Making form letters in word

Sometimes you may want to create a letter that you will be sending to a lot of different people, but you’d like certain parts of it to be individualized for each addressee: parts such as the greeting, name, address, etc. In Word parlance, this means you should create a form letter, which is really easy to do.

Before you get started with form letters, you should make sure you have a database already setup with all the fields you would like to include. A database can be as simple as an Excel spreadsheet with columns for first name, last name, address, etc. Word can import data from Excel, Access, and text documents. If you don’t already have a database setup, you can always create it inside Word, which I’ll show you how to do.

To begin, create a document that has the standard text in it like the example Christmas letter below:

Notice how it has no salutation, address, etc. because those will all be added later as fields in our form letter. The first thing you need to do is click on Select Recipients on the Mailings tab:

This is where you add the people that will be receiving the letter or import a list from a database file.

You can click on Type New List if you want to create the list inside Word itself. To import, click on Use Existing List. In this example, we’ll just type out the list.

Note: When you go to save your recipient list, Word will prompt you for a location on your hard drive to save the data file that will be created.

Once you save your recipients list, you will notice that a lot of the icons that are on the Mailings ribbon are clickable now. To start adding fields to your form letter, click a spot in your document to indicate where you want the field to be placed and then click on Address Block.

This will bring up the Insert Address Block dialog.

Click OK to go with the default format and you should get something that looks like this:

Next, add an Enter after the Address Block to move your text down a line, then click on the Greeting Line icon:

This will bring up the Insert Greeting Line dialog.

Once again, let’s go with the default format and just click the OK button.

Next, highlight where it says , right-click the mouse, choose Paragraph and then check the box next to Don’t add space between paragraphs of the same style. This will make the address block hang together correctly instead of having a blank line between each part of it.

Then, click on the Preview Results icon located on the Mailings tab in the ribbon.

Instead of the address block field indicator, you should now see the actual content listed in the Word document.

When you’re done previewing, click the Preview Results icon to turn off previewing. Next, to see how to add other fields, click just past the in your document to make that your current position, then click on the Insert Merge Field icon.

You should get something like this:

Choose Country or Region, then click on the Insert button.

Try clicking the Preview Results icon again to see how it looks. Here is my example below:

Now that the form letter is setup correctly, you can do more advanced things like setting up rules. Rules will allow you to show some text for certain recipients and hide it for others. To get started, click on the Rules button.

You’ll see a drop-down menu with several options like Ask, Fill-in, etc.

For our example, let’s choose If…Then…Else, which will bring us to the following dialog:

Change the Field name: to Country_or_ Region, and type USA into the Compare to: field. Next, add some text to the boxes where it says Insert this text and Otherwise insert this text. In this example if the recipient lives in the USA, they will get the text Merry Christmas inserted into their letter, while everyone else will get the message Seasons Greetings.

Here’s what it will look like once you click the OK button and then the Preview Results button.

Next, note the Preview Results section:

Here you can click on the arrow buttons (when Preview Results is turned on) to the left and right of the number to scroll through all of the letters that will be sent out. This way you can make sure that all of your letters will look right before printing or emailing.

Note: The match fields menu choice under Rules is for matching field names in a database with header names in your recipients list.

Also to make it easier to see where you’ve inserted fields into your document, use the Highlight Merge Fields button.

It’s a toggle you can turn on and off at your discretion. Finally, when you’re happy with your letter, click the Finish & Merge icon:

You should get this dropdown menu with three options.

Choose Edit Individual Documents to get Word to merge all your letters together into one big document that you can look over before printing or sending as an email.

As you can see, creating form letters with Word is no longer the chore it once was and you can create and send documents quickly and easily. If you have any questions, feel free to comment. Enjoy!

SOURCE:http://www.online-tech-tips.com/ms-office-tips/how-to-create-form-letters-in-word/

Perform a Mail Merge in Microsoft Word to Generate Form Letters for Bulk Mailings

by Avantix Learning Team | Updated January 10, 2021

Applies to: Microsoft^® Word^® 2013, 2016, 2019 and 365 (Windows)

You can use mail merge in Microsoft Word to create form letters, labels, envelopes and even a catalog or directory. In this article, we’ll review the process for creating form letters for multiple contacts or clients. You’ll need to create a main document or letter in Microsoft Word and then connect to a data set of names and addresses in a Word document, Excel worksheet, delimited file or database like Microsoft Access. When you run the mail merge, you have the option of creating a new merged file (which would include a letter for each contact) or merge directly to a printer.

