If you're having trouble running a mail merge with an .RTF or .DOCX template, here are the most common causes and how to fix them.

1. Sumac reports an invalid mail merge formula

If Sumac says there's a problem with a formula inside angle brackets (<<...>>), but the same formula works in Make Template or in a plain text template, the issue is usually hidden formatting.

Programs like Microsoft Word can insert invisible formatting codes into your document. Sometimes these codes end up inside a mail merge formula, making it invalid even though it looks correct on screen.

To fix this:

1. Open a plain text editor, such as:
   • Sumac's Mail Merge Codes window
   • Notepad (Windows)
   • TextEdit in plain text mode (Mac)
2. Type or paste the entire mail merge formula into the plain text editor.
3. Copy the complete formula, including the opening << and closing >>.
4. Paste it back into your Word or RTF template.

This removes any hidden formatting that may have been inserted into the formula.

2. The template is too large

Large templates are most often caused by high-resolution images.

In particular, .RTF files store images in a way that can make the file much larger than expected.

To reduce the template size:

• Resize or compress images before adding them to the template.
• A resolution of 300 DPI is usually sufficient for printing and keeps file sizes manageable.

3. The merged document becomes too large

If you're merging multiple contacts into a single .RTF document, the output file can become very large, especially if the template contains images.

Each merged record may include another copy of every image.

To reduce the output size:

• Use compressed or lower-resolution images.
• If possible, place images in the template's header or footer. This allows the merged document to reuse a single copy of each image instead of duplicating it for every contact.

If you're still having trouble after trying these steps, please contact Sumac Support and let us know what error you're seeing and whether you're using an .RTF or .DOCX template.