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Mail Merge
What You Will Learn
After completing this lesson, you will be able to:
Additional Written and Web Resources
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Word for Law Firms and Lawyers
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This
chapter in Word format. (unsupplemented) |
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Cindy Meister's Mail Merge FAQ |
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Mail Merge FAQ -
MVP site |
| Videos on Mail Merge from Microsoft - for Word 2013 but applicable
to all Ribbon versions, useful for earlier versions as well
 |
Intro to Mail Merge - Using Mail Merge wizard, Intro with email
merge from Outlook Contacts, Letter merges, Creating database,
envelopes |
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Take Mail Merge to the Next Level - Mail Merge without the
Wizard, Previewing, Adding Custom Merge Fields, Comment Fields,
Directory Mail Merge |
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Advanced Mail Merge - field codes, formulae, and conditional
statements, filters, SKIPIF fields |
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How
to Create A Mail Merge by Beth Melton, MVP and Dave Rado, MVP |
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Creating a Mail Merge Data Source by Beth Melton, MVP (includes
using Excel and Access) |
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Mail merge emails - Lynda.com |
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Use mail merge to send Access data to Word - Microsoft Support |
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Mail Merge to email with Attachments - by Doug Robbins, MVP - see
also:
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How to Convert Addresses Into a Mail Merge Data Source by Beth
Melton, MVP and Dave Rado, MVP |
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Individual Merge Letters by Graham Mayor, MVP |
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Mail Merge in Word 2007-2013 by Graham Mayor, MVP - especially
useful to someone transitioning from earlier versions of Word. |
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Document Splitter by Greg Maxey - addin to break document into
component documents |
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MailMerge Graphics by Graham Mayor, MVP |
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Using Address Blocks and Greeting Lines in Word 2010 (video)
Lynda.com |
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Making
Your MailMerge Intelligent using IF Fields by Dave Rado, MVP |
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Turning
Word into a Pseudo-Database Using Mail Merge Query Options by Dave Rado,
MVP |
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How to Mail Merge Using Word, Excel and Outlook - video |
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Word mail merge: A walk through the process - Microsoft tutorial
2003 |
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How to use Mail Merge to create a list sorted by category -
Microsoft KB 294686 |
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Mail Merge [for Dummies] in Word 2013 |
| MailMerge Links |
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Doug Robbins' Merge Tools - Doug Robbins, MVP |
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How to Mail Merge with Attachments, Custom Subject & CC / BCC - using
Word, Excel, & Outlook Using Doug Robbins' Merge Tools - video |
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MailMerge with an Excel Spreadsheet - Microsoft |
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Frequently Asked Questions about MailMerge - Microsoft |
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Mail Merge Letters - video |
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Word 2007 MailMerge Tutorial - Microsoft |
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Catalogue/Directory Mailmerge Tutorial by Paul Edstein (macropod) 2013 |
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Mailmerge Tips and Tricks by Paul Edstein (macropod)
Because I feel that this is so important, I list below some of the
topics covered
| Mailmerge Data Format Problems |
| Test Whether a Text Mergedield Conains Numeric Data |
| Convert Mailemerge Date Fields to Plain Text |
| Managing Mailmerge Graphics |
| Mailmerge Hyperlink 'Click Here' Insertion |
| Conditionally Merge Spouse Data |
| Merge Multiple Fields, Using Commas and 'And' |
| Mailmerge CheckBox Insertion |
| Mailmerge String Formatting |
| Mailmerge Number & Currency Formatting |
| Force '0' Substitution for Empty/Missing Records |
| Basic Mailmerge Maths |
| Dealing With Null Values in Mailmerge Arithmetic |
| Mailmerge Percentage Formatting |
| Mailmerge Phone Number Formatting |
| Mailmerge Date Formatting and Calculations |
| Mailmerge Time Formatting |
| Mailmerge US Social Security Number, Zip Code and and Phone
Number Formatting |
| Mailmerge String Testing |
| Mailmerge Empty Space / Line Suppression |
| Conditionally Format Mailmerge Output |
| Conditionally Shade Table Cells |
| Catalog/Directory Malimerge to Label Stationery |
| Suppress Output on Unused Labels in a Label Merge |
| Send Mailmerge Output to Individual Files |
| Split Merged Output Document to Separate Documents |
| Convert Text Representations of Fields to Working Fields |
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Use the Ribbon and Perform a Complex Mailmerge Tutorial - Microsoft
Tutorial 2007 |
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Formatting Mailmerge Fields - Office for Mere Mortals |
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Formatting Numbers in Mailmerge Fields - Haverford |
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Microsoft Word 2010 Bible by Herb Tyson,
MVP |
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Using Mailmerge by Category - Paul Edstein |
| Different Kinds of Data in One Field
- short note |
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Mail Merge single-page document (letter) with two letters printed on
each page - Answer by Suzanne Barnhill, MVP |
Mail Merge Overview
CK Note: This
chapter is written for Word 2002-2003 users and will be of limited value to people
using earlier versions of Word (although the mailmerge feature has been in
Word since at least Word Version 2). For those using earlier versions, I would
suggest checking the web resources listed above. Mailmerge in Word 2007 and
later has the same steps but in a different interface. See Graham Mayor's
article.
