Creating your mail merge fax broadcast list
You have the flexibility to submit your fax list in multiple formats, including comma-separated value (CSV), Microsoft Excel® .XLS, or .XLSX files.
If you choose to use Microsoft Excel® .XLS or .XLSX files, please keep in mind the following important points:
- 1
To avoid any processing issues, make sure you have only one sheet in your spreadsheet. Openfax does not support multiple Excel worksheets for processing.
- 2
Refrain from using hidden, filtered, or calculated fields in your Microsoft Excel® file. Our Openfax systems do not consider these fields, which could lead to the unintended faxing of your entire list.
- 3
For a seamless experience, we strongly advise saving your Microsoft Excel® files in comma-separated value (CSV) format. Before submitting the file for your fax broadcast, it’s a good idea to review the file output to ensure that everything appears as intended.
Setting up your fax list
When sending faxes within North America, the format for the fax number field is quite flexible. When creating a list with fax numbers, remember these guidelines:
- 1
Label the column for fax numbers as “Fax”, “Faxnumber”, or “Fax Number.”
- 2
If you have both North American and international numbers in the same list, add a “1” before all North American numbers to indicate the country code. If your list only contains North Americana numbers prefixing the fax number with a 1 is optional.
- 3
The format for North American numbers can be flexible, including non-numeric characters like hyphens, parentheses, dashes, spaces, periods, or others. International numbers should follow their respective country codes and formats.
- 4
For a seamless experience, we strongly advise saving your Microsoft Excel® files in comma-separated value (CSV) format. Before submitting the file for your fax broadcast, it’s a good idea to review the file output to ensure that everything appears as intended.
| Faxnumber | To | First | Company |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1-555-555-1212 | Valued Customer | Valued | SafeLock |
| 155555512113 | Joe Smith | Joe | Joe’s Diner |
| (555)555-1214 | Jill Jones | Jill | Jones’ Yard Service |
| 5555551216 | Office Manager | Manager | Zen Living |
Fax Data Fields
- 1Label Column A as Fax or Faxnumber.
- 2
Label Column B as “To”, even if unused. This field is option, however the first 15 characters will be printed in the fax header by the fax machine and be included on your final report.
- 3
Duplicated fax numbers persist within the mail merge lists, leading to the inclusion and processing of all numbers, even if they are repeated across multiple lists.
- 4
Feel free to add as many extra columns as required for your mail merge, but ensure that the overall file size for upload remains below 20 megabytes.
Create your mail merge document template
- 1
Please ensure that your document is in the Microsoft® Word DocX file format, compatible with Microsoft Word 2007 onwards.
- 2
Please create a document in solid black and white, avoiding any background photos, colors, or heavy shading.
- 3
Ensure that all text in your document, including mail merge placeholders, is consistently 100% true black and displayed in a solid black color. For optimal clarity, we recommend using sans-serif font-faces.
- 4
Only include information in your list that is required to be merged on your document template.
Place mail merge data on your document
- 1
Placeholders are indicated by enclosing them within a circumflex/caret symbol (^). For instance, use ^First^ as an example to address someone as “Dear First.”
- 2
Ensure that all text in your document, including mail merge placeholders, is consistently 100% true black and displayed in a solid black color. For optimal clarity, we recommend using sans-serif font-faces.
Re: My Sample Mail Merge Letter
Dear ^First^,
Our records show that the fax number for ^Company^ is ^Faxnumber^. Please contact me if your would like to provide an alternative fax number for service notifications.
Thank you,
Help Desk
