Types of documents in mail merge

Hello students, welcome to Kwickprep. Your school must send a result letter to five hundred parents, each with a different name. Will someone type five hundred letters? No. Today we learn mail merge and the types of documents it uses.

Let us first understand the term. Mail merge is a word processor feature that joins one document with a list of details. The fixed text, like the school name and the message, is typed only once. The changing details, like each parent's name and address, come from a list. The result is one personal copy for every person on the list.

Every mail merge uses three documents. The main document holds the text that stays the same, plus places for the changing details. The data source holds the changing details of each person. The merged document is the final output, with one copy for each person.

Now let us look at each document closely. The main document is also called the primary file or the starting document. It holds the text that is common to every copy. It also has merge fields, shown inside double angle brackets. A merge field is a placeholder, like an empty seat that is filled from the data source.

In Microsoft Word, the Start Mail Merge button on the Mailings tab offers these types of main document. Letters make one printed letter for each person, like a fee reminder. E-mail messages send one personal email to each address. Envelopes print each address directly on an envelope. Labels print many address stickers on one sheet. A directory puts all the records together in one list, like a class phone list.

Students often mix up letters and directory. In letters, each record starts on a new page. In a directory, the records follow one another on the same page. So choose a directory for lists, such as a phone list or a price catalogue.

Pause and predict. A shop wants to post two hundred Diwali greeting letters. It also needs two hundred address stickers for the covers. Which two main document types does it need? The answer is letters for the greetings, and labels for the stickers.

The data source can come from many places. A table typed in a Word document works. An Excel worksheet with a heading row is the most common choice. A table from an Access database can also be used. You can type a new list inside Word, which saves it as an address list file. Contacts saved in Outlook can be used too.

The data source is arranged in rows and columns. A field is one type of detail, such as name or city, and it is one column. A record is all the details of one person, and it is one row. The header row at the top holds the field names. Each record becomes one copy in the merged document.

The third document is the merged document. Word makes it when the main document and the data source are joined. It has one copy for each record, or one long list for a directory. You can edit any copy, print all of them, or send them as email. Save it with a new name, so your main document stays clean.

Here is how the three documents connect. First, create the main document and choose its type. Next, connect the data source. Then insert merge fields where the details must appear. Preview the copies and complete the merge. The output is the merged document.

Let us revise what we learned today. Mail merge joins fixed text with a list of details. The main document holds the fixed text and the merge fields. Its types are letters, email messages, envelopes, labels and directory. In the data source, fields are columns and records are rows. The merged document has one copy for each record.