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SHAREPOINT: ENHANCED EDITING EXPERIENCE

Author: Jonathan Stuckey


Audience: SharePoint solution designer, Intranet managers, Content authors


With the array of feature releases and updates announced at the end of last year (and available Q1 2025), Microsoft has blessed us with some new functionality which enhances and extends the content author / editor experience.


Since 2020 most of the feature releases for editing are brushing down old functionality and pushing it out the door in new clothes pretending there's vision and investment. This inundation of enhancements has made a refreshing change. We actually see something that looks like an investment in the CMS platform for content authors and intranet managers - which is frankly astonishing.


With a lot of the M365 platform, recent innovations have mostly been integrations like Copilot content creation. A return of a classic like "page sections" (see classic page editing), introduction of flexible layout options, or the accessibility checking are actually CMS focused functionality and valuable.


The Editing Experience - what did we get?

Well over period of about 3-months we get flood of releases across SharePoint. I've included the roadmap and recent product group blog announcements in Resources if you want to check-out the latest.


Some are actually useful items, listed below.


Is this all? No, we are told the 'magic' which is AI (read: Copilot) will now make content creation redundant and authors only necessary as an 'Editorial' function! ...I'm exaggerating, but the sheer volume of noise right now could make you think that, if you don't engage your marketing-hype filters.


For the sake of sanity, and something useful to talk about, we're sticking with the facts.


Page Section layout templates

Introduced in December 2024, going production this month. This feature is a targeted SharePoint page creation. Now visible on the updated 'Toolbox' panel, see below, we see the most frequently used options:

Screen of SharePoint publishing page in edit mode, with a red-arrow indicating the new layouts.
Section templates (bottom-right)

The key features are:


  1. Quick access to layouts - bringing section templates to toolbox

  2. 6 section options - mirroring the classic model options ...it's not new.

  3. Image + text combinations only - until Microsoft open up options for 'DIY' layouts


Pros and Cons

It's not special, heck its not even original (see the Classic Layout snippet below), but it is a quick-n-dirty assembly option which takes some of the initial leg-work from page creation.

Layout selection section from page-creation wizard in classic SharePoint user-interface
Classic page layout options - showing thumbnail illustration

Pros:

Some of the obvious benefits are:


  1. Quick and easy options to add to a page

  2. Immediately visible to an Editor when creating a page

  3. Enables you to provide more flexible designs on page (e.g. for templates)


Cons:

There are some potential drawbacks to consider:


  1. It will introduce rogue elements to your intranet publishing consistency

  2. Users can completely ignore your template design

  3. A limited number of options, all based on 2010 visual identity

  4. Only have 'image' + 'text' elements in the sections you select


Fit for Purpose?

Well... yeah, if all you are bothered about is how quickly you can add a few sections with columns on. Frankly once you've created one on a page and shown someone where the 'copy' button is for the section, you would be hard pushed to see any additional value here.


Dynamic Page Layouts

Another feature targeted to SharePoint page design, which lets the content Editor adjust the pre-defined section layout columns to a desired width (no messing around with Section Layout options). The flexible sections will allow dynamic webpart resizing as sections grow/shrink.


The key features with Flexible layouts:


  1. No custom deployment or re-writing content

  2. Works seamlessly with standard page sections

  3. Has a drag-n-drop experience for webparts

  4. Standard responsive framework 12-column grid


How does it work?

Well Microsoft is actually adopting the globally accepted model of 12-column grid layout in the sections, and you can mix-n-match these new sections on the page with standard sections.

Screen shot of editing webparts in the new flexible-section in a SharePoint page - editorial mode.
Flexible section layout - 12 column grid

Pros and Cons


snippet from the SharePoint Page editing experience - highlighted new Flexible section option
Integrated component. No powershell or code

Pros:

Some of the obvious benefits are:


  1. Out-of-the-box support for existing pages

  2. Offers more modern layout options

  3. Allows for creating a web-centric look and feel


Cons:

However, there are some real drawbacks to consider:


  1. Not all modern webparts can resize dynamically.

  2. Editors can completely ignore your template design & design guidance

  3. Editing standards and design guidance are a requirement to avoid a mess.

Fit for Purpose?

Sure, as a first release of the functionality. It will all depend on if we get some (better) webparts and updates for content that can be added in this type of section. Again, once you've added one to a page and moved the webparts where you want them, you'll be hard pushed to see significant value.


Webpart (singular) - Editorial card

This is one of the few new webparts from Microsoft in some time (read: years). Design and displayed as a card for both SharePoint and on Microsoft Teams Dashboard page, it's really a suped-up Button / Call to action webpart. Don't get me wrong, they've done a really good job - its just a shame its 1 card/webpart.


4 examples of editorial card layouts in a montage.
Layout options for the new Editorial Card

The key features are:


  1. Multiple layout and content alignment options

  2. Modern button / call-to-action design options

  3. Advanced text editing and formatting tools

  4. Integrates digital asset selections of stock and corporate published images

  5. Integrates image editing tools without changing page/UI


Pros and Cons


Pros:

Some of the obvious benefits are:


  1. consistent with modern web publishing components

  2. available as standard from the toolbox

  3. little training required as relies on the available UX

  4. polished editor experience and configuration options


Cons:

However, there are some potential drawbacks to consider:


  1. It's just a suped-up button webpart: Text, image and URL link.

  2. does not support gifs or short-form video

  3. no advanced or linked options


Fit for Purpose?

Yes, it's a very good component and unusually for Microsoft it appears to have had some proper integration testing done with the Advanced Image Editing integration. The name is misleading - you are not acting on an Editorial component - Its more an Advertorial - but hey, it works.


Addendum

There is a future with useful functionality pending - some is long lamented classic functionality being zhuzh-up, as well as the occasional retread of existing modern components, but after a pretty lack-lustre 4-years in the CMS publishing space we have something to look forward to...


  • Authoring accessibility checker (featured id: 470603)

  • Page preview for Authors (featured id: 473452)

  • Page inline author comments (featured id: 394691)

  • Updated Hero webpart layouts (featured id: 395214)

    ...


Assessment

On the whole these 'new' features appear to work just fine. In the great tradition of rebranding and re-releasing 'old stuff' all done up as 'new stuff', they're a winner!


The (actually) new Editorial webpart is ok. It will need tweaks with future updates to bring it in-line with modern internet CMS services experiences, such as from internet providers like Wix, WordPress, or Squarespace, but its tracking.


As with all Microsoft's roadmap updates for M365 and SharePoint, it will take time. A whole lot of time. Before they get it right. But at least we finally see a direction!


Resources


Close

Keep an eye out for our next post on content publishing releases as they land later this year, and if you have questions and want to understand more about if or how Microsoft's services fit into your Intranet - give us a call: hi@timewespoke.com

About this article: No Generative AI was used in the creation of this article.


About the author: Jonathan Stuckey

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