How do you do a mail merge in word 2010

A mail merge! A classic feature in Microsoft Word that allows you to create personalized documents by combining a main document with a data source, such as a spreadsheet or database. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to do a mail merge in Word 2010:

Prerequisites:

1. You have a data source (e.g., an Excel spreadsheet, Access database, or a CSV file) containing the information you want to merge with your document.
2. You have a main document (e.g., a Word document) that you want to use as the template for your mail merge.

Step 1: Prepare your data source

1. Open your data source (e.g., Excel spreadsheet) and make sure it's organized in a table format with each column representing a field (e.g., Name, Address, Phone Number).
2. Save your data source as a CSV file (e.g., "data.csv") or an Excel file (e.g., "data.xlsx").

Step 2: Create a new Word document

1. Open Microsoft Word 2010 and create a new document.
2. Type in the main content of your document, using placeholders for the fields you want to merge (e.g., [Name], [Address], [Phone Number]).

Step 3: Set up the mail merge

1. Go to the "Mailings" tab in the ribbon.
2. Click on "Select Recipients" and choose "Use an existing list" from the dropdown menu.
3. Browse to the location of your data source file (e.g., "data.csv" or "data.xlsx") and select it.
4. Click "Open" to import the data into Word.

Step 4: Match the fields

1. In the "Mailings" tab, click on "Match Fields" to match the fields in your data source with the placeholders in your document.
2. Select the first field in your data source (e.g., "Name") and click "Match Field".
3. In the "Match Fields" dialog box, select the corresponding placeholder in your document (e.g., [Name]) and click "OK".
4. Repeat this process for each field in your data source.

Step 5: Preview and merge

1. Click on "Preview Results" to see a preview of your merged document.
2. Review the preview to ensure that the data is being merged correctly.
3. If everything looks good, click "Finish & Merge" to create the merged documents.

Tips and Variations:

• You can use the "Merge to New Document" option to create a new document for each record in your data source.
• You can also use the "Merge to Printer" option to print the merged documents directly.
• If you have a large data source, you may want to consider using a more advanced mail merge tool, such as Microsoft Access or a third-party add-in.

That's it! With these steps, you should be able to perform a mail merge in Word 2010.