Short answer
Open Word, go to Mailings, then Labels, then Options, and pick the badge or label sheet you bought from the product list so Word builds the grid for you. Type one badge, use Update Labels or copy it across, then print a test page on plain paper and hold it over the sheet before printing for real.
Step by step
- 1Check the product number printed on your badge sheet or insert box.
- 2In Word open Mailings, Labels, Options. Choose the sheet vendor and that product number.
- 3Click New Document. Word opens a page already divided into badge-sized cells.
- 4Type the first badge. Name in 20 to 28 point bold, title in 12 to 14 point.
- 5For a list of names, use Mailings, Start Mail Merge, Labels, then Select Recipients from an Excel sheet with a Name and Title column.
- 6Insert the merge fields in the first cell, click Update Labels, then Finish and Merge.
- 7Print one page on plain paper, lay it over a badge sheet against a window to check alignment, then print on the real stock.
If your sheet is not in Word's list, measure one badge and its margins with a ruler and enter them under New Label. Most printer misalignment is a margin set 1/8 inch off, not a bad printer.
Paper inserts work for one-day events. For staff who wear a badge every shift, printed plastic starts at $8.99 each with no minimum, and the print will not smudge or curl.