About Google Sites

Recently I was offered the opportunity to assist a lawyer with the setup of a website for their independent practice. The lawyer’s website is published using Google Sites – something which I didn’t realize was a thing before ths week.

Google Sites the Google Apps version of a website building and publishing tool. In other words, it is Google’s implementation of a Wix or Squarespace service for people looking for an inexpensive and relatively easy way to publish a personal website.

These types of services are frustratingly limited for a power user, but I imagine they are quite helpful to someone with limited experience beyond editing Word documents and PowerPoint decks. Google Sites is probably quite comfortable for someone familiar with and frequently using Google Docs, Slides, and Sheets. There are a small number of templates that site builders can start from where text and images are already in place and simply need to be edited.

For someone publishing a page or two online, getting started is very fast. I was able to create and publish a single page in less than an hour. This includes the time it took to purchase a domain from Google Domains for the new site. This step is not required, but I’d recommend it. A custom domain can be purchased from Google or from another provider and then configured for use with Google Sites. For obvious reasons, purchasing through Google Domains is going to be easier.

While limited, the service’s tie-ins with other Google Apps and Google Drive are big benefits for people already hooked into the ecosystem. If you don't need a great deal of customization and want to get a small site quickly published, this seems like a reasonable option. It is hard to beat free^*.

^* Obviously, nothing with Google is really free. You are giving up your data for Google to use as they please. Just be aware of and agreeable to that trade.