Most modern orgs skip native Mail Merge in favor of AppExchange document generation. The decision depends on use case complexity and budget.
- List the document templates needed
Customer letters, contracts, proposals, invoices, quotes, etc. For each, note the output format (Word, PDF, Excel).
- Assess complexity
Simple Word letters: native Mail Merge can work. Complex multi-record, multi-format documents: AppExchange package.
- Evaluate AppExchange options
Conga Composer, Docusign Gen, S-Docs, Nintex Drawloop. Each has tradeoffs in pricing, features, and Lightning integration.
- Plan template development
Whichever route, templates take time to build correctly. Plan for iteration with users.
- Integrate with e-signature if needed
Docusign or Adobe Sign integration is common for contracts; pair document generation with e-signature workflow.
- Train users on the chosen tool
Document the workflow for generating each template; users need to know which template to pick for which scenario.
- Native Mail Merge requires the Salesforce Word add-in on user machines. Mobile users cannot use it.
- Native Mail Merge does not output PDF. PDF requires either manual conversion or an AppExchange package.
- Conga and similar packages have licensing costs. Budget for the per-user or per-document fees.
- E-signature integration is a separate concern from document generation. Plan both alongside each other.