Mail Merge is a feature used to create form letters,
labels, envelopes, e-mail messages and directories. In order to perform a mail
merge, two items are required a main document and a valid data source. In
Word, a valid data source can be created from many different types of files,
but the most commonly used are Word files (.doc), Excel files (.xls), Access
files (.mdb), comma delimited files (.csv) and Outlook Address Books (.pab).
Using the new Mail Merge Wizard, you can merge any of these file types with a
new or existing main document to complete a merge quickly and easily. For
legal users, one of the biggest improvements made to Word 2002's mail merge
feature is the integration of ODMA standards. If you work in a firm that uses
document management, you can now open and insert both the data source and the
main document directly from within the DMS. Gone are the days of having to
'check out' the data source prior to running the merge.
In Word 2007 and later versions the mail merge task pane is supplanted by the
Mailings Tab. That is shown below. The task pane, itself, can be accessed
under the Start Mail Merge button (Step-by-Step Mail Merge Wizard).
Users of Word
2007-2019 may want to take a look at Mousetraining's manuals or Herb Tyson's
Word Bible
book (see above). See also Graham Mayor's
page. All of the tools shown below are also available in the later
versions, but accessed through the Ribbon interface.
The Mail Merge Task Pane is just one of several task
panes new to Word 2002. Task panes are designed to make working with specific
features in Word easier and more efficient, and the Mail Merge Task Pane is no
exception.
The Mail Merge Task Pane contains the Mail Merge
Wizard and can be opened from the Tools menu by choosing Letters and Mailings
and selecting Mail Merge Wizard.
Practice: Opening the Mail Merge Task Pane
1.
Create a new document.
2.
(Word 2002-2003)
From the Tools menu, choose Letters and Mailings and select Mail Merge
Wizard.
(Word 2007-2019 (365)) Select the Mail Merge Wizard under the Start Mail Merge
button.
Figure
1
Mail Merge has changed significantly in Word 2002. Follow each step of the
Mail Merge wizard to easily create merged documents.
The Mail Merge Wizard is a tool designed to help make
using Word's mail merge feature more interactive and intuitive. The Wizard
consists of six steps that lead you through the entire merge process. Each
step in the process requires you to make a decision that affects the option
set displayed in the Mail Merge Task Pane. Steps 1-6 are listed below:
·
Step 1 Select
a Document Type. Choose the type of document you'll be merging with the
data source. The choices include: Letters, E-mail messages, Envelopes, Labels,
and Directories.
·
Step 2 Select
Starting Document. Select the main document. The choices include: Current
Document (document in active window), Start from a Template (open the Template
dialog box and choose one of Word's built-in templates or a custom template),
or Start from an Existing Document (open the default document folder or
navigate to a document folder and select a main document).
·
Step 3 Select
Recipients. Choose the type of data source you'll be using for the merge.
Choices include: Use an Existing List (an existing data source saved to a
local folder or document management system), Select from Outlook Contacts (use
names and addresses from the Outlook Contacts folder), Type a New List (create
a new data source -.mdb file - using Word's data form).
·
Step 4 Create
Main Document. Type the body of the main document and insert the merge fields
in the appropriate spots. The choices for this step vary depending on the type
of main document you're creating and include: Write Your Letter, Write Your
E-Mail Message, Arrange Your Envelope, Arrange Your Labels, and Arrange Your
Directory.
·
Step 5 Preview
the Main Document. Preview the main document with the merge fields inserted
prior to merging.
·
Step 6 Merge the
main document with the data source to create the final merge document.
Figure 2
In Word 2007 - 2019 the mail merge task pane is available as a choice under the Start Merge
button on the Mailings tab. It is labeled as the "Step by Step Mail Merge
Wizard."
