previous versions in an archive folder.
Documents already created do not update themselves when the template changes. In Word you can attach a document to the updated template from Developer › Document Template, enabling automatic style updates; in Writer, when you open a document based on a modified template, the program offers to update the styles.
An example minimal set
For a freelancer or a small office, three templates cover most needs:
- Letter: letterhead, recipient block, date, subject, signature.
- Report: title page, automatic table of contents, numbered heading styles, captions.
- Minutes: date, attendees, agenda items, decisions, actions with an owner.
In my work these three templates save time every week and, above all, eliminate copy-and-paste errors.
In short
- A template creates a new document without altering the original: no more «good document» to empty out.
- It should contain styles, page settings, fixed elements, placeholders and fields.
- Obvious, searchable placeholders prevent delivering forgotten guide text.
- Shared templates belong in a read-only folder, with an owner and a version number.
- To update them, open the template itself, not a derived document.