Recommended article: How to Create Labels in Word Using Mail Merge and Excel Source Data

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Understanding the mail merge process for form letters

There are 7 steps in the mail merge process to create form letters in Word:

1. Start the merge and specify the main document for the letter.
2. Select the source file containing the data set with names and addresses. Microsoft refers to a data set or database as a list. It’s best to create this file before you begin the mail merge process.
3. Insert fields into the letter and any other required content (such as the body of the letter and signature).
4. Format the letter.
5. Select specific recipients or filter the recipient list (optional).
6. Preview the merged letter (optional).
7. Run the mail merge.

During the mail merge process, fields are inserted into the main document and appear in carets (such as <<FirstName>>). By default, when you click in a field, it is displayed with grey shading. When you run the merge, the fields are replaced by data from the source file.

In this article, we’ll be using the Mailings tab in the Ribbon to set up and run a mail merge (not the Mail Merge Wizard):

Step 1: Start the merge and specify the main document

The first step in the mail merge process is to start the merge using Start Mail Merge on the Mailings tab in the Word Ribbon:

To start the merge and specify the main document as a form letter:

1. Create a new blank document or open a Word document containing a sample letter.
2. Click the Mailings tab in the Ribbon and then click Start Mail Merge in the Start Mail Merge group.
3. From the drop-down menu, select the type of document you want to create. In this case, select Letters. By default, Word uses the current document. At this point, you may want to insert other components such as a date, the body of the letter and a signature.

Step 2: Select the source file containing the data set

The next step is to connect to a source file containing a list of names and addresses using Select Recipients. The source file can be a Microsoft Word document containing a table or delimited data, Excel worksheet or even a table or query in a database such as Microsoft Access. For Word tables and Excel spreadsheets, the first row in the table or worksheet must contain field names such as FirstName, LastName, Company, Address and so on. In a Word source file, there cannot be any paragraphs above the table or data. You can also use a comma or tab delimited file as long as the first line in the document contains field names. In delimited files, the field names and data are separated by a delimiter such as a comma or tab.

Select Recipients appears on the Mailings tab in the Ribbon:

In the following example, note that the field names are in the first row of a Word table which will be used as a source:

In the following Excel example, note that the field names are in the first row of the worksheet which will be used as a source:

To select a Microsoft Word source file containing a table with names and addresses:

1. In the main Word document, click the Mailings tab in the Ribbon and then click Select Recipients in the Start Mail Merge group. A dialog box appears.
2. Click Use an Existing List from the drop-down menu. A dialog box appears.
3. Navigate to the Word file containing the names and addresses you want to use.
4. Double-click the file.

To select a Microsoft Excel source file containing a worksheet with names and addresses:

1. In the main Word document, click the Mailings tab in the Ribbon and then click Select Recipients in the Start Mail Merge group. A dialog box appears.
2. Click Use an Existing List from the drop-down menu. A dialog box appears.
3. Navigate to the Excel file containing the names and addresses you want to use.
4. Double-click the file. A dialog box appears.
5. Ensure First row of data contains column headers is checked.
6. Click the Excel worksheet containing the data you wish to use.
7. Click OK.

The following dialog box appears when you select an Excel file as the source for a merge:

Step 3: Insert fields from the source file

Once you have connected to a source file, you can insert fields into the main document or letter. You have the option of using special Word fields such as Address Block and Greeting Line (for example, to insert Dear John) or inserting individual fields.

Address Block and Greeting Line appear as follows in the Ribbon:

To insert the Address Block field:

1. Click in the main document where you want to insert an address block.
2. Click the Mailings tab in the Ribbon and then click Address Block in the Write & Insert Fields group. A dialog box appears. Word will display an address based on the source data.
3. In the samples on the left, select the address sample you prefer.
4. Check or uncheck other options if necessary.
5. Click OK. Word inserts an Address Block field into the main document.

For Address Block, select a sample address in the area on the left in the Insert Address Block dialog box:

To insert a Greeting Line field:

1. Click in the main document where you want to insert a greeting.
2. Click the Mailings tab in the Ribbon and then click Greeting Line in the Write & Fields group. A dialog box appears. Word will display a greeting based on the source data.
3. Select greeting line options for the Greeting line format.
4. Select an option for invalid recipient names.
5. Click OK. Word inserts a Greeting Line field into the main document.

