Merge Documents - Performing a Merge

Mail Merge - Doing the Merge

Main Menu > Miscellaneous > Merge Documents-Summary

Applies to Form: Merge Document Summary

At this point you should have at least one merge category and merge document setup. Now you can start to produce your letters, reports, mailing labels, sms, emails etc.

Producing a Merged Document

NOTE: Not all merge documents can be produced by this method. This method only covers producing merge documents from within the Merge Documents-Summary menu option. Merge documents for enrolments or attendance should be done from the merge options on the appropriate forms in these modules.

1. Select the merge document you would like to produce from within its category in the list on the left.
2. Go to the Do Merge tab on the right.
3. You may have one or more selection or filter tabs displayed within the Do Merge tab. eg. Name? Use these options to select the entities and other data that you would like to include in the mail merge.

   NOTE: The way the data is affected by these filters is determined solely by the query that the Merge Category is based on. Some queries do not use these selections at all. Other queries might use other settings elsewhere in SchoolPRO.

4. To preview the data before running the merge, click the View Records... link on the Category Properties tab.
5. If you wish to change how the data is ordered before it is merged:
   1. Click on the Category Properties tab.
   2. Click the View records... link.
   3. Select the column you would like to sort by and click the corresponding (sort ascending) or (sort descending).
   4. Click Close
   5. Click Yes to save the query
6. Return to the Merge... tab within the Do Merge tab.
7. If you are doing a Document merge as opposed to an Email or SMS merge then:
   1. If you are using MS Word, tick the I am using MS Word checkbox.
   2. If you would like the merge document to be completed without any intervention, tick the Merge the data automatically checkbox.
   3. If you would like to close the original document template after the merge has taken place, tick the Close the main document after the merge has been performed checkbox.
8. When you are happy with all the settings, click Merge the data now....
9. If you are doing a Document merge as opposed to an Email or SMS merge then:
   1. MS Word will be opened and the data will be merged with the MS Word document template.
10. If you are doing an Email merge as opposed to a Document or SMS merge then:
    1. SchoolPRO will notify you of the number of records that do not have email addresses.
    2. SchoolPRO will also display the progress of the merge

       NOTE: Emails will not be sent to entities that have their No Email Contact field set to a date in the future.

11. If you are doing an SMS merge as opposed to a Document or Email merge then:
    1. SchoolPRO will notify you of the number of records that do not have mobile phone numbers.
    2. SchoolPRO will also display the progress of the merge

       NOTE: SMSs will not be sent to entities that have their No SMS Contact field set to a date in the future.

12. Click Done when you have finished producing merge documents.

WARNING:
- If the email address or mobile fields are not present no checking can be done as to whether the selected entities have an email address or mobile number and so no alert will be displayed.

- A merge can only be done if the school_num or the mobile/email fields are present. If neither the school_num or the email/mobile fields are not present then no merge will occur

- If the school_num field is in the merge data SchoolPRO can check the user's No Email and No SMS Contact dates. It will also store a log entry against the user indicating that a message has been sent.

- If No school_num field is in the merge data then an information message will be displayed stating that no special checks can be done.

- Ideally both the school_num and mobile/email fields should be included.