How to make a brochure in Google Docs

From the cloud, to the printer, to your clients

Google Docs is one of the easiest to use and most accessible online document editors available. Because of its cloud-based architecture, you can create a document on the go with your phone, then go home and flesh it out with a top-of-the-line Chromebook (get a docking station to make working with your Chromebook even easier). But because the heart of Google Docs lives online, it's easy to forget Docs is capable of traditional document design. If you're willing to dig into the settings, you can make something like a traditional tri-fold brochure.

Google Docs has a variety of templates available, including two for brochures. These brochures are two-sided pages with text and images. They're not the marketing triptychs most of us imagine when we think of a brochure. You'll need to do the work yourself to make a classic tri-fold brochure.

To start, you'll change the orientation of the document to landscape from the default portrait.

Setting the margins to 0 is the first step in the process. The next step is to insert a table. If you insert a three-column table into a document with one-inch margins, the folds won't be in the right place to split the brochure into thirds.

Here's how to make the table:

The three columns of the table are a visual reference for how our brochure will look. It also makes organizing the eventual text and images easier.

The last thing to do before adding text and images to the brochure is to give the columns some breathing room. To do that, adjust the table properties.

This bit of padding keeps the elements of the brochure away from the edge of the page and away from where the folds will be.

Now all that's left to do is put in the images and text. We won't get into the principles of design but plan how you'll organize your information so that everything is in the right place after your brochure is folded.

Even though brochures are typically the marketing material of choice for timeshares and doctors' offices, they're the perfect vehicle for any type of information distribution.

Whether you're organizing a Magic tournament or planning a family reunion, a brochure might be a better means of getting your message into the hands of your target audience, and it's guaranteed not to get caught up in an email spam filter.

If you're ready to create a brochure but feel like your Google Docs skills are a little rusty, check out our primer on Google Docs.

Daniel writes guides, explainers, and technology news. He especially likes deep diving into niche topics that require more than scratching the surface. He's been writing in newspapers, magazines, and blogs for over 20 years writing hard news, entertainment, and science stories. When not writing he enjoys reading science fiction, playing music, and raising a rambunctious toddler. The devices you'll find him using every day are his Pixel 4a, Acer 311 Chromebook, and Amazon Fire HD 10. As soon as he saves up some money he's getting a 3D printer.