Use the Mail Merge Wizard to Create a
Form
Letter
You can use the Mail Merge Wizard to merge an existing
data source with an existing main document, or you can start from scratch.
Once you've created a data source, you can save it, add to it, and use it
again and again to create merged letters, labels, envelopes, or any other type
of document you frequently create, such as stock certificates.
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Note:
All of the examples in the following exercises use local Windows folder
management techniques to save and open documents. If your firm uses a
document management system, you can still follow along using the save/open
procedures specific to your document management system.
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Practice: Creating a Form Letter and Data Source Using the Mail Merge Wizard
1.
Create a new document.
2.
(Word 2007 and later) On the Mailings Tab, click on the Start Mail Merge
Button (menu) and select "Step by Step Mailmerge Wizard."
(Word 2003 and earlier)
From the Tools menu, choose Letters and Mailings and choose Mail Merge
Wizard to open the Mail Merge Task Pane.
3.
Under Select Document Type, choose Letters and click Next on the bottom
of the task pane.
4.
Under Select Starting Document, choose Use the Current Document and
click Next.
5.
Under Select Recipients, click the third option, Type a New List and
then click Create. This will be the data source for the merged document.
Figure
You can remove any of the default merge fields contained in the New
Address List as well as create any custom fields, where appropriate.
6.
In the New Address List dialog box, click Customize to remove some of
the default merge fields from the list.
7.
Select and delete all of the merge fields except for First Name, Last
Name, Address Line 1, City, State and Zip. (To do this, select the Field Name
and click Delete.)
Figure 4
Select a merge field and click Move Up or Move Down to change the order of
the merge fields. Click Add to create a custom merge field.
8.
Click OK to close the dialog box.
Figure 5
When you finish creating an entry, you can click New Entry to create
another or press Enter.
9.
Create several entries. Fill in each field. Use the TAB key to move to
the next field.
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Tip:
Use Shift+TAB to move to a previous field.
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10.
Click Close to open the Save Address List dialog box. Navigate to C:\
My Documents (or save and profile it to your document management system).
11. Name the list My
Data and click Save. Word will save it as an .mdb file.
Figure
You can also create a file folder and name it My Data Sources as a place
to keep your data files separate from all your other files.
12.
Click OK to close the Mail Merge Recipients dialog box and click Next
at the bottom of the task pane to move to the next step in the process
Write Your Letter.
13. Position the insertion point at
the point in the letter where you want each recipient's address to appear, and
in the task pane, click Address Block to insert merge field.
Figure 7
The Address Block merge field groups several merge fields into one main
field. If you want more control over the insertion of merge fields, click More
Items.
14. Choose the appropriate format for
the address block and click OK.
Figure 8
Browse through each of the options in the Insert Address Block dialog box
to choose the formatting that is most appropriate for your document.
15. Press Enter twice and then click
Greeting Line.
Figure
Choose a casual or formal greeting line format.
16.
Choose an appropriate Greeting Line format and click OK.
17. Click Next to Preview the letter.
Figure
The Merge fields are shaded in gray. Click View Merged Data
on the Mail Merge toolbar to toggle between the field codes and
the field results.
18.
Under Preview Your Letters, click the double-arrows to move between
recipients. You can also click Edit Recipient List to add or remove
recipients.
19.
Type the body of the letter and then click Next to complete the merge.
20. Click Print to Merge and print
all of the records simultaneously, or click Edit Individual Letters to merge
without printing. This allows you to review the final document before
printing.
Figure 11
The merged document will appear in a new document window. You can print
and save it, or print without saving.
21
Click OK to complete the merge.
Figure 12
The merge document in Print Layout view. Each entry is separated by a Next
Page section break.
22. The merge document appears as a
separate file. Each record is separated by a Next Page Section break.
For more on creating a data
source directly for Word see
Creating a Mail Merge Data Source by Beth Melton, MVP.
Often it will be possible that multiple
people are to be addressed or an address has multiple lines, but not always.
When you finish the merge, you do not want it to be obvious that you left
space for them. This is accomplished using an
IF Field. The examples
below show field delimiters { } which will look like {
MERGEFIELD FNAME1 } rather than <<FNAME1>>. You get to see these
using Alt+F9 to toggle display of field codes. Remember to toggle
back when done!
Example 1: 2 names either or both of which
may be present
{ IF { MERGEFIELD FNAME1 }
= "" { MERGEFIELD FNAME2 } "{ MERGEFIELD FNAME1 }{
IF { MERGEFIELD FNAME2 } <> "" "and { IF {
MERGEFIELD FNAME1 } }" }
Translation: If name 1 is empty then name2;
if name 1 has content then name 1 and if name 2 is not empty name 1 and name
2.
