HTML Editing Tools

You can edit the text of your HTML-based mail merge documents, and use merge tools to help personalize the documents even further. When you save the document and exit the editor you return to theMail Merge Documents editor where you can define the rest of the document properties.

HTML Document ToolsClosed - These tools are for working with HTML-based documents. Tools for working with word processing mail merge documents are different. See "Mail Merge Tools" for details.

Click to OpenOpen the Mail Merge Documents Editor

Select Editors from the Tools section of the Home ribbon bar. Then, from the General section, open the Mail Merge Documents editor. (You can also use the Search field to look for the editor you want to work with.)

Click to OpenCreate or Edit an HTML Document

The Merge Documents section of the window shows the names of your existing merge documents alphabetically. You can toggle the Show/Hide Inactive icon at the top of the window to include / hide inactive documents. The icon beside the name indicates whether it was created with Microsoft Word or the HTML editor. An Edge Signature icon appears beside documents that include Edge Signature variables.

You can choose an existing HTML document and click Open, or click New to create a new document with HTML.

Click to OpenDesign / HTML / Preview Mode

Use the tabs at the bottom of the window to select your editing / viewing mode. Most people will use only the Design and Preview modes.

DesignClosed - Use this tab to edit and format text, insert images and hyperlinks, and use other design tools.

HTMLClosed - Do not use this tab unless you are extremely comfortable with editing HTML code. Even small errors could prevent your newsletter from functioning correctly.

PreviewClosed - Click the Preview tab at the bottom of with window to see what your document will look like. You cannot use any editing tools while in this mode.

Click to OpenCompose Your Text

You can type your text, or use the icons on the toolbar, or use standard word processing shortcuts (i.e. Ctrl+C to copy and Ctrl+V to paste) to cut, copy, and paste text, including its properties, into your document. Alternately, you can use the Paste from Word icon to remove the text font before pasting.

Merge Fields Copy as TextClosed- If you copy from existing word processing mail merge documents, merge tools, such as variables, will be copied into your HTML editor window as regular text, and not as merge fields.

Click to OpenFormat Your Text

Use the icons at the top of the window to change the text properties and formatting, such as adding bold, italics, font, size, color, superscript, subscript, bullets, numbering, and tables just like a word processor. You can hover over an icon in the HTML editing window to see what each icon is used for.

Click to OpenInsert Mail Merge Variables

Place your cursor where you want to add a mail merge variable, then click the Insert Merge Fields icon from the toolbar and select the variable. Click Insert to add the variable to your document, and click Close to exit the merge field window. The variable will appear as an object in your document. You can drag, cut, copy and paste the object wherever needed. But, DO NOT EDIT the object or the variable will not work as intended. See "Mail Merge Variables" for details.

Click to OpenDocument Title

Use the Title icon from the toolbar to change the document title. When you generate this document as an email, the title will be the email subject. If you do not add or edit a title, the document name will be the email subject.

Click to OpenHyperlinks

You can include hyperlinks in your documents that open a website, such as your practice home page or a relevant YouTube video, or to open a new email message. You might use the email link, for example, to encourage readers to contact you. To open the hyperlink window, select the text to use as the hyperlink hotspot, or position your cursor where you want the link to appear, then click the Hyperlink icon from the toolbar (or press Ctrl+K on your keyboard)

Click to OpenInsert a Website Link

Enable the URL option, then enter the details. Be sure the website address for the link includes "http://" or "https://"

URLClosed - Enter the web address where you want to send readers when they click on the link, including the leading "http://" or "https://".

TextClosed - This hotspot text defaults to the text you selected to be the hyperlink hotspot. If you change the text, the original text you selected will change as well.

ToolTipClosed - This is what pops up on the screen when a reader hovers over the hotspot without clicking it.

Open in New WindowClosed - Enable this option to open the website in a new browser window when the reader clicks the hotspot. Otherwise, clicking the link will close your document and open the linked website in the same window.

Click to OpenInsert an Email Link

Enable the Email Address option, then enter the email details.

