One way to start a mail merge is from right within Outlook. Just click on your contacts folder, and then click the Tools menu and click Mail Merge. (You must be in your contacts folder to see this option.) Once you click this command, you’ll see this window:

 

 

All the settings in the sample above are pre-chosen by Outlook, so you don’t have to change anything if you don’t want to. Here’s an overview of the options in this window:

 

-       Contacts:  You can choose to merge all the contacts that are currently on the screen, or only ones you have selected. (Remember, you can hold the Ctrl key and click your contacts to select multiple contacts.)

-       Fields to Merge: You can also tell Outlook whether to use all fields in the merge, or just the fields that are currently on the screen. (A field is a set of information, like company name, business fax, etc.)

-       Document File: You can pick an existing document to merge with (for example, a form letter that you have created) or a new document.

-       Permanent File: Check this box to save this contact data as a separate Microsoft Word file.

-       Merge Options: Choose the document type: form letters, mailing labels, envelopes, or catalogue. You can also choose to merge to a new document, to a printer, or to e-mail.

 

Once you click OK in this window, Word will open. It’s now up to you to create the letter or the catalogue from here using merge fields and other Word tools. (If you don’t know how to do this, don’t panic! There’s another easier way that we’ll get to later.)