Completing the Main Document

In this phase, you finish the main document. This entails typing and formatting the text (if you started your main document from scratch) and inserting the merge fields that tell Word where to insert the data from your data source.

Follow these steps to complete the main document:

1. You have reached step 4 of the wizard (Write Your Letter). Type and format the letter, leaving blank lines for the recipient's address block and the greeting line (see Figure 14.12).

   Figure 14.12. Type and format your letter, leaving room for the merge fields.

   

2. Place the insertion point on the blank line for the recipient's address block, and click Address Block .

3. In the Insert Address Block dialog box, make the desired selections to specify how the address block will look (see Figure 14.13). When the preview looks right, click OK .

   Figure 14.13. Use the Insert Address Block dialog box to define how you want your address block to look.

   

4. Word inserts the Address Block merge field in your document (see Figure 14.14). Click where you want to insert the greeting line, and then click Greeting Line .

   Figure 14.14. Word inserts the Address Block merge field in your letter.

   

5. In the Greeting Line dialog box (see Figure 14.15), specify the appearance of your greeting line, and click OK .

   Figure 14.15. Use the Greeting Line dialog box to define how you want your greeting line to look.

   

6. The greeting line field is inserted. Use the remaining links under Write Your Letter in the Mail Merge task pane to insert any other fields you want to use. In Figure 14.16, a Customer Since field was inserted in the body of the letter using the More Items link.

   Figure 14.16. Insert any additional links you like.

   

   

   If you insert a merge field such as Address Block or Greeting Line and later want to revise the options you chose for that field, right-click the field in your document and choose Edit [merge field] to display the appropriate dialog box (the Insert Address Block or Insert Greeting Line dialog box, for example).

   
   

7. Save your main document. Then click Next : Preview Your Letters at the bottom of the task pane.

The next step in the process is to preview the merged letters in the section that follows .