Documents That Can Be Created in Microsoft Word

Microsoft Word lets you create letters, lists and other simple documents. However, the program is capable of much more variety than that. You can use Word to create a multitude of documents--many of which you may never have considered.

You can make simple greeting cards in Word using the columns feature. Set the page to landscape mode and reduce the margins as much as your printer will allow. Select 2 columns from the Format > Columns menu. The card must be two pages. On the first page, design the card's front in the right column using images, text and Word art. Design the card's interior in the left column of the second page. Print these two pages double-sided on a single sheet of cardstock or paper.

Word's template wizard offers numerous options for creating invoices--a useful ability for small business that cannot afford expensive accounting software. Launch the template wizard and select the invoice style you wish to use. Enter your company information in the appropriate section, then fill in the central grid with information on product names, product numbers, unit costs and quantities. The program should do the math automatically. Remember to add shipping and sales tax if applicable so that the invoice can generate an accurate total.

Tri-fold brochures are similar to greeting cards, but you will use three columns instead of two. The first page will have the folded insert in the left column, the brochure's back in the center column and the brochure's front in the right column. The second page can have information in the same order that you want it to appear when the brochure is opened. Print the two pages double-sided on a sheet of paper and fold it along the column borders.

Custom calendars are simple to make in Microsoft Word thanks to the calendar wizard. Launch it from the New Document task pane and select the style that you want to use. After that, all you have to do is follow the on-screen instructions to fill in specific dates, months and other data. Word will automatically generate a calendar based on the input that you have provided. You can print the calendar, then staple it and hang it on the wall.

More recent versions of Word can be used to create web pages with no programming knowledge required. You can work from a template or build your page from scratch, adding backgrounds, text and images just as you would to a letter that you plan to print. Turn text into links by selecting it, then clicking "Insert" and "Hyperlink" and providing the correct information. When you are finished, save the file as a web page and open it in an Internet browser.