A Basic Guide to Site Management in SharePoint Online

Topics: SharePoint Tips, SharePoint Site, SharePoint Blog

Written by Quentin Russell

SharePoint is a powerful tool for keeping your company organized and connected. One of the primary features that helps with this is SharePoint Sites. SharePoint Sites are powerful tools that allow you to engage in all sorts of business activities. Let's take a look at SharePoint Sites and how you can get started using them today.

Content:-

What are SharePoint Sites

A SharePoint site is a website that contains different SharePoint web parts like document libraries and calendars. They essentially display information that you choose to have display on the site. The only difference between a normal website and a SharePoint site is that a SharePoint site is internal. Information displayed there isn't available to unauthorized users inside or outside of your organization.

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How to Create a Site in SharePoint Online

When you create a site in SharePoint Online, you will be able to choose from multiple site templates. These can help you determine what you want to do with your SharePoint site as you build and edit it.

  1. Select + Create site on the SharePoint start page.
  2. In the wizard:
    1. Select whether you'd like to create a Team site or a Communication site.
    2. Enter the title (and a description, if you want) for the site.
    3. You can select Edit and then edit the group email name, if you want.
    4. Select whether the group will be public or private.
    5. Choose a sensitivity level for your site information.
    6. Select a default language for your site and then click Next.
  3. In the next pane, enter the owners and members.
  4. Select Finish.

One thing to note is that at any point you can take a site that you build and turn it into a SharePoint Home site. For more information on how to do that, reference our guide on our blog.

How to Add a Document Library or List to a Site in SharePoint Online

One of the main things you can do with a SharePoint site is have it be the host to any number of document libraries or lists. Here's how you can set that up.

  1. Open the site that you want to add the list or library to.
  2. Select New.
  3. Select List or Document library.
  4. In the Create pane:
    1. Type a name for the list or library (and a description, if you want).
    2. Select Create.

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How to Use Columns to Organize Site Information in SharePoint Online

First and foremost, you want the pages on your SharePoint site to be understandable. By adding columns, you can make sure that people are able to parse the information on the page.

  1. Go to a list or library that you want to filter.
  2. Select Open the filters pane.
  3. Select how you want to filter your list or library from the options available.

How to Add a Page to a Site in SharePoint Online

Once you've finished building out the main page of your new site, it's time to start adding new pages.

  1. Open the site that you want to add a page to.
  2. Select New.
  3. Select Page.
  4. Type the name of your page. 
  5. You can publish your page now, or use web parts to add text, images, and other content. 
  6. Select Publish when you're ready.

How to Add a Web Part to a Site in SharePoint Online

  1. In your news post or page, select the plus sign.
  2. Select the web part you want to use: Text, Image, File viewer, Link, …
  3. When you have added all the web parts that you want, select Publish.

How to Change the Look of Your SharePoint Site

Once you've finished setting up frame of your SharePoint site, it's time to start customizing the look to fit your needs.

  1. On your site, click Settings and then click Change the look>Theme.
  2. Select the look you want. You'll see a preview of what your site looks like with the selected theme applied. Click Save to apply it to your site or, if you don't like what you see and want to revert back to what you had in the beginning, click Cancel instead.
  3. To customize the colors of one of the default SharePoint themes, select the theme and then click Customize.
    1. Choose the main color and accent color you want, and then click Save to apply it to your site. The list of main colors and accent colors varies depending on the default SharePoint theme you choose to customize.

How to Customize Your Site Header in SharePoint Online

Your SharePoint site's header is the first thing that people see when they log in. Make sure to customize it to match their expectations.

  1. On your site, click Settings and then click Change the look>Header.
  2. Select either the Standard header layout or the Compact option which moves all header content to a single line.
  3. Click Change to add a site logo.
  4. Select a header background to change the background color of your site header.
  5. Click Apply to save your changes.

How to Change the Navigation Style of a Site in SharePoint Online

  1. On your site, click Setting and then click Change the look>Navigation.
  2. Select either Megamenu or Cascading.
  3. Click Apply to save your changes.

How to Add a Site Footer to Your Site in SharePoint Online

  1. On your site, click Settings and then click Change the look>Footer.
  2. Toggle the Footer visibility switch to On to add a footer to your site.
  3. Choose either a Simple or Extended layout.
  4. Select Upload to add your logo image to the footer. The image is automatically resized.
  5. To add a name for your footer, enter a Display name.
  6. Select a background color.
  7. Select Save to save your changes.

How to Delete a Site in SharePoint Online

Eventually there will come a time when you need to delete your masterpiece. Let's take a look at what you need to do in order to delete a site in SharePoint Online.

  1. Navigate to the team site or communication site you want to delete.
  2. Select Settings at the top of the site and then click Site information.
  3. At the bottom of the Site Information panel, select Delete site.
  4. Check the confirmation box, and then select Delete.

Conclusion

SharePoint site management doesn't have to be difficult. Just follow the tips above and you'll be a master of site management in SharePoint Online. You can find more SharePoint tutorials like this on our blog so make sure to check back there everyday. If you are interested, you can also sign up for our mailing list and receive an email every time we publish a new blog.

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