Custom Word Templates

Upload your own branded Word template so that all generated documents automatically use your company’s fonts, colors, and styling. Your logo, headers, and branding will appear in every document.

Quick Setup (3 Steps)

1. Create a Word template with your branding and styles
2. Upload it to the system and map your styles
3. Generate documents – they’ll automatically use your template

Part 1: Creating Your Template

Add Your Branding

Open Word and create a new document with:

• Your company logo
• Headers and footers with your branding
• Any content you want on every document
• Your preferred fonts and colors

Create Custom Styles

Create styles for different types of content. For example:

• “CompanyHeading” – for section headings (blue, 18pt, bold)
• “CompanyBody” – for normal text (black, 11pt)
• “CompanyBullet” – for bullet points

To create a style in Word:

1. Type some sample text and format it how you want it to look
2. Select the text
3. On the Home tab, click the Styles dropdown
4. Click “Create a Style”
5. Give it a name (e.g., “CompanyHeading”)
6. Click OK

Tip: You don’t need to create styles for everything – only the ones you want to customize. The system will use sensible defaults for anything you don’t map.

Using Placeholders

You can add placeholders in your template that will be automatically replaced with content:

Example template:

Date: [[date]]

Title: [[title]]

[[content]]

For lists and repeated items:

Example with loops:

Sources Referenced:
[[#sources]]
- [[source_name]] (from [[collection]])
[[/sources]]

Collections Used:
[[#collections]]
- [[collection_name]]
[[/collections]]

Save Your Template

Save the document as a .docx file with a name like “CompanyTemplate.docx”

Part 2: Uploading Your Template

Upload the File

1. Click “Upload Word Template” button
2. Go to the “Upload Template” tab
3. Click “Choose .docx file” and select your template
4. Click “Upload”

Map Your Styles

1. Go to the “Style Mappings” tab
2. For each content type, enter the name of your Word style
3. Important: The names must match exactly (including capital letters)

Example:

Leave blank any content types you want to use default formatting.

Save

Click “Save Configuration” and you’re done!

Part 3: Using Your Template

Generate Documents

Just generate documents normally – they’ll automatically use your template.

1. Create your content as usual
2. Click “Download”
3. Enter a filename
4. Click “Download”

Your document will have your branding, styles, and any placeholders filled in automatically.

Managing Your Template

View Current Template

Your current template name and upload date appear in the “Manage Word Template” section.

Update Your Template

To make changes:

1. Edit your Word template file
2. Click “Manage Word Template”
3. Click “Remove Template”
4. Upload the new version
5. Reconfigure style mappings
6. Click “Save Configuration”

Remove Template

To go back to default formatting:

1. Click “Manage Word Template”
2. Click “Remove Template”
3. Confirm

Tips & Troubleshooting

Style Names Must Match Exactly

❌ Wrong: “companyheading” when the style is “CompanyHeading”
✅ Correct: “CompanyHeading”

Tip: Copy and paste the style name from Word to avoid typos.

Testing Your Template

Before using in production:

1. Upload your template
2. Generate a test document
3. Check that fonts, colors, and formatting look correct
4. Make adjustments if needed

Placeholders Not Working?

• Make sure placeholders are typed exactly as shown: [[content]] not [content] or {content}
• Placeholders are case-sensitive
• Check that Word didn’t split the placeholder across multiple text runs (this can happen if you edit them)

File Won’t Upload?

• Must be a .docx file (not .doc)
• File should be under 10MB
• Make sure the file isn’t corrupted by opening it in Word first

Lists Look Wrong?

• Make sure your list style in Word has bullet/numbering formatting
• Test the style in Word before uploading
• For nested lists, the system handles indent levels automatically

What Content Types Can I Style?

Example Template

Here’s a simple example to get you started:

In Word, create these styles:

• MyCompanyTitle – 24pt, Bold, Navy Blue
• MyCompanyHeading – 16pt, Bold, Navy Blue
• MyCompanyText – 11pt, Regular, Black

Add this to your template:

[Your Company Logo]

[[title]]
Generated: [[date]]

[[content]]

---
© [[company_name]]

Upload and map:

• Title → MyCompanyTitle
• Heading 1 → MyCompanyHeading
• Body Text → MyCompanyText

Done! All your documents will now use this template.

Need Help?

If something isn’t working:

1. Check that style names match exactly (including capitals)
2. Try removing and re-uploading the template
3. Test with a simple document first
4. Contact support@blue-edge.co.uk if you’re still stuck