Create and Use Custom Templates in Word
What
Instructions to create, save, and use templates that are customized to your needs.
Why
If you often open Word to a new document based upon the Normal template and have to modify the
Normal document for the document you are creating, then just a few extra steps after modifying the
Normal document can save you from having to do that modification in the future. You can create
different templates where each template can have its own default settings and/or already included
graphics. Using a custom template you made will create a document based upon that template,
which means the document will have the same default settings that the template has.
How
Step 1 - Create the Template
➢ Open a New document in Word as you normally would do, which will be based upon the
Normal.dotm template.
➢ Modify the document as you would want it to be each time you open a blank document
based upon this custom template.
➢ Your can enter objects (lines, shapes, pictures, text boxes, etc.) and set the default
formatting for these objects; then you can delete the objects after the default settings have
been saved. Pressing the
Set as Default
settings on these objects does not change the
default settings in the Normal.dotm template, but changes the default for this document
(which we will make a different template).
➢ Once you have all the formatting, logos, default settings, etc. and the document is like you
want it to open, proceed to the next Step on how to save your new custom template.
Step 2 - Save the Custom Template
➢
Select File
>
Save As
>
Browse
to open the
Save as
window. It doesn’t matter the location
the Browse window opens to because when you select to save as a template File Explorer
will automatically change the location to where Word (Office) stores your custom
templates....
%USERPROFILE%\Documents\Custom Office Templates
Side Tip:
Copy and Paste into the Start menu Search box and press Enter key to open folder
containing your custom templates.
➢ Select a Name for the template and enter that name into the
File name:
box as shown
below. Select a name that will tell you which template it is.
➢ Click the dropdown arrow for the
Save as type:
box and select
Word Template (*.dotx)
or
Word Macro-Enabled Template (*.dotm)
. Which one? See below. Press the
Save
button to
save your custom template.
.dotx or .dotm
The .dotx (or .docx) Word format means no macros. This does not mean macros will not work in
the template (or document). It means that any macro created in this template (or document) will
not be saved. If you try to save as .dotx (or .docx) and you had created a macro, Word will issue
a warning that to continue saving will lose the macro. If you created a macro in modifying your
custom template, you must save with the .dotm format to save your macro.
Step 3 - Using Custom Templates
There are three different ways to open a new document based upon your custom template, which
are described below:
Open Custom Document Within Word
o In an open Word document select
File
>
New
>
Personal
and click the template you want to
open a document based upon, as shown in the image below.
o The new document based upon that template will open. The original Word document that you
use to open this new document based upon your custom template will still be open.
Shortcut to Open Custom Document
o Right click a blank spot on the Desktop and select
New
>
Shortcut
which will open the Shortcut
wizard.
o In the
Type the location of the item:
box, enter
%USERPROFILE%\Documents\Custom Office Templates
o With the above in that box type a backslash (\) immediately after the “s” in Templates. This will
cause a list of the custom templates in that folder to display and you can select from the list.
You can alternatively enter the name of the template after the slash, but the name must include
the file extension.
o After entering the location of the template click
Next
to go to the next page and select a name
for this shortcut and click
Finish
.
o You can move the shortcut anywhere you want.
o Clicking a shortcut to a template will open the template; however, when you go to save the
document it will default to save as a separate .docx (or .docm) document and not alter your
original custom template.
o You can protect your custom template from accidentally clicking the save icon and add all your
entered data to the template by going to the folder that the template is stored and make the
template file Read Only forcing to save as another file.
o This method does not leave a document open after you open your custom template document.
Macro to Open Custom Document
o This method is similar to opening a custom document in Word above, but turns all those clicks
into a two key keyboard shortcut. Must have Developer tab displayed in Ribbon.
o Open a new document based upon the normal template.
o Select the Developer tab and click the Record Macro icon in the Code group as shown below.
o This will open the Record Macro window as shown below.
o Enter a name for the macro (no spaces in name). Click the Keyboard icon to open the
Customize Keyboard
window to set the keyboard shortcut that will run this macro as shown
below.
o In the Customize Keyboard window you will see the Macro with full assigned name highlighted
in the
Commands:
box.
o Click in the box under
Press new shortcut key:
to activate that box. Press the two keys at the
same time that will be your keyboard shortcut. In my example I chose Alt and R keys. If the
keyboard shortcut you select is already assigned, it will let you know next to
Currently assigned
to:
statement. If assigned choose another keyboard shortcut.
o After selecting a keyboard shortcut that is not assigned click the
Assign
button and then the
Close
button to close the window and to start recording the steps of the macro.
o The pointer will change to ( ) and you are now recording every action.
o Click
File
.
o Click
New
.
o Click
Personal
o Scroll and click the custom template you want and wait for that document to open. Usually it
will open on top of the document you are recording the steps in.
o After the document based upon your custom template opens your cursor will still be active in
the original document that you are recording the macro in, but it is hidden behind the new
document window. Press and hold down the
Alt
key and press the
L
key and release both the
Alt and L keys and then press the
R
key once. This keyboard combination (Alt + L, R) will stop
the macro recording. If you move the second window to reach the stop recording button on
first document, those steps will be added to the macro and often causes a runtime error, so use
the keyboard combination to stop recording.
o That’s it. When in a Word normal document press the keyboard shortcut and a new document
based upon that custom template will open.
