SharePoint Site Navigation: A Tutorial on Creating a Mega Menu

SharePoint is a powerful platform for collaboration and content management. It offers a wide range of features and tools that can be customized to suit the needs of different organizations. One important aspect of SharePoint is site navigation, which plays a crucial role in ensuring users can easily find and access the information they need.

The Importance of Effective Site Navigation

Effective site navigation is essential for a positive user experience. It allows users to quickly and intuitively navigate through the site, find relevant content, and complete their tasks efficiently. Poor navigation can lead to frustration, confusion, and ultimately, a decrease in productivity.

Understanding Mega Menus

A mega menu is a type of navigation menu that displays multiple columns of links and additional content. It provides a more comprehensive and visually appealing way to present navigation options, especially for sites with a large number of pages or sections.

Creating a Mega Menu in SharePoint

SharePoint provides several options for creating site navigation, including the ability to create a mega menu. In this tutorial, we will walk you through the steps to create a mega menu in SharePoint.

Step 1: Enable Publishing Features

The first step in creating a mega menu in SharePoint is to enable the publishing features. These features are not enabled by default, so you will need to activate them before you can proceed.

Step 2: Create a Custom Navigation Term Set

Once the publishing features are enabled, you can create a custom navigation term set. A term set is a collection of related terms that can be used for navigation. By creating a custom term set, you can define the structure and content of your mega menu.

Step 3: Configure the Managed Metadata Navigation

After creating the custom term set, you need to configure the managed metadata navigation. This will allow you to use the custom term set as a navigation menu on your SharePoint site.

Step 4: Design and Customize the Mega Menu

Once the managed metadata navigation is configured, you can design and customize the mega menu. SharePoint provides a range of options to customize the appearance and behavior of the mega menu, including the ability to add images, icons, and tooltips.

Conclusion

A mega menu can greatly enhance the site navigation experience in SharePoint. By following the steps outlined in this tutorial, you can create a customized mega menu that meets the specific needs of your organization. Effective site navigation is key to improving user experience and productivity, so it's worth investing the time and effort to create a well-designed and intuitive mega menu.