For Greeting Line, select greeting line options in the Insert Greeting Line dialog box:

To insert fields individually:

1. Click in the main document where you want to insert a field (such as FirstName).
2. Click the Mailings tab in the Ribbon and then select Insert Merge Field in the Write & Insert Fields group.
3. From the drop-down menu, select the field you want to insert.
4. Press the spacebar, type text or press Enter if necessary.
5. Repeat for other fields you want to insert.

Step 4: Format the letter

You may need to apply formatting to the letter such as changing the font and size and adjusting paragraph spacing.

It’s common for an Address Block field or address lines to have extra paragraph spacing above and / or below lines in the address when the results are previewed or printed. This is caused by default settings for space above and below paragraphs.

To remove the paragraph spacing:

1. Select the Address Block field or other lines (often in the address if you have inserted individual fields).
2. Click the Home tab in the Ribbon and select the dialog box launcher on the bottom right of the Paragraph group.
3. Select Don’t add space between paragraphs of the same style. Alternatively, change the space above and below the paragraph(s).
4. Click OK.

Step 5: Select specific recipients or filter the recipient list (optional)

You have the option of specifying specific recipients or filtering the recipient list if you don’t want to create form letters for all contacts in the data source.

To choose specific contacts:

1. Click the Mailings tab in the Ribbon and then click Edit Recipient List in the Start Mail Merge group. A dialog box appears.
2. Uncheck the check boxes beside the recipients you do not want to include in the mail merge.
3. Click OK.

To filter the source list:

1. Click the Mailings tab in the Ribbon and then click Edit Recipient List in the Start Mail Merge group. A dialog box appears.
2. Click Filter. A dialog box appears.
3. Select / enter the desired filtering options.
4. Click OK.

For example, below is a filter to display records from Toronto:

To remove the filter, repeat the process, but click Clear All in the Filter and Sort dialog box.

Step 6: Preview the results (optional)

Before you run the mail merge, you can preview the results:

1. In the main document, click the Mailings tab in the Ribbon and then click Preview Results in the Preview Results group.
2. Click the arrows in the Preview Results group to go to the next or previous letter.
3. Click Preview Results to view the fields again.

Step 7: Run the mail merge for letters

The final step is to run the merge. You can either create a new merged document or merge directly to a printer.

To run the letter mail merge in the main document and create a new merged document:

1. Click the Mailings tab in the Ribbon and then click Finish & Merge in the Finish group. A drop-down menu appears.
2. Click Edit Individual Documents. A dialog box appears.
3. Click Current Record or enter a selected range if necessary.
4. Click OK. Word creates a new merged document that you can edit, print and save. Each letter will appear on a new page in a new section.

The following dialog box appears when you select Edit individual documents.

To run the letter mail merge in the main document and print the merged documents:

1. Click the Mailings tab in the Ribbon and click Finish & Merge in the Finish group. A drop-down menu appears.
2. Select Print Documents. A dialog box appears.
3. Click Current Record or enter a selected range if necessary.
4. Click OK. A dialog box appears.
5. Select the desired printer and other printer options.
6. Click OK.

The following dialog box appears when you select Print Documents:

You will typically want to save the main document and the source file. If you save the merged file, you will have a record of the letters that were created.

The process is similar for labels. The main document would be labels (usually a label type with a product code) and would connect to the source document in the same way.

This article was first published on December 9, 2019 and has been updated for clarity and content.

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How to Insert a DRAFT Watermark in Word and Remove It (Add Text or Picture Watermarks)

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Using Mail Merge

Preparing a form letter with Word and Excel

Two Microsoft Office applications will be required for this task. Excel will be used for the data and Word will be used to create the form letter. A form letter is one in which the body of the letter stays the same but specific information is inserted for/about several different individuals. You have probably gotten one like that in the past. The first step will be to prepare the data source from which information will be inserted into the form letter.

Step 1. Open Microsoft Excel. Remember to leave your browser window open until this lesson is finished. The excel worksheet will take the place of a database. A database has field names for each type of information entered. Common field names are First Name, Last Name, Telephone, and zip code. The field names you choose will be determined by the form letter you want to produce. For this activity we will use the following field names:

• First name
• Last name
• Subject
• Class period
• Average grade

Step 2. Field names must be entered in the cells across row 1. Type «First name» in cell A1. Press the Tab key to move to cell B1 and type «Last name.» Continue until each of the field names above have been entered. Do not worry if the cell is not wide enough. Your worksheet will probably look somewhat like the one you see below:

Step 3. Place your cursor over the » A » in the column heading and drag to the right unto you reach the » E » column heading. All five columns will be highlighted.

