Creating a Main Document

A main document (Figure 5) has two components:

Figure 5. An example of a main document for a form letter.

• Static text that does not change. In a form letter, for example, static text would be the information that remains the same for each individual who will get the letter.

• Data merge fields that indicate what data source information should be merged into the document and where it should go. In a form letter, the static text Dear might be followed by the field «FirstName». When merged, the contents of the FirstName field are merged into the document after the word Dear to result in Dear Joe, Dear Sally, etc.

Normally, a main document can be created with one or two steps:

• Enter the static text first, then insert the fields when the data source is complete. This method is useful when you use an existing document as a main document.

• Enter the static text and insert the fields at the same time, when the data source document is complete. This method may save time and prevent confusion when creating a main document from scratch.

Tips

• You cannot insert fields into a main document until after the data source has been created and associated with the main document.

• You enter and edit static text in a main document the same way you do in any other Word document.

To create a main document

1.	Open a document on which you want to base the main document (Figure 6). Figure 6. A form letter without merge fields. or Create a new document.
2.	Open the Data Merge Manager (Figure 1).
3.	Choose an option from the Create popup menu (Figure 3): Form Letters are letters customized for multiple recipients. Labels are labels addressed to multiple recipients. If you choose this option, the Label Options dialog appears (Figure 7). Use it to specify the type of printer, choose a label product, and select a product number. Then click OK. Figure 7. Use the Label Options dialog to set options for a data merge to mailing labels. Envelopes are envelopes addressed to multiple recipients. If you choose this option, the Envelope dialog appears (Figure 8). Use it to specify return address and printing options for the envelope. Then click OK. Figure 8. Use the Envelope dialog to set options for a data merge to envelopes. Catalog is a collection of information about multiple items. The name and type of the main document appear in the Data Merge Manager (Figure 9). Figure 9. The name and type of the main document appear in the Data Merge Manager.
4.	Add or edit static text as desired.
5.	Save the document.

Tips

• Do not add any static text at this point for mailing labels or envelopes. These main documents have special formatting needs that must be set up before you can add static text.

• I tell you more about working with envelopes and labels in Chapter 14.