Google Drive and the new add-ons feature – Jenny’s Weekly Tip #29

Last week I wrote of my excitement of how the new Google Drive activity stream feature in What’s new Google Drive?, can help you keep track of the activity on all of your files and folders. Well, this week Google Drive have gone one step further in ensuring that you get the most out of your experience with Drive.

As more people are relying on Google’s office suit more extensively, Google are doing more to fill in the gaps that leave users looking elsewhere for document solutions. That is why Google have rolled out their latest feature – Add-ons support for Google Docs and Sheets

These are new tools created by Google’s developer partners that literally add on capabilities to your documents and sheets. Currently there are around 30 add-ons ranging from Avery Label Merge, which lets you merge data from Google Spreadsheets into Avery address labels to Hello Signs, which makes easy, secure and legally binding electronic signatures for your documents.

Here is how to get started with Add-ons in Google Drive.

1. Simply open your Google Doc or Sheet and select the Add-ons tab.

2. Select  ‘Get Add-ons’ from the menu.

3. Browse through the store and choose the add-on you would like to use.

Here is an example of what you can expect from the store:

MailChimp’s add-on.

This add-on allows you to chose different templates and make customised emails and then send them directly within your Google Doc.

Once you have opened up your Google Doc, continue to write the content of the email in that document. Once done, click ‘Add-ons>“Merge by Mailchimp > Send email”. This will open up a panel to the left of your document where you will have the option to select a spreadsheet which will contain your customised information.

Once you are finished composing your email and have added the relevant information from the spreadsheet,  you can select ‘Preview’ to see how your email looks before you send.

Once satisfied, hit ‘Send Email’.

There you have it. You now have the ability to compose and send an email without leaving your Google Document.

This is just one example of  the many add-ons that can be located in the store, and what Google have promised a whole more of in the near future.

If you would like more information on Google Apps and want to know if it is right for your business, visit Desynit’s Business Apps page, check out this article Why Google Business Apps or contact Desynit’s Shaun Holmes.

See you next week for more updates and tips in the world of cloud technology.