1. Mail Merge in Word 2016
© EIT, Author Gay Robertson, 2017

2. Why would you use Mail Merge?
You can create a form letter in Word to send to large numbers of people
You can merge the form letter with data from a data source (a table in a database, a table in Word, a worksheet in Excel)
The form letter would be customised for each client
For example, instead of "Dear Customer,"; you can have "Dear John or Dear Mr Smith". The name would come from your data source

3. The “main” document (or form letter) contains field codes eg <<Date>>
The field codes ‘join up’ with a data source in eg Access, to produce a combined output

4. Choose the type of Merge you require
Click on Mailings Tab
Mailings ribbon will appear
Choose the type of Merge you require

5. Fields in the main document or form letter…
When merged with a data source the data would appear from the database …

6. These are the individual field codes …
They match “field names” in the data source

7. The data source (which is called the Mail Merge Recipients) contains the data that is “merged” into the Word document where the codes appear

8. how to do it ...

9. Mail merge a word document with Access table or query to make a letter
Be in your source Word document (this can be a blank document or a document that already has text in it)
Click on
Choose

10. Click on choose
Navigate to YOUR folder containing the existing list click on the database/workbook/word table you are going to use as your data source eg
Choose the table or query you are going to use as your data source eg

11. Click on
This is the list of recipients (or who the letter is going to) Click on OK to close the list of recipients

12. Click on group choose
This will appear

13. Match the fields … Click on
A dialog box will appear but it could be BLANK
You need to Match the fields when your data source does not have the standard field names listed here

14. This will appear in your letter if you used an Address Block or if you used individual field codes

15. Go to group, click on the same data will appear whether you
Used an address block or
Inserted individual field codes
Click on again to go back to codes

16. Click on
Check the format of the greeting line eg if a comma is included you should change to “none” for a professional business layout of a letter change by clicking on “down arrow”

17. This will appear in your letter
Click on to see the data Use to move through records
Click on again to go back to codes

18. Insert individual merge fields within a document
Click in text where the data is required
Click on
Merge fields will appear. Click Field required
Merge field will appear in the document. Preview to see data.

19. Add a simple query to your mail merge
Click on
Click on down arrow beside field to “narrow down” from all data eg City = NAPIER
Or remove the ticks if you only want some of the records to be merged

20. Add an advanced query AND
Click on Click on down arrow beside field to “narrow down” from all data Choose
Dialog box will appear
Choose field, choose comparison to make, key in data to Compare to click on AND to add another line
Only the records that meet the criteria will be merged

21. Add an advanced query <>=
Choose the field, choose the comparison
Only the records which “match” the criteria entered will be merged

22. How do you merge the letters and get printouts?
Move along the Mail Merge toolbar and look at the options to Merge the form letter with the data source

23. Merge to a new document
First option is to merge to a new document (this means that you can check the layout of each form letter and edit if necessary)

24. Which records to merge …
Choose to merge all the records (that means all the names on the Mail Merge Recipient list will have a letter printed just for them!)

25. Merge to the printer
Second option is to merge straight to the printer (this means that you cannot check the layout of each form letter and edit if necessary – so be sure it is correct before you print!)

26. Which records to merge …
Choose to merge all the records (that means all the names on the Mail Merge Recipient list will have a letter printed just for them!)

27. End show