Email ToClosed - Enter the email address to whom you want to send a message when readers click on the link. Readers will be able to see this address in the email message.

SubjectClosed - Enter the default subject for the email message. Readers can change the subject if they wish before sending the message.

TextClosed - This hotspot text defaults to the text you selected to be the hyperlink hotspot. If you change the text, the original text you selected will change as well.

ToolTipClosed - This is what pops up on the screen when a reader hovers over the hotspot without clicking it.

Remove a HyperlinkClosed - You can use the Unlink icon in the toolbar (or press Ctrl+Shift+K) to remove a link without removing the link text.

Click to OpenImages

Position your cursor where you want to insert an image, then click the Image icon from the toolbar (Or press Ctrl+G on your keyboard.) Or, double-click or right-click an existing image or placeholder to open the image editor. The image will be inserted at your cursor location, but you can drag it anywhere within the document.

Click to OpenChoose the Image to Use

From Your ComputerClosed – Select this tab, then browse to the image file on your computer. Or, drag an image from your computer onto the Insert Image window. Once you use the image in a newsletter, it will be copied to the Image Gallery for future use.

From the GalleryClosed – Select this tab, then click to choose the image you want to use. Any image you have already used is stored in the gallery (with the exception of URL images that are inserted with the Save File to Server option disabled). To manage the images in the gallery, you can use the toolbar at the top of the window, or right-click an image to create folders within the gallery, and rename, move, copy, delete, and download the images. You can also upload images to the gallery that you have not yet used, so that they are easily accessed later.

From the Web (URL)Closed – To use an image from the Internet, right-click the image on the web page and select Copy Link Address. Then, select this tab, and paste the copied URL into the space provided. To save the image in the gallery for future use, enable the Save File to Server option.


Copyright Notice - It is your responsibility to secure authorization for any copyrighted material you use in your publications.

Click to OpenCommon Settings

Enable the More Options checkbox at the bottom of the window, then use the Common Settings tab to set the size, text features, and description.

SizeClosed - Select to use the image in its original size, or select Custom Size to change the image width and height. If you want to change the width and height proportionally, be sure the aspect ratio tool is enabled (locked). To change the width and height independently of each other, disable (unlock) the aspect ratio tool. You can click Refresh to revert the image to its original size. In addition, you can enable the Create Thumbnail option and enter a file name to create a copy of the original image with the new dimensions (which is most often smaller than the original image size).

Position / Wrap TextClosed - Choose to position the image at the left or right edge of the column, or centered within the column. Enable the Wrap Text option to surround the image with text where possible; disable the option to display text above and below the image, but not around it. To change the location of the image, simply click and drag it within the newsletter template.

DescriptionClosed - Enter a brief description of this image. If the image does not appear in the newsletter email, this description will appear instead.

Click to OpenStyle Settings Tab

Enable the More Options checkbox at the bottom of the window, then use the Style Settings tab to set the margins, border, and image style.

MarginsClosed - Use these fields to adjust the amount of space around each edge of the image.

Border WidthClosed - Use this field to define the thickness of the border around all edges of the image.

Border ColorClosed - Select the color for the image border.

Border StyleClosed - Choose from among several styles, such as "dotted", "solid", or "ridge" to further define what the image border looks like. We suggest you select one border style and use it for all of the images in the document.

CSS ClassClosed - If you have a cascading style sheet associated with your document, you can use this field to select the style to apply to the image.

Click to OpenFind / Replace Text

Use the Search icon to search for text anywhere in the current HTML editor window. You can optionally require exact case matching, and choose to replace one or more or more instances of your search results.

Click to OpenUndo, Redo and Save

Use the Save icon (or press Ctrl+S on your keyboard) to save the changes you have made to your document, while leaving the HTML Editor window open. You can continue to use the Undo and Redo icons (or press Ctrl+Z or Ctrl+Y), even after saving, until you exit the editor. When finished, click the X in the upper right corner of the window.