I have never had to give a cat a pill, thank goodness. I like the "accidental/on purpose" pill-dropping maneuver. I'll have to keep that in mind, lol!!
When I have to give them liquid meds, I use a syringe (without the needle, of course). If you can get it into the cheek at the back of the mouth, you can gently squeeze the medicine in and they automatically swallow it.
Gel-type medicine is tough, but I usually put a glob on the tip of my finger, put my finger in the mouth and smear the stuff onto the roof of the mouth. They can't spit it out that way and they have no choice but to swallow it. A vet taught me that trick.