Example 2: Possible second address line
{ IF { MERGEFIELD ADDRESS2 }
<> "" "¬
{ MERGEFIELD ADDRESS2 } "
(The "¬" represents a
manual line break (Shift+Enter).)
You cannot do this using
the Interface and dialogs. You can start with a field and edit or you can
write it using the Ctrl+F9 shortcut to insert pairs of field
delimiters. Remember to use Alt+F9 to toggle display of field codes back to
show results!
One of the benefits of storing contact information in
Outlook is being able to use it as a data source for different types of
merges. Outlook contacts constitute a ready-made data source and can be merged
to create form letters, envelopes, labels and directories. You can even use
the e-mail field in each Outlook contact to create a form e-mail.
Practice: Using Outlook Contact Data to Create a
Label Merge
1.
Create a new document.
2.
From the Tools menu, choose Letters and Mailings and select Mail Merge
Wizard.
3.
In the Mail Merge Task Pane, click Labels and then move to the bottom
of the window and click Next.
4.
In the next pane under Change Document Layout, click Label Options.
5.
In the Label Options dialog box, select Avery 5162 under Product Number
and click OK.
Figure
Choose any of the labels from the Product Number list or click New Label
to create a custom label size.
6.
Click Next Select Recipients to move to Step 3.
7.
Under Select Recipients, click Select from Outlook Contacts.
8.
From Select from Outlook Contacts, click Choose Contacts Folder.
Figure 14
Word will 'grab' the address information stored in your Outlook Contact
folder to complete the label merge.
9.
Select the appropriate Contacts folder (the default is Contacts) and
click OK. Click OK to close the Mail Merge Recipients dialog box.
10.
Click Next to move to Step 4 Arrange Your Labels.
11.
In the next task pane, click Address Block to insert the address
information from your contacts folder into the Label sheet.
Figure
Select an address format appropriate for the type of label you are
creating.
12.
Click OK.
13. From under Replicate Labels,
click Update All Labels.
Figure
16
Click More Items to insert only the merge fields
appropriate for the type of labels you're creating.
14.
Click Next to move to Step 5 Preview Your Labels.
15.
If you need to add or remove recipients from the Label sheet, click
Edit Recipient List from Make Changes and make the appropriate changes.
16.
Click Next to move to Step 6 Complete the Merge.
17. Click Print to merge and print
the labels. Click Edit Individual Labels to merge without printing.
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Note:
After editing individual labels, you can print using Word's Print dialog
box.
|
Figure
You can print all records, the current record, or a range of records.
18.
Click OK.
Figure
18
You can use any of the options on the Table Layout Tab (ribbon versions) Table menu or Tables and Border
toolbar to align the text on the labels.
You can create and use any number of different file
types as valid data sources for a merge. One of the easiest to setup and
maintain is a Word table. For example, you could use a table to create a data
source containing the variable field information generally used in stock
certificates. Once the data source is setup and saved, you can merge it with
the stock certificate form to create stock certificates.
Practice: Saving a Word Table as a Data Source
1.
Create a new document.
2.
From the Table menu, choose Insert and select Table.
3.
Create a table with 4 columns and 2 rows. Click OK.
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Note:
If you need a refresher on creating or working with tables, read the
section Using Tables in the Legal Environment.
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4.
In the first cell of the first row, type Company.
Press TAB to move to the next cell in the first row.
5.
Type Stock Type and press
TAB.
6.
Type No. of Shares and press
TAB to move to the last cell in the first row.
7.
Type Issue Date.
8.
Click in the first cell of the second row and type Microsoft
and press TAB.
9.
Type Common, press TAB and
type 1,000 and press TAB.
10.
Type 6/12/01 and press TAB
to create a new row.
11.
From the File menu, choose Save to open the Save As dialog box.
Navigate to C:\ My Documents (or profile and save the document to your
document management system).
12.
In the File Name box, type Stock
Certificate Data and click Save.
13.
Add as many records as you need to complete the data document. (You can
always add additional entries later.)
14. Save and close the document.
Practice: Using the Mail Merge Wizard to Create
Stock Certificates
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Note: This
exercise assumes that you have an existing stock certificate form. If you
do not have one, you will need to create one before you start this
exercise or you can use a blank document.
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1.
