Adobe InDesign - Manual (Page 813)

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You can assign an image field to an existing frame to create a floating image. Or, if the insertion point is in a text frame or if text is selected when
you insert an image field, a small placeholder is inserted as an inline frame. You can resize the image placeholder to determine the size of the
merged images.
Once you insert a data field, InDesign remembers its data source. Any errors in the list of fields, such as typos, empty fields, and unintended field
types, must be corrected in the source application and then updated using the Data Merge panel.
Insert a text data field in the target document
1. Create a text frame on a document page or master page.
If you’re adding data fields to a master page, see Adding data field placeholders to master pages .
2. Place the insertion point in the text frame where you want the field placeholder to appear, or select the text you want to replace.
3. To insert a field placeholder, do one of the following:
Click a field in the Data Merge panel list.
Drag a field name from the Data Merge panel list, and drop it onto the text frame to add the placeholder. If you drag a text field onto an
empty frame, the empty frame becomes a text frame.
Text field placeholders appear in the target application within double angle brackets (such as <>) using the current formatting attributes
(such as font and size).
You cannot create a valid field by simply typing the field name or editing an existing field. You must insert it from the Data Merge panel.
Insert an image data field in the target document
To insert a new inline graphic placeholder, drag an image field onto a text frame, or place the insertion point in a text frame and click the
image field.
To insert a new floating graphic, drag an image field onto an empty frame or existing graphics frame. If you drag an image field onto an
empty frame, the empty frame becomes a graphics frame.
To insert a field into grouped items, table cells, or nested items, drag the image field onto the target.
Image field placeholders appear as frames containing the field name.
Adding data field placeholders to master pages
If you insert data field placeholders on master pages, you have advantages that are not available when you insert placeholders on document
pages:
The resulting merged document contains the original placeholders on its master pages and includes the merged results on document pages
as overridden master page items.
The merged document maintains a connection to the data source, so if records in the data source are modified, you can update the merged
document contents by choosing Update Content In Data Fields. This option is especially helpful if you change the layout in the merged
document and then need to add new data from the data source.
The settings in the Create Merged Document dialog box are the same as those used in the target document, so you can quickly re-create the
current document with the same appearance. You can also use these shared settings to create an identical document with a different data
source, or create a new document with a slightly modified layout.
If you’re adding data fields to a master page, make sure that the text frame containing the data fields allows master item overrides. Select
the text frame on the master page and choose Allow Master Item Overrides On Selection from the Pages panel menu. If this option is not selected,
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