Step 4. Place the cursor on the light gray line between any two of the highlighted headings, and double-click. All columns will adjust in width to fit the data.

Step 5. Enter four lines of data. Create your own or copy what you see below:

Step 6. Save the worksheet. Remember where you saved it. I recommend saving to the desktop. Close the worksheet.

Step 7. Open Word. If a new blank document does not automatically open, go to the File menu and select New . Then open a new blank document

Step 8. It is not necessary to begin typing the form letter. You may start the mail merge process before typing anything.

Step 9. Go to the Tools menu and select Mail Merge . The Mail Merge Helper dialog box opens. As you make selections in this box other selections will become available.

Step 10. Click on the Create button and choose Form Letter from the drop down dialog box. That brings up the following dialog box. Select Active Window.

Step 11. The Mail Merge Helper box appears with choice 2 available now that you have made a selection. Select Get Data .

Step 12. You have already created the data source, so choose Open Data Source from the drop down dialog box.
Step 13. An Open Data Source dialog box will open and you must do two things.

1. Navigate to the place where you saved the Excel worksheet. You will not see your saved worksheet yet.
2. Change the Files of type: box by clicking on the down arrow and scrolling down to MS Excel Worksheets

Step 14. Open the worksheet that contains the data needed for this form letter. After selecting the worksheet Word asks you to make a selection. The only choice here is Entire Spreadsheet . Select OK . Making that selection will open the worksheet

Step 15. The worksheet opens in the background, and Word asks you to make one more selection. Recall that we started with a blank document. Of course there are no merge fields there. It is time to produce the letter. In other words, you will Edit Main Document.

Step 16. Making that selection brings you back to a blank Word document. Notice that a new toolbar, Mail Merge, has been placed with the toolbars above your document. Many buttons are gray because no field has been inserted into the letter yet.

Step 17. Type the following letter. In the first line, I did not type . I put a space at the end of the word of and selected Insert Merge Field from the Mail Merge toolbar. Do the same in each place where you see text surrounded by the less than and greater than signs. The words will not show up in Word as purple, I did that for emphasis.

To the parents of ,

As we approach the end of the first six weeks I wanted to let you know how glad I am to have in my period class. At this time ‘s average is . If I can be of assistance please call me.

Step 18. To see what mail merge does, select the Merge to New Document button on the toolbar.

Step 19. Since we entered four names in the worksheet, four letters will be produced. At the bottom right corner of the Word window you will find up and down arrows that allow you to move to from one letter to another. Possible uses — Any letter or document that needs to be sent to multiple recipients is a good candidate for a mail merge. Some obvious uses include:

• Note to parents
• Progress report
• Certificates

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Create professional letter templates with form fields in Word

Create professional letter templates with form fields in Word

In a society that is characterized by bureaucracy, nobody gets past more frequent correspondence with various places. Therefore, it makes sense to create a template in which the letterhead is already prepared.

If you have multiple people living in your household, you could either create a separate template for each one, or you could take advantage of the controls in Word 2016 to create a dynamic template that works for everyone.

Topic Overview

Topic Overview

We want to describe how to create dynamic letter templates in Word 2016 through controls.

Content:

• Show formatting characters
• Page setup
• Enable developer tools in Word
• Prepare letterhead in word
• Contents of drop-down list controls
• Insert recipient fields
• Insert date control in Word
• Fields for salutation, subject and letter text
• Greeting formula in letter template
• Insert page numbers in Word
• Enable edit protection in Word

Create professional letter templates with form fields in Word

In a society that is characterized by bureaucracy, nobody gets past more frequent correspondence with various places. Therefore, it makes sense to create a template in which the letterhead is already prepared.

If you have multiple people living in your household, you could either create a separate template for each one, or you could take advantage of the controls in Word 2016 to create a dynamic template that works for everyone.

Topic Overview

Topic Overview

We want to describe how to create dynamic letter templates in Word 2016 through controls.

Content:

• Show formatting characters
• Page setup
• Enable developer tools in Word
• Prepare letterhead in word
• Contents of drop-down list controls
• Insert recipient fields
• Insert date control in Word
• Fields for salutation, subject and letter text
• Greeting formula in letter template
• Insert page numbers in Word
• Enable edit protection in Word

1. Show formatting characters

1. Show formatting characters

As a first step, I recommend (as in all work under Word) to show the formatting characters, so we can see where paragraphs, blank lines, tab stops, etc. are.