Open the stock certificate form you regularly use to create stock
certificates. (Not the data source created in the preceding exercise but the
form itself.)
2.
From the Tools menu, choose Letters and Mailings and Mail Merge Wizard
to open the Mail Merge Task Pane.
3.
Under Select Document Type, select the default, Letters, and click Next
at the bottom of the task pane to move to Step 2.
4.
In the next pane, choose Use the Current Document and click Next to
move to Step 3.
5.
Select Use an Existing List from Select Recipients and then click
Browse to open the Select Data Source dialog box.
6.
Navigate to the folder you saved the data source document to in the
preceding exercise (or open it from the document management system).
7.
Select Stock Certificate.doc and click Open.
8.
Click OK to close the Mail Merge Recipients dialog box.
Figure
19
Uncheck those records of the data document that you
don't wish to appear in the merge document.
9.
Click Next located at the bottom of the task pane to move to Step 4.
10.
Under Write Your Letter, click More Items to open the Merge Field
dialog box.
Figure
Each column in the table header row appears as a unique merge field.
11.
Place the insertion point in the appropriate location in the stock
certificate form. Select and insert each merge field.
12.
Click Next at the bottom of the task pane to move to Step 5.
13.
Preview the stock certificate(s), and if necessary, click Edit
Recipient List to make add or remove recipients.
14.
Click Next to move to Step 6 Complete the Merge.
15.
In the final task pane, click Print to merge and print or Edit
Individual Letters to merge and print later.
16.
Click OK.
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CK NOTE: Disconnecting a
main document from data retaining last data used. You can disconnect a
main merge document from a data source, leaving it filled in with
the last data used, by changing it to a "Normal Word Document."
In the latest versions of Word, this is done under the Start Mail
Merge button on the Mailings Tab. |
Introduction
This is not part of the original chapter but is simply miscellaneous
observations about problems that i have addressed.
Printing One Letter (document) in a
completed merge document.
When you merge to a new document (letter or envelope merge) what you get
is a document with multiple records and no merge fields, an ordinary Word
document. Well, sort of. For those not familiar with the idea, each record
is in a separate Section of the document. When you want to print this you
need to specify the section and page rather than simply the pages.
Pagination usually restarts with each record.
Sections / Headers and Footers in Microsoft Word (2003 and earlier)
Sections / Headers and Footers in Microsoft Word (Word 2007 and later)
My usual work-around is to go to the page I want to print and
print the current page. This works, but is a pain if you have a number that
need printing.
You can have Word report the section number in the Status bar.
Then, you need to tell the printer that you want that section(s) and
page(s) printed.
Page x of y construction in the new document with
multiple records
For Page x of y construction in general see page numbering in one of the
chapters on Sections.
When you merge to a new document with a letter merge, each record creates
a new document Section in the single document that results. If you use the
traditional Page x of y construction in your headers or footers you will end
up with a total of all the pages as your "y" number. So, you want to change
the { NUMPAGES } field in your header/footer to a { SECTIONPAGES } field
instead. To toggle display of field codes you can use the keyboard shortcut
Alt+F9.
Here is an screenshot from the header of a result document from a 5-page
Main Document merged to 6 records.
If your Main Merge Document already has multiple sections, you would have
to use Field math to construct your "y" number. See
How to
control the page numbering in a Word document by Bill Coan. A workaround
is to simply type the number of pages in your Main Word Document as a number
rather than a field. In the example shown above, the "y" would be a typed
"5" rather than a field. This only works, though, if the number of pages is
the same from each record. (This is usually the case.)
I just learned (2013) that if you have different types of data in a field
in different records it can be a problem if the change in type doesn't occur
until after the first 8-16 records. In particular, if a field usually
contains numeric data but occasionally has text, and if there is no text in
the first records in that field, Word will interpret it all as numeric and
return a blank or 0 as the value of text in later records. A solution is to
use a dummy record at the beginning that has text in the field. This came up
on the
Microsoft Answers site. Another solution suggested by Paul Edstein is to
use the DDE data connection method.
This chapter from original Legal Users Guide to Microsoft Word 2002 -
document in zip format
 Copyright 2000, Microsoft Corporation.
Copyright 2000-2002, 2004-2006, 2010-2024
Charles
Kyle Kenyon
See information about copy permission.
Search Intermediate Users Guide to Microsoft Word Using Google My office page as a
Madison,
Wisconsin Criminal Defense Lawyer.
Original Legal Users Guide to Microsoft Word 2002 - Documents in Zip Format
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