964 Chapter 31 Create Colorful Cards and Calendars
you enter in a publication with the variable information in a data source (a mailing list
or any other type of database) to create one copy of the merged publication for every
record in the data source.
The data source is a structured document, such as a Microsoft Word table, a Microsoft
Excel worksheet, a Microsoft Access database table, or a Microsoft Outlook contact list.
You can use an existing data source, or you can create a new one as part of the mail
merge process.
To tell Publisher what information to pull from the data source and where to put it,
you insert data fields into the publication. These fields correspond to the field names
(usually column headings) in the data source. For example, the address area of a post-
card usually contains an address block consisting of fields for the name and address of
each recipient. After you enter the data fields in the publication, each field is enclosed
in chevrons—for example, «FirstName».
After you specify the data source you want to use and insert the appropriate data fields
into the publication, you can either send the merged publications directly to the printer
or you can merge them one after the other into a new publication, as separate pages. If
you merge to a new publication, you have another chance to review and, if necessary,
edit the merged copies before sending them to the printer.
This might sound like a complicated process, but Publisher makes it simple with the Mail
Merge Wizard, a three-step wizard that leads you through the mail merge process from
start to finish.Using Catalog Merge
Publisher offers several booklet-style catalog templates into which you can insert product
information. If this information is stored in an Excel workbook or an Access database, you
can use catalog merge to merge the product information into the catalog publication at
printing time.
Catalog merge works pretty much the same way as mail merge. You can link to an
existing data source or create a new one. When using an existing data source, you
can filter the information or exclude specific records. This means you can tailor each
printing of the catalog—for example, for a particular occasion or season.
If you frequently use catalogs as a marketing tool, it is worth taking the time to set up
your product or service information in a workbook or database so that you can maintain
it in one location and avoid having to retype it every time you need it. You might even
consider storing information such as team or membership lists this way so that you can
use Publisher and catalog merge to produce professional-looking rosters.