Fortunately, this is quite simple, and can also be turned off and then off via one-click.

In the tab: “Start” and the symbol group “Paragraph”, click on the corresponding symbol.

See picture: (click to enlarge)

As a first step, I recommend (as in all work under Word) to show the formatting characters, so we can see where paragraphs, blank lines, tab stops, etc. are.

Fortunately, this is quite simple, and can also be turned off and then off via one-click.

In the tab: “Start” and the symbol group “Paragraph”, click on the corresponding symbol.

See picture: (click to enlarge)

2. Page setup

2. Page setup

Next, we set up our page so that later the letterhead fits exactly into an envelope (DIN Lang) with window. To do this we go to the “Layout” – “Page margins” tab at the bottom of “Custom margins”

There we set the dimensions as follows:

• Above: 4.5 cm
• Left: 2.5 cm
• Right: 2.5 cm
• Below: 2.0 cm
• Gutter: 0.0 cm
• Gutter position: left
• Orientation: Portrait

See picture: (click to enlarge)

Next, we set up our page so that later the letterhead fits exactly into an envelope (DIN Lang) with window. To do this we go to the “Layout” – “Page margins” tab at the bottom of “Custom margins”

There we set the dimensions as follows:

• Above: 4.5 cm
• Left: 2.5 cm
• Right: 2.5 cm
• Below: 2.0 cm
• Gutter: 0.0 cm
• Gutter position: left
• Orientation: Portrait

See picture:

3. Enable developer tools in Word

3. Enable developer tools in Word

Since we want to create a dynamic letter template, we need the controls in Word at this point.

Although these are deactivated in the standard installation, it is recommended to make them permanently available via the options menu, since they can be used repeatedly for a variety of tasks.

To do this we go to the tab “File” – “Options” – “Customize Ribbon” and activate the item “Developer Tools” under the main tabs on the right side of the dialog box.

See picture: (click to enlarge)

After activation, the new “Developer Tools” tab is permanently available in every document, which you can use for all sorts of purposes.

Since we want to create a dynamic letter template, we need the controls in Word at this point.

Although these are deactivated in the standard installation, it is recommended to make them permanently available via the options menu, since they can be used repeatedly for a variety of tasks.

To do this we go to the tab “File” – “Options” – “Customize Ribbon” and activate the item “Developer Tools” under the main tabs on the right side of the dialog box.

See picture:

After activation, the new “Developer Tools” tab is permanently available in every document, which you can use for all sorts of purposes.

4. Prepare letterhead in Word

4. Prepare letterhead in Word

Now that we’ve made the basic settings and activated the tools we need, we can go to the first part of the letterhead.

Our cursor is now set to 4.5 cm from above and 2.5 cm from left to the layout setting previously set.

In this first line we insert our sender address in short form, so that the recipient can see who the sender is even before opening, and also for the postman, who, if the letter is undeliverable, can come back to us.

• On the Developer tab – Controls tab, select the Drop-down List Control tool
• Then click the design mode
• Click on “Properties” in the context menu (right mouse button) of the drop-down box
• Check the box next to “Apply text using style sheet ….”
• Click on “New Style”
• In the next dialog box, click on “Format” – “Font”
• Select the font and font size and confirm with “OK”

See picture: (click to enlarge)

Note:

In our example we set the font for the top line to “Arial” and the size to “9 points”. This is a good value according to experience, but of course you can of course set it completely free.

In addition, you can of course choose from already created styles, if you have a suitable for it, and do not have to make these settings completely new.

Now that we’ve made the basic settings and activated the tools we need, we can go to the first part of the letterhead.

Our cursor is now set to 4.5 cm from above and 2.5 cm from left to the layout setting previously set.

In this first line we insert our sender address in short form, so that the recipient can see who the sender is even before opening, and also for the postman, who, if the letter is undeliverable, can come back to us.

• On the Developer tab – Controls tab, select the Drop-down List Control tool
• Then click the design mode
• Click on “Properties” in the context menu (right mouse button) of the drop-down box
• Check the box next to “Apply text using style sheet ….”
• Click on “New Style”
• In the next dialog box, click on “Format” – “Font”
• Select the font and font size and confirm with “OK”

See picture:

Note:

In our example we set the font for the top line to “Arial” and the size to “9 points”. This is a good value according to experience, but of course you can of course set it completely free.

