Excel to excel mail merge

The classic combination: Excel and Mail Merge!

Mail Merge is a powerful feature in Microsoft Office that allows you to combine data from an Excel spreadsheet with a document template to create personalized documents, such as letters, labels, or envelopes. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to perform an Excel to Excel Mail Merge:

Prerequisites:

1. You have an Excel spreadsheet with the data you want to merge.
2. You have a document template in Excel (e.g., a letter or label template).
3. You have Microsoft Office installed on your computer.

Step 1: Prepare your Excel spreadsheet

1. Open your Excel spreadsheet and make sure it's in a format that can be used for Mail Merge. Typically, this means having a header row with column names and data rows with the actual values.
2. Ensure that your data is organized in a way that makes sense for your document template. For example, if you're creating a letter, you might have columns for the recipient's name, address, and message.

Step 2: Create a new Excel document for the Mail Merge

1. Open a new Excel document (File > New > Blank Workbook).
2. Go to the "Mailings" tab in the ribbon.
3. Click on "Start Mail Merge" and select "Step-by-Step Mail Merge Wizard".
4. Choose "Excel" as the data source and select your original Excel spreadsheet.

Step 3: Set up the Mail Merge

1. In the Mail Merge Wizard, select the document type you want to create (e.g., letter, label, envelope).
2. Choose the template you created in Step 1.
3. Select the fields you want to merge from your Excel spreadsheet. You can do this by clicking on the "Fields" button and selecting the columns you want to use.
4. Click "Next" to proceed to the "Write your letter" step.

Step 4: Write your Mail Merge document

1. In the "Write your letter" step, you'll see a blank document with placeholders for the merged fields.
2. Type in your document content, using the placeholders to insert the merged fields. For example, you might use {{Name}} to insert the recipient's name.
3. Click "Next" to proceed to the "Preview your merge" step.

Step 5: Preview and merge your documents

1. In the "Preview your merge" step, you'll see a preview of your merged document.
2. Review the document to ensure everything looks correct.
3. Click "Finish" to merge the documents.

Tips and Variations:

• You can use Mail Merge to create a variety of documents, including letters, labels, envelopes, and more.
• You can also use Mail Merge to merge data from multiple Excel spreadsheets.
• If you're creating a large number of documents, you may want to consider using a macro or VBA script to automate the process.
• You can also use other Microsoft Office applications, such as Word or Publisher, for Mail Merge.