We are thrilled to announce that authors will now have the option to remove the title area, which is no longer mandatory at the top of a page. This title area is being rebranded as a Banner web part with new layouts, allowing you to add one or more banners to any column of a page, including a full-width section.
Now, with this flexibility, you can choose to have no banners, one banner, or multiple banners on a SharePoint page. If you decide to remove the title area, you can choose a Banner to restore the title.
New Banner Layouts:
We’ve added two new layouts for Banner: Author and Fade. It works in each type of section, including Full-width section, One column, Two columns, Three columns, and One-third.
New layouts:
Banner in Full-width Section and Three column section:
Title on the command bar
The first banner at the top of the page (in a full-width section) is considered as the title (H1), which automatically synchronizes to the page Title on the command bar at the top of the screen. Additional banners will function as headings in the page. The page Title on the command bar is visible in edit mode only.
Note: You must enter a page title in the first banner or on the command bar before you can Save and close or Publish the page.
Features and capabilities mentioned in this blog post, are demonstrated in the following video with Tina Chen (Microsoft) and Vesa Juvonen (Microsoft).
WCAG 2.1 Compliance:
How do you meet WCAG 2.1 criteria without a visible H1 title? If you opt not to have a title on the page, a hidden H1 element in HTML will ensure accessibility, with the H1 content derived from the page title on the command bar.
The title area in existing SharePoint page templates has been updated, meaning when you create a new page from a SharePoint page template, you will see a Banner at the top. In some situations, the old title area will not rename automatically, but you can still select new layout options from the toolbox:
- When you edit an existing page with a title created before this rollout, you can remove or keep the Title Area.
- When you make a copy of an existing page with a title created before this rollout, you can remove or keep the Title Area in the copied page.
- When you create a new page using a custom template with a Title Area, you can remove or keep the Title Area in the new page.
Learn more: Create and use modern pages on a SharePoint site
Frequently asked questions
When will this happen?
General Availability (Worldwide, GCC, GCC High and DoD): We began rolling out in early July 2024 and rollout was completed by the end of August 2024. This message is associated with Microsoft 365 Roadmap ID 386904.
How will this affect your organization?
With this update, SharePoint Page and News authors can set section background color or image, making it an appealing experience.
What do you need to prepare?
This rollout will happen automatically by the specified dates with no admin action required before the rollout. You may want to notify your users about this change and update any relevant documentation as appropriate.
How does it look in emails?
The pre-rollout title areas and Banners will be supported in email. When users send a Page or News as email, the layout will change slightly: the banner image will appear above the banner text.
What is next?
- The new Banner is available in Design Ideas Private Preview.
- Enhanced page templates experiences with new capabilities like Banner new layouts, Section Background and more.
Thanks for reading. Please enjoy making beautiful pages and let us know any feedback or questions in the comments.