In addition, you can of course choose from already created styles, if you have a suitable for it, and do not have to make these settings completely new.

5. Contents of drop-down list controls

5. Contents of drop-down list controls

After the basic formatting of the drop-down list control, we can now turn to the desired interchangeable content.

For this we simply stay in the Properties dialog box and:

• Click once on the default “Select an item”
• Then change to “Change”
• In the next dialogue window, we exchange this value for our 1st sender address, and confirm with “OK”
• Then click on “Add” and insert the next sender address, which should be available later

You can repeat these steps as often as you like and insert the desired sender addresses that you want to be available for selection.

See picture: (click to enlarge)

After the basic formatting of the drop-down list control, we can now turn to the desired interchangeable content.

For this we simply stay in the Properties dialog box and:

• Click once on the default “Select an item”
• Then change to “Change”
• In the next dialogue window, we exchange this value for our 1st sender address, and confirm with “OK”
• Then click on “Add” and insert the next sender address, which should be available later

You can repeat these steps as often as you like and insert the desired sender addresses that you want to be available for selection.

See picture:

6. Insert recipient fields

6. Insert recipient fields

After we have inserted and adjusted the top sender line, we end the design mode again at short notice, and we can try out the result here.

There is now a drop-down list box available via which you can easily select your previously entered sender addresses.

Next we leave one line free (1x enter key) and start with the fields for the recipient address.

• To do this, we again create a drop-down list element in the first line of the recipient field
• Then go back to design mode
• Swap the text marked there for “salutation”
• And then insert the desired forms of address “Mr.” – “woman” – “company” and so on
• Close the draft mode

Then we go down one line (no paragraph!) By pressing “Shift” + “Enter” and insert element fields for text.

• In the Developer tools, select the Rich Text Content Control item
• Switch to design mode
• Replace the marked text with “Name”
• As described earlier, switch to the properties of the content control
• Enter the desired description title
• Use the styles to either select the default or set a custom style

In our example, we have here again to the font “Arial” and the font size set to 11 points. Repeat the points just described for all other recipient fields (street, postcode, city, etc.)

In the end, the whole thing should look like this:

See picture: (click to enlarge)

Letterhead in standard view

After we have inserted and adjusted the top sender line, we end the design mode again at short notice, and we can try out the result here.

There is now a drop-down list box available via which you can easily select your previously entered sender addresses.

Next we leave one line free (1x enter key) and start with the fields for the recipient address.

• To do this, we again create a drop-down list element in the first line of the recipient field
• Then go back to design mode
• Swap the text marked there for “salutation”
• And then insert the desired forms of address “Mr.” – “woman” – “company” and so on
• Close the draft mode

Then we go down one line (no paragraph!) By pressing “Shift” + “Enter” and insert element fields for text.

• In the Developer tools, select the Rich Text Content Control item
• Switch to design mode
• Replace the marked text with “Name”
• As described earlier, switch to the properties of the content control
• Enter the desired description title
• Use the styles to either select the default or set a custom style

In our example, we have here again to the font “Arial” and the font size set to 11 points. Repeat the points just described for all other recipient fields (street, postcode, city, etc.)

In the end, the whole thing should look like this:

See picture:

Letterhead in standard view

7. Insert date control in Word

7. Insert date control in Word

Now we have done a good deal.

Next, we’ll add a date control so we do not have to enter it, but simply pick it from a drop-down box.

To do this, we proceed as follows:

• Place the cursor in the last line after the control in the receiver field
• Put a left-aligned tab stop at 11 cm
• Press the TAB key once
• Use the Developer tools to insert the Date Picker content control
• Return to design mode
• As before, adjust the date selector for the other elements via the context menu of the element

See picture: (click to enlarge)

When all settings have been made, the whole thing should look like this, and you can easily paste the date over the selection.

See picture: (click to enlarge)

Now we have done a good deal.

Next, we’ll add a date control so we do not have to enter it, but simply pick it from a drop-down box.

To do this, we proceed as follows:

• Place the cursor in the last line after the control in the receiver field
• Put a left-aligned tab stop at 11 cm
• Press the TAB key once
• Use the Developer tools to insert the Date Picker content control
• Return to design mode
• As before, adjust the date selector for the other elements via the context menu of the element

See picture:

When all settings have been made, the whole thing should look like this, and you can easily paste the date over the selection.

