Document Builder: Generate documents from row data

Prerequisites

1. Prepare your sheet.
2. Create a fillable PDF.
3. Map rows in your sheet to your fillable PDF. 

Once you've created your mapping, you can use it at any time to generate custom documents. 

Use filters to find rows that are ready for document generation. See Create a filter to show or hide data for more information.

Generate documents

1. Select the rows you want to generate documents with. Each row is a single document.
2. Right-click a highlighted row and then select Generate Documents… The document builder window opens in the same browser tab. Saved mappings appear on the right. 

3. Drag your Filename column to the Output Document Name field at the top of the screen. 

   If you leave this field blank, your documents inherit the PDF template's name, making it difficult to tell them apart. 

4. On any of the saved mappings, select the Generate dropdown list.
   • If you're generating your documents from a sheet, you can select either Download or Attach to Rows.
   • If you're generating from a report, select Download. 
5. Review your documents to make sure the data appears as expected. You may need to edit the mapping if the data isn’t populated correctly. Select the Pencil icon next to the mapping to review and edit it as needed.

Generate custom filenames for your documents

When you generate numerous documents without using custom filenames, distinguishing them can be challenging, especially if they become detached from the sheet. For example, the generated PDF name is set to the uploaded document's name, not the mapping name. To avoid confusion, you can use column formulas to generate a unique filename for each document.

1. Create a column for the filename, then use a column formula in that column. For example, use an account number column plus a last name column to generate the filename as follows:

   =[column1]+[column2]

2. In the mapping screen, drag the filename onto the Output document name field.

Generate documents with Control Center or Save as New

Document Builder and Control Center

Your document builder solutions can be part of your blueprints in Control Center. Projects provisioned via Control Center keep the mappings from your template, but are redirected to the items. This is also available via enhanced global updates.

Document Builder and Save as New

When you use Save as New in an asset that includes a generated document, it copies the mapping but redirects it to the new item. Automations remain functional, without the need for manual edits. 

Tips for document generation

Here are a few tips to streamline and improve efficiency in the process.

• Use a form to capture your data: Build a form for data entry to ensure the data in your sheet is captured correctly every time.
• Create custom file names for each document: By default, Smartsheet uses the name of the PDF to create a filename for each document you generate. If you have many documents, it can be challenging to distinguish between them. You can create a formula to customize those filenames and make them more meaningful.
• Customize the email sent when you route a DocuSign item for signature: You can customize the subject and message fields, making it easier for your recipients to identify the message.
• Flag the rows that are ready for document creation: Once you've set the flag, you can filter on rows that are ready and generate documents for only those rows. You can also take it one step further and use automation workflows to flag the rows and generate your documents. 

Additional information

• Owners, Admins, and Editors can attach generated documents to rows in the sheet. Viewers can generate documents and download them to their devices.
• If you generate a new document for a row using the exact mapping used previously, the new document is uploaded as a new version of the existing attachment. For more information, see Keep file attachments current over time. 
• You can generate documents for up to 100 rows at a time.
• If your document has multiple fields that use the same data, link the fields in the PDF and map the first instance. The remaining fields are automatically filled in when you generate the document. 
• If possible, don’t restrict the data types in your PDF. For example, text fields allow people to enter dates in any format. If you restrict the field and someone enters their data in the wrong format, the data won’t sync between the PDF and Smartsheet.