Take advantage of this feature if you need to send a bunch of targeted emails but don’t want to commit to an automated marketing solution. Check out how to set up and use Mail Merge in Google Sheets.
How to Use Mail Merge in Google Sheets
We divided the steps of using Mail Merge in Google Sheets into three parts, with multiple steps for each.
Follow the instructions below carefully to understand the process and implement it successfully.
Part 1: Install Mail Merge
The first thing you need to do to get started is to install Mail Merge.
Simply head to Mail Merge in the Google Workspace Marketplace and hit the Install button. Select Continue in the confirmation prompt.
Then, choose your preferred email account and click Allow to ensure the add-on has the required access. Once the installation process is complete, set up the feature in Google Sheets.
Follow the steps below to proceed with that:
Launch Google Sheets and click on the Extensions tab in the ribbon menu. Choose Mail Merge with Attachments from the context menu and click on Enable Mail Merge. Once the extension is enabled, navigate to Mail Merge with Attachments > Create Merge Sheet. You should now see a merge template with columns like the First name, Last name, Email Address, Scheduled data, etc. in the spreadsheet. You can enter the information manually to get started, as well as add more columns according to your preferences. If you want to add your Google contacts to the spreadsheet, head to Mail Merge with Attachments in the Extensions tab and choose Import Google Contacts. In the following dialog, choose a contacts group and then hit the Import Contacts button.
Once the contacts are exported, you can get started immediately. What we really like about the Mail Merge with Attachments extension is that you can schedule the emails as per your preferences, like sending out reminders on Monday to one batch and Wednesday to another. However, ensure you use the dd/mm/yyyy hh:mm date and time format for this section to avoid errors.
Secondly, you can insert attachments in the form of links for particular users. Simply head over to your Google Drive and copy the link to a file you want to share. Insert that link in the File Attachments tab, and you are good to go. While you are at it, you can also use alternate colors in Google Sheets or change the entire theme to bring your document to life.
Step 2: Create a Template
Once you have prepared your Google Sheet, it is time to create an email template for the recipients.
We will use {{field name}} as the placeholder in this method.
Here is all that you need to do:
Head to the Extension tab in Google Sheets and Mail Merge with Attachments > Configure Mail Merge. Choose Create Email Template from the available options, then click on the Edit button beside the Use a visual editor option. Type the subject of the email in the Subject field. You can add a placeholder like {{First Name}}. Then, add the email body using the same method. If you’re sending the email to multiple recipients for the same purpose (like a meeting reminder), you can also attach files in the draft. Click Save to use this draft in the future.
Step 3: Test the Feature
Once the spreadsheet and email draft are ready, you can start sending the emails. But before you start sending them out to real people, you can instruct Mail Merge with Attachments to send you a test email.
Here is how you can test if the add-on is working fine:
Expand the Send Email Campaign section of the context menu you opened earlier. Click on Send a test email option and select Go.
You should now receive a test email on the Gmail account you signed up with. If everything is good to go, you can choose Run Mail Merge the next time to proceed.
Send Out Customized Emails With Google Sheets and Mail Merge
By now, you should be able to set up the Mail Merge extension in Google Sheets and use it efficiently for work, especially for marketing tasks. Whenever you want to stop using this feature in the future, you can go back to the Google Marketplace page of Mail Merge and click the Uninstall button.