See picture:

8. Fields for salutation, subject and letter text

8. Fields for salutation, subject and letter text

Next we continue with the subject line (Dear Mister or Mr.), as well as the title line, and of course the field for our actual letter text

• For this we start from the date line and release 3 paragraphs
• Insert a Rich Text control here again and adjust it as described above
• Then we release a paragraph again and reinsert a drop-down list control, which we use with e.g. “Dear Sir / Madam” and so on.
• Now again leave a paragraph free, and again insert a Rich Text control for the letter text

The whole thing should look like this:

See picture: (click to enlarge)

Letter template in draft mode

Letter template in standard view

Next we continue with the subject line (Dear Mister or Mr.), as well as the title line, and of course the field for our actual letter text

• For this we start from the date line and release 3 paragraphs
• Insert a Rich Text control here again and adjust it as described above
• Then we release a paragraph again and reinsert a drop-down list control, which we use with e.g. “Dear Sir / Madam” and so on.
• Now again leave a paragraph free, and again insert a Rich Text control for the letter text

The whole thing should look like this:

See picture:

Letter template in draft mode

Letter template in standard view

9. Greeting formula in letter template

9. Greeting formula in letter template

Now we have almost made it, and can make us to the greeting line.

For this purpose, we simply leave 2 paragraphs underneath the Text element for the letter text, and either add a dropdown box there, for example, to select between “Best regards” or “Best regards”, etc., or we will leave that alone At this point, remove the control altogether, and write a static salutation into it.

Next, I would again leave 2-3 paragraphs free to leave room for a signature between the greeting line and the name

There, we simply add a dropdown element with the sender name, which should be available to us later.

Now we have almost made it, and can make us to the greeting line.

For this purpose, we simply leave 2 paragraphs underneath the Text element for the letter text, and either add a dropdown box there, for example, to select between “Best regards” or “Best regards”, etc., or we will leave that alone At this point, remove the control altogether, and write a static salutation into it.

Next, I would again leave 2-3 paragraphs free to leave room for a signature between the greeting line and the name

There, we simply add a dropdown element with the sender name, which should be available to us later.

10. Insert page numbers in Word

10. Insert page numbers in Word

Since our letter can sometimes have more than one page, we should now use for the sake of completeness, an automatic numbering of the page numbers in our letter template.

To do this, we proceed as follows:

• In the footer of the document, double-click on it, which automatically activates the edit mode for headers and footers
• On the left side of the formula bar, go to “Page Number” – “Page End” and select a preferred number format, or create your own
• Close the Header and Footer area again

In the end, our letter template should look like this:

See picture: (click to enlarge)

Note:

You do not have to worry about the small distance in our template between the letter field and the greeting line. The greeting line automatically shifts down the more text you put into your letter.

Since our letter can sometimes have more than one page, we should now use for the sake of completeness, an automatic numbering of the page numbers in our letter template.

To do this, we proceed as follows:

• In the footer of the document, double-click on it, which automatically activates the edit mode for headers and footers
• On the left side of the formula bar, go to “Page Number” – “Page End” and select a preferred number format, or create your own
• Close the Header and Footer area again

In the end, our letter template should look like this:

See picture:

Note:

You do not have to worry about the small distance in our template between the letter field and the greeting line. The greeting line automatically shifts down the more text you put into your letter.

11. Enable edit protection in Word

11. Enable edit protection in Word

Before we save the letter template, I recommend to activate the processing protection so that only form fields can be filled out. This gives you the advantage that you do not accidentally change something in the template on the controls, because as you have seen, the whole thing is not even made on the fast.

For processing protection, go to the tab “Review” – “Restrict processing” in the editing restrictions and set best that only the filling of forms is allowed.

Save the document afterwards as .dotx (template).

Once you have made this selection, the “Custom Office Templates” location is automatically suggested, and you can later easily retrieve the template from any document in Word.

See picture: (click to enlarge)

Before we save the letter template, I recommend to activate the processing protection so that only form fields can be filled out. This gives you the advantage that you do not accidentally change something in the template on the controls, because as you have seen, the whole thing is not even made on the fast.

For processing protection, go to the tab “Review” – “Restrict processing” in the editing restrictions and set best that only the filling of forms is allowed.

Save the document afterwards as .dotx (template).

Once you have made this selection, the “Custom Office Templates” location is automatically suggested, and you can later easily retrieve the template from any document in Word.

See picture:

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