G Suite (formerly Google Apps for Work) is a set of productivity and collaboration tools developed by Google. G Suite is comprised of Gmail, Calendar and Hangouts for communication; Drive for storage; Docs for word processing; Sheets- the best spreadsheet application out there; Slides for creating presentations; Forms and Sites for collaboration and CRM Management; Plus a whole lot more.
1. Store All of Your Work In An Online Portfolio
If you want to showcase your work for potential clients or have one place to store design files, create a Google Sites website. Share brand guidelines, photos, design patterns and templates. Any changes you make to your files will automatically update on your website!
To learn more about Google Sites, click HERE
2. Create a Powerful Pitch Deck
Trying to present an idea to your team or find the best way to get approval from external clients? Create a professional presentation to get your message across using Google Slides. Add graphs, images, videos, and other creative assets to make an effective presentation. Share ideas and get collaborative feedback instantly!
To learn more about Google Slides, click HERE.
3. Get Feedback on New Design Concepts
Have a new idea and want to see what your coworkers or clients think about it? Share a quick poll using Google Forms to get input on a proposal. You’ll know right away if your ideas are on the right track. You can keep track of the feedback by linking the custom Form to a spreadsheet where all of the responses live so you can go back to them as you make changes!
For More information on Forms, click HERE
4. Track, Update and Collaborate on Tasks for Design
If you’re working on a big design project, create a project plan using Google Sheets to easily assign tasks. Your colleagues can update their progress directly in the spreadsheet. During the review process, easily keep track of changes to files, even if there are a lot of collaborators. With Google Drive and Team Drives, the activity stream shows who commented, edited, moved, or shared a file. In Docs, Sheets, and Slides, check out the version history to see who made changes and when! You can edit files together in real time, chat in individual files, and get constructive feedback using comments and suggestions.
For more information on Docs click HERE
For more on Sheets, click HERE
Ready to delve into Google Drive? , click HERE
5. Prepare Team Members for Meetings
Give your team a head start and let them preview files before a meeting. Send your meeting invitation in Google Calendar and attach documents, presentations, agendas, and other assets so that everyone on the team is ready to give their ideas and be well prepared at a designated time and place!
To check out more about Google Calendar, click HERE.
6. Keep Your Files Organized
If you need to keep your creative assets together in one place for organization and security, save work files and folders in Drive or a Team Drive. Then, share them instantly with co-workers or external clients. And, when someone incorporates feedback and approvals, Drive shows you what files changed.
To learn more about Team Drives, click HERE.
7. Keep Shared Files Secured
If you need to share sensitive files with clients or external project team members, you can prevent people from downloading, printing, or copying them using the share settings. FULL CONTROL. You can also set an expiration date so external clients or agencies can no longer access files when a project is over. If you’re downloading an external file, Drive scans most files for viruses. If a virus is detected, the file won’t be downloaded. Again, keeping your content and your data safe and secure.
Expiration Dates:
Share Settings:
8. Keep Everyone in the Loop
If you want to share design mock ups and status updates with your team, use Groups to set up an email list. With Groups, you can reach everyone with a single email address. Share calendars, sites, and creative files using Groups. Everyone in the group gets access to files shared with the group. You can easily add and remove people inside and outside of your organization.
To learn more about Groups, click HERE.
9. Stay Connected with Video Meetings
Trying to brainstorm and get immediate feedback on ideas with team members across the globe? Start a Hangouts Meet video meeting. You can first collaborate before hand by sharing a design content with items you want to discuss, then, during the meeting, showcase an idea by sharing your screen. With Hangouts Chat, you can send links to ideas and other online resources to everyone in the meeting.
To learn more about Hangouts Meet and Chat, click HERE.
10. Sharing Large Files
If you’re working on a design project, emailing large files isn’t always possible.
Instead, share the file using Drive. When the person clicks the link in the email, it opens on the web, even if they don’t use G Suite or have a Google Account. This can be done by creating custom share settings for any particular file in your drive. You can also set share settings to whatever you want for an entire folder. Once you move a file into a designated folder, the file takes on the same share settings as the folder it was moved to!