We find Data Merge particularly useful when creating communication tools specific to the service design field like service blueprints, concept cards, and others things that require a lot of complicated data to be presented in a consistent manner.

Data Merge takes the information you have in your spreadsheet and automatically places it in repeating elements within an InDesign file. Data Merge transforms large volumes of spreadsheet data into neat and orderly things like sheets of mailing labels, directories, or even infographics. One tool we find useful for streamlining this process is InDesign’s Data Merge feature.

Wrangling the multitude of unique data bits and making sure the text is styled correctly, color coded, and easily updatable can be time consuming and frustrating at best, but transforming a sea of data into something visual is a powerful tool and will be well worth your efforts. Transforming these spreadsheets into effective communication tools for presentations or workshops isn’t so easy. This allows for greater collaboration with partners, advanced handling of data and information, and documentation. A sturdy guide to using Adobe InDesign’s Data Merge featureĪs designers, the first step in taking our thoughts from a physical space to a digital one is often transcribing them from stickies and whiteboards into spreadsheets.

Indesign data merge google sheets