Editing Mail merge (section)

==Overview==
The data source is typically a table in a document, or a [[spreadsheet]] or [[database]] which has a field or column for each variable in the template. When the word processor's mail merge is run it creates an output document for each row in the data source, using the fixed text from the data source.

The mail merging process generally requires the following steps:
# Creating a main document template.
# Creating a data source.
# Defining the merge fields in the main document template.
# Merging the data source with the main document template.
# Saving/exporting.

A common usage is for creating "personalized" letters, where a template is created, with a field for "Given Name", for example. The templated letter says "Dear <Given Name>", and when executed, the mail merge creates a letter for each record in the database, so it appears the letter is more personal. It is often used for [[variable data printing]]. It can also be used to create address labels from a [[customer relationship management]] database, or for mass emails with pertinent information in them, perhaps a username and password.