Merge Using Existing Data

Merge using existing data

Table of contents


Any organization, be it private, government or non-profit, require generating content such as letters, emails, labels, and so on. Personalizing this communication is critical when you’re distributing the content to multiple recipients. Rather than generating and sending each letter or email manually, use the Writer’s document assembly tools to automate this process, thus saving a lot of time.

Use document merge tools to generate letters and other documents that are personalized for the recipient, may be a contact or a lead. The content of each document will be predefined in your document template.

Key Features:

  1. In Writer, you can import data from different sources, such as a CSV file from your desktop, a Zoho Sheet file, or merge data from Zoho Forms, extract data from Zoho CRM, or import data from your existing Zoho Contacts. Also, you can create a new data source to merge with your document.
  2. Customize better:
    • The individual messages will almost have the same content, yet some parts of the message require to be customized based on your requirements. For example, you can greet your customers with their name and add personalized subject for each recipient while sending the mail.
    • Schedule the required time for sending out the final shipment.
    • You can send your document inline or as an attachment to your recipients. Also, you can additional attachments while sending the emails.
    • You can send up to 500 emails at once. And up to 1000 emails can be sent in one day. The next of shipments will be looped for the next cycle. You can always check the logs to keep track of the mails delivered.

Availability and Limits

The daily sending limit for document merge based on your subscription. 

You can send only up to 500 emails in one shipment.

  1. Free users: 10 emails
  2. Standard users: 500 emails
  3. Premium users: 1000 emails
  4. 1000 emails for Zoho CRM and Workdrive users, 1000 for Zoho People and Zoho Recruit.

Mail merge limits can be increased by upgrading your account.

To upgrade your account,

  1. Login to and click the Settings icon at the top right corner of your screen.
  2. Select Manage Subscription, choose the plan and the number of licenses required based on the total number of users in your organization. 
  3. Now choose the type of payment to upgrade your account. 

For more information, click here.

Get Started

You require sending letters, mailing labels or envelopes to your users every day, yet it must look like you have sent it personally to each one of them. With document merge, printing mailing labels, sending personalized letters, or contracts and other form letters to customers is as easy as sending emails. Distribute multiple copies of the same document and send to different recipients.

To merge using the existing data, you need the following:

Create your target document

The document that contains the required text and graphics, which are identical for each version of the final merged document. For example, a document with address on the envelope or a welcome message, or a personalized letter.

Create your data source

Now keep the data source ready to merge it with your main document. A data source is a file/database that contains the recipients' details such as, name, address, contact number, email address, etc,. Also, make sure which data fields you require to merge with your target document. Learn how to set up your data source files.

Set up your the final merged document

This is the final merged document that is a combination of your target document and the data source file. Information is pulled from your data source and merged in your target document.

How to merge using your existing data?

Step 1: Select the data source file.

To select the data source file,

  1. Create or open the required document.
  2. Click More > Automate > Document Merge > Merge using Existing data.
  3. Select the required data source from the Merge Existing Data Panel. You can also create your own data source and merge the fields in your document.

To know more on how to set up your data source file, click here.

Step 2: Insert merge fields.

When you select your data source file, a list of data field names will appear in the Merge Existing Data panel. These are the names of the column headers of your data source file. For example, <<Name>>, <<Company>>

The insert merge field also has a search option which allows you to search fields by name and land at the right one within seconds.

For more details, see how to setup merge fields for document merge.

Step 3: Preview and test merge

Before you merge your document and the data source file, you can have a preview of the records to make sure that the field data will appear properly when the data is merged. When you preview records, the document displays actual data from the data source file instead of the field placeholders. Say for example, instead of seeing <<Company>>, you will see Zylker Corporation in your Preview. Also, use the filter or the search option to list only the required records on the Viewing panel. You can navigate through the merged copy from without leaving the document.

Step 4: Choose Output Options

You can choose to deliver the merged document in one of the following ways.

  • Merge this document
  • Merge and save as individual files
  • Merge and send via email
  • Merge and send for sign collection

Here is a detailed guide on how you can preview, merge and schedule your emails

Step 5: Monitor Output

You can keep track of the emails sent/delivered and have a consolidated summary of your merge sessions. In case of scheduled mail merge activity, you will receive a mail with a link to track the delivery status of the scheduled merge. You can click on the link to view the status of the activity. Also view the details of bounce messages on the details page, once the emails are sent to the recipients.Learn more on how you can monitor the output.

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